by Dave Schmidt, County Fair Harness Racing Alliance

Celina, OH — The County Fair Harness Racing Alliance is starting to develop a series that could be the “Super Bowl” of county fair harness racing.

The final race would feature the top two horses from each state that is participating in the program (pace and trot) at a yet to be determined site, although talks with some locations about this have taken, shooting for a 2007 date.

There are several options being looked at and will develop as the program starts. A meeting of state representatives is a possibility in a central location to discuss the future of the event.

The hopes of this event will be to enhance county fair racing on a national level without taking away the charm of the local county fair. A key to making this work will be acquiring corporate sponsorships. The basis of this event will allow each state to activily participate and also oversee the operation of their state program, while working with the other states. The CFHRA will be starting a campaign to find corporate money and also implement a marketing plan as well.

This is an opportunity long overdue to help give county fair racing its rightful place in the harness racing world. County Fair racing is the “grassroots” of the sport, many fans may only see harness racing at their local fair. So by giving them the opportunity to see a quality product can only make racing on a whole stronger for the future.

The CFHRA has had talks with several states about possibly being involved in the program.

Please contact Dave Schmidt at daveschmidt@bright.net for more information.