With the 2026 Yonkers Raceway racing season soon to get underway, there is still time to recommend changes to the status quo that may prove beneficial to the product long-term. The recently-invoked rule that prohibits drivers from rating a second quarter in 30 seconds or slower could induce modest changes to the way races are run. At the same time, it may be hard to see the fruits of such labor if the focus is just on the second quarter, or for that part, a half-minute that somehow equalizes times whether the race is for $20,000 claiming trotters or Open class pacers. For my money, any structure that looks at only one horse of eight in a particular race doesn't address the complete issue of how races have become imbalanced at Yonkers and why all too often the front-end dominates, producing short-priced winners. That the races lack much action is the by-product of a system that has done little to reward activity by the other drivers and now will de-incentivize the driver of the horse on the lead from rating a horse to victory. Despite the purse money that has been at an industry high for close to two decades now, the Yonkers condition sheet and subsequent racing patterns have remained relatively constant, with the 30-second rule now offering a glimmer of hope for a minuscule change. Reality suggests we will not know the benefits of the new rule until it plays out in the future, but it's hard to imagine any short- or long-term study will see a rise in betting or that any focus group would somehow conclude the races are more exciting due to the adjustment. Perhaps it's time to consider other options that could help alter the dynamics of individual races at Yonkers that put more emphasis on the other drivers in the race and reward behavior that increases the action, not just in the opening quarter of a race but into the second quarter. No matter who you talk to about races at Yonkers, the topic always returns to the theoretical impossibility of overcoming post seven and eight. Those posts are without question challenging, with many drivers/horses unable to navigate the first turn three- or four-wide and live to talk about it. Thus, on some occasions, drivers will try to step out from the outside only to retreat before the horses make the first turn. Better to live to fight another day than run the risk of getting parked endlessly and coming home without a check. For me the problem is that we have accepted the status quo and done very little to put incentives in place for both drivers and trainers when horses land outside post positions. Saving a horse for next week or helping earn a drop in class by going to the back of an eight-horse contingent is a pattern that plays out every night. Essentially the conditioned system rewards those that don't take chances, with drops in class that work favorably for the horsemen and owners but take the competitiveness out of the existing races. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter There is a way for those who care enough to alter the situation, and that would be to create incentives to drivers who actively get involved in the race despite posts seven and eight and press forward. I would not automatically allow horses to drop in class if they take back from the outside posts and trail at the back of the pack in a particular race. Conversely, I would reward any horse that starts from post seven or eight and finds themselves either first or second at the quarter pole. The reward would be freedom to drop in class in their next start. What this minor modification might lead to is more horses leaving the gate and thus increasing the pace of the opening quarter and perhaps beyond. Horses and horsemen would be rewarded for activity. More notably, those making wagers on horses from the outside post will get the benefit of seeing their horses actively motivated in the early stages. If the practice takes hold and more drivers move forward, the entire picture of the way races are run at Yonkers can be changed. As a bettor it's been painful to see single-file races. It's hard to imagine that I or any of the other 20,000 fans that attended Roosevelt and Yonkers Raceways nightly in the 1970s would have put up with the type of overnight action we've seen in the last 10 years. It wasn't easy to win from post positions seven and eight back then either, but races did not fall into line and remain single-file for over a half the race as they do today. No matter what the sport people wish to bet on, it is imperative that they at least have hope to have a chance to win. Erasing the possibility when horses draw posts seven and eight at Yonkers has an instant negative impact on handle, and it's time for the issue to be addressed. There have been others we've spoken to that insist that more races at Yonkers need to be handicapped, essentially admitting that it takes a stronger horse on the outside to overcome the obstacles. While I believe those options may be true, too often handicap races promote inactivity as drivers look towards the next start when they are not handicapped. While allowing horses to drop in future weeks is one incentive the race office could use to promote activity from posts seven and eight, they could also reward those that leave the gate with guarantees of inside posts in the following weeks. We've seen major races reward winners with assured inside draws, and there's no reason why a formula couldn't be put into place to benefit horses that try to get involved as opposed to those that willingly take a back seat. If we're looking to motivate change, I prefer the carrot to the stick.