Monticello Raceway is bringing everyone “Back to the Track” Friday afternoon by presenting a 12-race card of amateur racing.
The “Back to the Track” promotion celebrates the history of harness racing and involves tracks from coast to coast.
Amateur driver Alan Schwartz once again is the driving force behind Monticello’s second annual all-amateur day.
“It’s a great thing for the amateur movement and for the charity we’re supporting, Juvenile Diabetes,” Schwartz said. “It’s a great combination with “Back to the Track” day.”
With amateur drivers coming in from across the country, a lot of planning had to go into this event. The 19 drivers each paid a $1,000 fee to compete and will each have four drives on the card.
Last year the drivers only paid a $250 entry fee, but Schwartz said raising the fee to $1,000 was necessary to allow the amateurs to add money to the 10 purses in addition to giving them several thousand dollars to donate to Juvenile Diabetes. They originally had 20 drivers scheduled to compete, but Bob Troyer had to drop out at the last minute but still donated the $1,000.
Two other amateur drivers, Mal Burroughs and Ebby Gerry, who never planned to compete, also each donated $1,000.
“We figured we’d raise the stakes and let the kids with juvenile diabetes benefit from it,” Schwartz said. “In addition, the horses that finish sixth, seventh and eighth each get $100, which would not happen in a normal race.”
Schwartz wanted to thank all the participating drivers, especially Bob Krivelin who was responsible for collecting the entry fees. In addition his gratitude goes to the Monticello horsemen and track management.
“This would not have been possible without the horsemen who dropped 76 horses into the box,” Schwartz said. “And hats off to Monticello Raceway. They’ve been extremely accommodating to the amateur movement. They support amateurs more so than any other track in the US.”
Friday’s festivities kick off with first post at 12:50 p.m. In addition to the 10 races coordinated by Schwartz, there will be two races from the C.K.G. Billing Amateur Driving Series.