Harness: Drama builds ahead of Saturday's Dan Patch Awards show

For many years, as a sometimes Director and regular member of the United States Harness Writers, I have tried to get all of the Dan Patch Awards announced on one night. Finally, through no action of my own and unfortunately due to a pandemic, we get the drama of everyone finding out the equine and human winners at one time via a virtual broadcast done at The Meadowlands from 5 PM to 6 PM on Saturday (January 16).

While 2021 is an anomaly and hopefully we won't be hosting virtual award shows going forward, the idea of having a night full of drama when everyone can find out who won is very intriguing. Perhaps it will never be the Oscars, but I love the idea of sitting in the audience and wondering. I'd like the idea even if they didn't announce the Hervey awards ahead of time and I was the person sitting in the crowd wondering if I could pull off the upset and win an award for writing. Though I admit I might not like it as much if I won and had to give a speech unprepared . . . lol.

Admittedly, there more arguments against a live reveal of the winners when it is done as usual in Florida or another physical location. First off is the fact that many people travel to the location of the awards and there is nothing worse than spending $1,000 on travel to find out that you are a loser (or at least not THE WINNER).

It is debatable whether a format change would increase attendance. Will more people attend if there are more potential winners? Will some people decide not to spend the money for travel because they don't know if they will win?

USHWA is able to put on the Dan Patch Awards each year in part because of the generosity of sponsors. Many of the winners are gracious enough to fund the different aspects of the event and if the winners are unknown, these funds could be harder to get.

A frequent argument against pre-announcing the winners (currently all winners are declared except Horse, Trotter and Pacer of the Year) is the added publicity value for the sport and organization of having two "moments" in the spotlight. Sometime between mid-December and early January the winners are announced and in addition to a number of press releases which can be picked up by all sources, USHWA gets a second "hit" on the night of the awards when the "big three" are revealed.

There used to be a contingent which argued that since the award show ended at about 10 PM ET it was past the deadlines of many newspapers, but with that medium on the decline and digital media King, that really doesn't hold water anymore.

Curious what others thought, I reached out to a couple of prominent harness racing figures. Interestingly, the results were split.

Trainer Nancy Takter was very much in favor of announcing all of the winners on one night. "I've always said that the winners should be announced in Florida . . . more people would go," said Takter, whose top reasoning was that it is a boring night when you know who won. "This year's one-hour broadcast is probably going to be more exciting."

On the flip side, owner Mark Weaver is very content with the status quo. "I think most of the time you usually know who the winners are before it is announced," said Weaver, who added that he came down with 40 people in 2020. "Other than the drama, I really don't see a reason to change."

One nice benefit of this year's virtual awards show is the timing. The 5-6 PM time slot on Saturday will allow people in Europe to watch before the clock strikes midnight in that part of the world. Of course it means an early wakeup call for some people Down Under, but it is hard to make everyone happy.

The likelihood that USHWA switches to announcing all of the winners on the night of the awards banquet is slim. There are simply too many people on opposite sides of that issue. At least for this year we will get the one-night "feel" as the broadcast team, most certainly helped by many others, present what is sure to be a first-rate livestream.

While many of the Dan Patch races this year seem to be one-sided, there are a few which will certainly be nail-biters and I'm excited to watch.

Will it be Atlanta or Manchego in the Older Trotting Mares division? Do voters go for Venerate or On The Streak for best 2-year-old male trotter? Anoka Hanover or Lady Chaos for best rookie filly trotter? Does Test Of Faith's speed beat Fire Start Hanover's Breeders Crown win?

On the human side, Will it be Caviart Farms, Crawford Farms or Pinske Stables for Owner of the Year? All three had spectacular horses which performed at a high level. That vote could go any way.

The Dan Patch Awards Show can be watched live on USHWA's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/USHarnessWriters), as well as through the Meadowlands simulcast signal, on the track's website (www.playmeadowlands.com), and through the RTN broadcast network.

It's a must-watch broadcast. And the winners are . . .