Harness: When the drivers are away, the live drives go away

Absence may indeed make the heart grow fonder, but in harness racing it makes the bank account drier. That is the lesson learned by a number of elite drivers at the Meadowlands thus far in 2023.

It is amazing to see names like Tim Tetrick and Todd McCarthy unable to access the winner's circle at the Meadowlands. The statistics are quite glaring. Tetrick, who returned to the East Rutherford oval at the start of March, is only one-for-38 through three weeks of racing while McCarthy, who started back on February 17 at the Meadowlands, is sitting on a two-for-79 record and was zero-for-61 at one point.

Compare the above with the fact that Tetrick was third in North America in wins and second in earnings in 2022. McCarthy finished last year sixth in earnings.

Of course, neither driver lost their ability to achieve at a high level on the track. While they simply are dealing with the aches and pains of acclimating back into the regular rotation of drivers, and trying to get live drives from various trainers, it isn't fun losing race after race.

"For me, mentally it does," said Tetrick on whether the losing takes its toll. "I don't like to be one-for-38. I've had a lot of checks, but I expect it to be slow for a while. Years past I've taken time off and it takes right off. A lot of the stables I drive for don't race at the Meadowlands. I miss not getting Jeff Cullipher's horses back, but that is just part of it.

"I think I've had two horses since I've been back that have had a dot between their numbers on the odds board."

There are two sides to every story, and while being away from the races hurts at the start of the year, it hardly impacts the bottom line in terms of getting important stakes drives that don't develop until late March or April. With the grind of driving Grand Circuit races from May through November, the winter months are also the only opportunity for these drivers to get a little rest and spend time with family.

"The reward of it is being fresher come July and August when it actually means something," said Tetrick, who stressed that family time is important to him. "I didn't even race at Dover this winter. I raced one day a week from January 1 to this past week."

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Tetrick and McCarthy are hardly the only drivers who have seen their records decline due to a less active schedule at the Meadowlands. Corey Callahan went from 196 starts and 21 wins in 2022 to just four wins in 73 starts in the current year. Andy Miller's starts similarly have declined from 120 starts (16 wins) to just 39 (two wins), and it was completely by design.

"There really isn't any reason other than to have time to press the reset button and freshen up a bit. It gives me time to spend with family and take a couple of vacations," said Miller. "It's not necessarily that I'm getting older, but as you age you realize there is more to do than race every night."

When some drivers are away others have their day, and Jordan Stratton has been the main beneficiary in 2023. The former Yonkers Raceway driving champion, who is a mainstay in the top five at that track, sits fourth in wins with 25 while starting 165 times. With Pompano Park no longer in existence, David Miller stayed at home in New Jersey and has picked up 39 wins to be second behind Yannick Gingras (48).

The absence of some top drivers also creates opportunities for the younger set. Brett Beckwith and Tyler Miller have both been seeing nice increases in the number of horses they're driving at The Big M in 2023.

There are exceptions to every rule and at the Meadowlands it is Dexter Dunn. The reigning four-time Driver of the Year took most of January off and came back fresh off the bench to pick up 11 February wins (tied for third in standings) and already 12 (tied for second) in March. Apparently Dunn is immune to a slump at this point in his career.

For all of the drivers who may have started slowly, new stock in the way of 3-year-olds will be arriving at the Meadowlands soon and that will certainly change the dynamic. Even better, we are just six weeks away from the start of the Championship meet when all of the stats reset.