by Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications

Ken Weingartner

Freehold, NJ — Two Saturdays a month, Matt Sicinski III wakes up at 5:30 a.m. and drives 2-1/2 hours from Philadelphia, Pa., to Monticello, N.Y., to take care of racehorses. He stays in a hotel overnight, works with the horses again on Sunday, and returns to Philly late Sunday evening. Such is his desire to become a harness racing driver.

The 27-year-old Sicinski is not ready to give up his day job as a tax account with KPMG, but he would like to own a few horses in the future and race at the fairs or in amateur events. Last week, Sicinski joined 41 other “students” in participating in the 12th annual U.S. Trotting Association Driving School at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in central Ohio. The three-day school, which drew participants from 17 states, is open to anyone 16 years or older.

Each participant got the chance to jog a horse on the famed half-mile oval at the fairgrounds, which is home to the Little Brown Jug, one of harness racing’s Pacing Triple Crown events. Topics covered in the general sessions included care and conditioning, stable management, driving and racing strategy, amateur driving, veterinary care, and shoeing. Instructors included leading drivers and trainers such as Jim Arledge Jr. and Aaron Merriman.

USTA photo

Matt Sicinski jogs a horse during the USTA Driving School last week.

“I’ve always been a big fan,” Sicinski said. “I’ve always wanted to be a driver; I dreamed of it. One day I woke up and said, ‘Let me take a shot and see what it’s like.’ I e-mailed a couple people and they said the Driving School would be a great place to start. So my girlfriend (Joellen) and I decided to take a road trip to Ohio.”

Prior to going to the school, however, Sicinski started volunteering to do work for trainer Dustin Miller in Monticello. He met Miller through Facebook, the social networking website, and has been making the trip north for several months.

“People thought I was crazy,” Sicinski said. “It’s worked out perfectly. I’ve always wanted to be behind a horse. I’ve always wanted to try it. When you’re out there jogging, you’re not thinking about work, you’re not thinking about anything going on at home; it’s just you and the horse and the horse doesn’t talk back. You can talk to the horse all you want.

“My goal is to buy a horse and drive in some fairs and amateur races. I’m getting closer and closer. The worst that comes out of it is that I own a couple horses.”

Sicinski, who graduated from Philadelphia’s LaSalle University with a major in accounting and minor in finance, was among the Driving School students to take the written portion of the driver’s exam.

“I learned a lot in three days here,” he said. “It’s been good. I want to be one of the people that comes out of the school and people say, ‘Oh, I sat next to that kid and now he’s standing in the winner’s circle.’ We’ll see how it goes.”

Sicinski was not alone in harnessing his dream at Driving School.

After attending the harness races at Michigan’s Hazel Park with his parents on a regular basis, Charles Blackwell decided watching the action was not enough. The 16-year-old Blackwell, a junior at Detroit Urban Lutheran School in Detroit, wants to become a driver or trainer.

“Finally I got tired of being just over in the grandstand; I said ‘This is what I want to do.’ I’m going to reach out to people to help me further my dream,” Blackwell said. Blackwell contacted Hoof Beats magazine Executive Editor Nicole Kraft, who put the aspiring horseman in touch with top amateur driver Steve Oldford.

“I’ve been at it since last summer,” Blackwell said. “Steve has been showing me the ropes with his trainer, Al Sisco, ever since.

“I think this (Driving School) is the best place to start if you’re looking to get into this business. I’d like to be a driver or a trainer; not too many are good at both, so I have to see which one suits me best.”

Ben Huber might like to try training or driving as a second career. The 43-year-old from Frederica, Delaware, currently is a senior chief petty officer in the Coast Guard.

“I got into (horse) ownership about a year ago and thought I needed to learn the business,” Huber said. “I thought this would be a nice one-shot deal where I might get a little bit of information from all sides of the business.”

Huber also jogged a horse for the first time at the Driving School.

“There was a little bit more to it than what I thought,” Huber said. “You can really feel the horse grab a hold of you. It was very interesting.

“I’m coming up to the end of the career of what I do now,” added the 43-year-old Huber, who is in charge of a 65-foot tug on the Delaware River in Philadelphia and will soon be transferring to a search-and-rescue station in Maryland. “I’d like to try my hand at driving and maybe get into the training; maybe look for something a little different the second half of life. I really like this industry and hope to be a part of it.”

Bonnie Chambers planned to leave the Driving School early so she could see her son’s graduation from St. Thomas More Prep in Magnolia, Delaware, but her son convinced her to stay in Ohio for the entirety of the program. It turned out to be a good idea.

On May 22, Chambers teamed with pro Ron Taubert to win the USTA Driving School race at Scioto Downs. Chambers defeated five fellow “students” in the 2:20 time-bar event, in which the competitor nearest 2:20 without being under the time was declared the winner.

In the paddock prior to the race, Chambers predicted victory. She drove Raiders Rocky, supplied by trainer Rob Zink.

“Rocky looked like he was ready to go; he looked like it was his night,” Chambers said, laughing. “I’m so happy. This (trophy) is going to look fantastic at home. This feels fantastic.”

Chambers planned to leave the three-day driving school on Friday so she could be home in time for her son, Joey’s, graduation on Saturday.

“My son kept telling me to stay,” Chambers said. “I’m so proud of him. He’s a really good boy. He’s really matured into a wonderful young man.”

Chambers is a literacy coach at Dover High School. Her family has been involved in racing for a number of years and her father, William M. Chambers Jr., is on the board at Harrington Raceway.

“I made some really good friends here; wonderful people,” Chambers said about the Driving School. “Everyone here’s been great. I’ll forever remember this day; the whole weekend.”