Macedonio: Harness Racing needs FUN!
Do you think harness racing is FUN? We all know any type of sport has its moments of excitement. Think of every sport and the great moments you remember. Take a minute . . . as a child; as an adult; watching with family, friends, and at parties. Every sport can have unbelievable energy and important milestones and achievements, but without FUN, no one watches between those moments.
Why don’t we have more fun? Why are there so few celebrations?
I’ve heard my entire life to, SIT DOWN . . . BE HUMBLE . . . act like you’ve been there before . . . show no emotion. But why? Are the karma gods going to smite me down for celebrating? Am I going to offend someone and hurt someone’s feelings?
Consider this scenario:
I put in years of work perfecting my craft. It could be any skill from dribbling a basketball, to painting, to guitar playing, to training horses. I enter a contest, race, live event . . . the biggest moment of my career in this area . . . and I win. Years of blood, sweat and tears and I’m supposed to just act normal?
If I act normal, how are others surrounding me supposed to know that this event is the biggest achievement in my career? How are others watching around the world supposed to know? And finally, if others don’t see my joy and they don’t understand what I’ve just accomplished, why should they CARE?
We need to showcase more FUN in harness racing. People should be allowed to celebrate! Those celebrations should not only be encouraged, but also promoted!
I’ve watched races in the paddock next to 50 people under the big main TV, and I’ve seen caretakers and trainers cheering their horses as they crossed the line first, and sprint to the golf cart to get taken to the winner’s circle. I’ve also seen the people left in the paddock who didn’t win making smug faces and remarking under their breath at how much of a showoff the winners were.
So help me understand this, you lost and the only thing you can think about in that moment of defeat is how the winners are showoffs? You deserve to lose very often with that attitude. Instead you should be congratulating the winners with a smile. When you’re done with that, maybe ask them how they managed to beat you. Maybe you should work harder or maybe you should work longer or smarter instead of coming up with an excuse. You should be mad, angry, and upset that you lost, but don’t ruin their moment or other people’s opportunity to celebrate.
Excitement is what brings people to the sport. Celebrations, stories, and FUN turn those people into fans.