by Jerry Connors, secretary, USHWA

Harrisburg, PA — The Horseman and Fair World magazine, which can trace its roots back to 1880 but continues to stay on the cutting-edge forefront of accurate, informative, and insightful coverage of all facets of harness racing, has been voted the 2010 Proximity Award in voting conducted by the United States Harness Writers Association.

The Proximity Award, named for the great Harness Horse of the Year in 1950, is generally regarded in trotting circles as second only to selection for the Hall of Fame in prestige and recognition of accomplishment — and remember that the Living Hall, Immortals, and Communicators Corner are limited to horses and humans.

Quite a sampling of the people in the Hall of Fame have worked for or written for The Horseman and Fair World magazine, one such being the pioneering reporter Elizabeth “Weed” Rorty. Today The Horseman continues to break new ground with its editor-in-chief, Kathy Parker.

Hundreds of thousands of fans have paged through the magazine during its existence, reading exclusive coverage and photos of major races, staying abreast of trends influencing the fortunes of the sport, debating the significance of this set of statistics or that one, and of course poring over the race results from all over the U.S. — often checking the recent luck of a horse they once had in their barn.

This past year, The Horseman enlarged its already-significant position among harness racing Internet sites with the introduction of a “mini-edition,” usually before big racing weekends, that was “mini” only on pages — it gave detailed analysis of the big race just ahead, and even linked fans to program pages so they could form their own opinion of any major race in North America.

Many proud representatives of The Horseman magazine, including the USHWAns working for them in central Kentucky and perhaps beyond, will accept the Proximity Award at the annual “Night of Stars” banquet, honoring the cream of racing’s 2010 crop, to be held February 27 at the Marriott North in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. For tickets, accommodations, and further information on that weekend, contact Steve Wolf at stevejw@bellsouth.net; those wanting to honor any champion being feted at the banquet can take out an advertisement in the souvenir Dinner Journal by contacting Kim Rinker at trotrink@aol.com.