Harness: Addition of Roger Huston another cog in the OHHA marketing machine

Ohio is a small state, just 220 miles long and 220 miles wide. From Conneaut in the Northeast to Cincinnati in the Southwest, it is just a 314 mile journey. But this small state lays claim to four pari-mutuel tracks and over 60 county fairs that offer harness racing, many with wagering. And when it comes to marketing harness racing, Ohio has a footprint that belies its stature.

The state’s horsemen group, the OHHA (Ohio Harness Horseman’s Association) is one of the most aggressive in the business when it comes to marketing, maintaining a presence not just at the racetracks but at those county fairs, too. In fact, during the 2019 racing schedule, the OHHA’s four Racing with the Stars Ambassadors (of which your humble scribe is one) covered 13,146 miles crisscrossing the state to cover those 60-plus fairs. For perspective, that would be a round trip from Columbus to Beijing, China and back. And now the ranks of the OHHA ambassadors have gotten bigger, with legendary Hall of Famer Roger Huston joining the organization as its Brand Ambassador.

“They came up with the title,” Huston said in a phone call. “It is still evolving – the job description, but they approached me out of the blue in June and we had a couple of conversations – what would I be willing to do, what they needed me to do, what I could give up, and so on. We (OHHA Executive Director Renee Mancino and President Steve Bateson) met a few times and we finalized things in October. So I submitted my resignation to The Meadows.”

Huston, who has called over 188,000 races in his storied career, continued. “I had been looking to cut back a bit. I will still do Delaware and my other county fairs – Carrolton, Xenia (his home town) and Lisbon. Maybe a couple others. And I will still go to Ireland for the Vincent Delaney Memorial – as an OHHA Representative. There is a chance to promote Ohio harness racing over there, too. I will probably call 500 races a year instead of 2500. I may not get to 200,000 races called, but I will certainly get to 190,000.”

“We were looking for an outreach person with knowledge of the sport,” explained OHHA President Bateson. “We have done some outreach things here and there. You can lay down all the bunt singles you want, but sometimes you have to swing for the fences. I think we hit a home run with Roger.”

Another piece of fan outreach is not an official part of an OHHA initiative, but comes from Mike Woebkenberg, the starter at Miami Valley and Dayton Raceways, and at many of the county fairs across the state. He offers rides in the starting gate, giving fans a chance to see the action close-up. This summer, Mike and I were able to team up to provide that chance to some of the county fair goers – many of them casual fans – through the Racing with the Stars promotion.

Huston will be working closely with OHHA Outreach and P.R. Coordinator Frank Fraas, too, doing events at the state’s four raceways. He will begin his duties this weekend representing OHHA at the Ohio Colt Racing Association (OCRA) banquet in Urbana, Ohio, and the plan is also for him to attend Fair Board meetings to provide expertise for them to run their one or two-day race meets.

The biggest aspect of Huston’s new job will be a regular podcast, scheduled for three times a week, highlighting Ohio harness racing. “It will feature race previews and recaps, profiles of personalities – drivers, trainers, owners—and other information, but with a flexible format, allowing us to discuss what is going on at any given time. It will launch in December, because I am still learning how to record and edit these segments,” Huston explained.

“The podcast will evolve,” said Bateson. “I think we are more concerned with quality than quantity. Some times of the year we may need to be out there more, but we don’t want to just be filling air time.”

While other states have put slot and casino money to good work promoting the sport, the OHHA has been particularly aggressive, with wrapped trailers, the Racing with the Stars program, billboard advertisements and a specially targeted website for new race fans. Bringing in one of the biggest names in harness racing media will give the OHHA one more tool to promote the sport. And the always gregarious Huston is excited.

“It means a lot. I am a native Ohioan. I started calling the county fairs here before going to Pompano and then to The Meadows. It’s been a great 44 years there. Eighty or ninety thousand races at the Meadows. Dragon’s Lair and Nihilator. It’s been a good run and I am excited to see how the new position develops.”

That’s it for this month. Now go cash. Maybe on some Ohio racing.