Harness: Profile of amateur driver David Yarock

What kind of car do you drive?

Hybrid Toyota Camry.

Favorite dinner meal? Snack?

Chicken Parmigiana; Hershey chocolate bar with almonds.

What is your favorite track to visit? Why?

The Meadowlands. It is the premier track in the sport. It is like going to Yankee Stadium.

What is your favorite big event in racing? Why?

I get excited about the Hambletonian because it is like the Super Bowl for the sport, but my domain is the average to low-end horses, so those types of horses aren't in my world. The finals of my amateur series is probably the thing I get most excited about.

How often are horses or racing on your mind?

On a daily basis.

What is your favorite thing to do outside of racing?

Right now it is playing golf.

What is your favorite sport to watch?

I don't watch a lot of sports anymore, maybe the Masters or U.S. Open in golf.

What is one thing about you most fans/bettors don’t know?

I don't think they know a lot about me. Maybe one thing, or at least the thing I'm most proud of, is the amount of time and energy spent and money raised for my charity. I've been running it since 2008.

What is one word that describes harness racing for you?

Interactive. By that I mean that I probably would not be involved in this sport if I didn't have the passion to drive.

How did you get interested in harness racing?

A friend of mine had some horses and a farm. I checked it out, it was about 13 years ago, and thought I would really like to learn how to become a driver. From that I learned how to drive, bought some horses and eventually bought a farm. I really got started by chance. I had no background in the sport at all.

How many horses do you have on your farm?

About eight right now.

You’ve competed regularly as an amateur driver since 2007. What drew you to it?

I like the competition and the animals. What drew me to it is being able to combine the love of the horse with the ability to be competitive. That's what still brings me to it.

Along with Jeff Gural and Jason Settlemoir you created the GSY Amateur Series. How did that come about?

It started about eight or nine years ago. At that point in time, I started looking at other tracks which weren't doing amateur racing, like Tioga, Vernon, Pocono, and other tracks. Eventually it just morphed into doing it at The Meadowlands. I felt like there was room for another amateur club, but it was very difficult to get it into The Meadowlands. I got a lot of resistance. Pete Koch wasn't a fan of having an amateur race on a weekend card at The Meadowlands. There was a stigma of going from having high-class racing exclusively to having an amateur race on the card, but life changes.

Is it a thrill to drive regularly at The Meadowlands through GSY?

Driving at The Meadowlands is a thrill, not just for me but for anyone, especially an amateur. That is the mecca.

Do you feel the GSY series has been a success in terms of giving amateurs a good option to race?

Absolutely, but I'm biased. You should ask the other people who compete in it. We have probably 40 members, some regulars and some racing infrequently.
About two or three years ago we switched to pacers. All three clubs – Billings, NAADA and us – were doing trotters and I decided it made no sense for the three clubs to compete against each other with the same horses and drivers. I think my club is the only regular one that uses pacers for amateurs.

GSY helps to fund the Edward Weiner and Edward Yarock Equine scholarship Fund. How much have you raised? Do you follow the success of the recipients?

We've probably raised and given out about a quarter-million dollars. I do hear from some of the people who have benefited from the scholarship. With COVID now, we have shifted the emphasis this year and probably next year to the general needs of the harness racing community. It just made sense to switch from education to basic needs so we can give money to people hurting. We bought $3,000 worth of food that we distributed to the horse people at Monticello. People are hurting, so I felt buying food was more important than giving someone a couple thousand in a scholarship.

If harness racing is your passion, what do you do for a living?

I'm a financial consultant. I do financial planning, estate planning and insurance from 9 to 5.

Moving back to racing, how important do you think amateur racing is to the industry?

From a personal perspective, if it wasn't for this I wouldn’t be involved.
Amateur racing does a lot of good in terms of P.R. It also brings a lot of people in. It is one of the few growth areas in terms of getting new people involved. It helps support charity. It is a win-win all around.
I put an owner/driver preference in my series, so anyone who owns their horse gets first chance at racing, because the initial idea was to get people to invest in the sport by buying horses. Also, when there is amateur racing, if a guy brings one horse it is more likely he'll bring a second horse and fill the overnight races as well.
When I started, we were racing for $600 off the card at Freehold and now our races are going for $10,000 at The Meadowlands. We have come a long way.

Handle on the amateur races at The Meadowlands has actually been doing well?

Our handle has been good. We earn our keep. We are one of the top-bet races each night.

What was your best moment in harness racing?

My first win back in 2008 (May 24) at Freehold with Shania Twain. I was so excited. I bred her when she was done racing but unfortunately she died after having just one foal.

Which is the best horse you’ve ever owned?

Rompaway Alvin. He wasn't a stakes horse. I'm more of a blue-collar owner.

How did COVID-19 affect your life?

It affected everyone. I'm 65 years old, so I have to be extremely careful about where I go and what I do. One savior has been golf because it gets me out of the house. I’m also lucky because I can go out to my farm and hang out.

If you had the power to change one thing in the sport, what would it be?

We need a commissioner. I know it is almost impossible, but the state-by-state system doesn’t work. I know it would be a hard switch because every state has its own regulatory system, but look at the other sports – football, basketball, baseball and hockey – they have a commissioner. Someone's job has to be the well-being of the sport as a whole. To me that is a major drawback of the sport.

How do you view the future of harness racing?

I'm very pessimistic. If one state decouples it could cause major problems. We need to find a way to support ourselves and not be a welfare child. Ultimately you have to control your own destiny. Do you think MGM bought Yonkers to keep harness racing? Can it still succeed there? Yes, but they are very strange bedfellows. Same thing at Monticello with Resorts World. You can't be in a partnership with someone who doesn't want you. It is like being married and the partners don't like each other, they are staying together for the kids or something, but ultimately they are going to split up.

Time for the stretch drive:

Best Horse you ever saw: Secretariat – I was there when he won the Triple Crown at Belmont Park.
Best Driver: Right now, Tim Tetrick.
Lasix – Yes or No?: Yes.
Favorite TV Show?: Bill Maher.
Trotters or Pacers?: The amateur series has switched to pacers now so I'd have to say them.