Page 13 - December 2018 Thoroughbred Highlight

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racetracks throughout the country. Seventeen universities took part in the races each of which heralded parents and school mates to come out to cheer and thus introducing ocks of new fans to harness racing excitement.
The Intercollegiate Driving Championships nal was then held at Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellville, Ontario to much fanfare.
Bill was then inspired to implement a worldwide championship and set out to invite young drivers from Norway, Sweden, Australia, Denmark, Holland and Germany to compete for $5,000 at the World Driving Intercollegiate Championship to be held at Greenwood Racetrack in Toronto.
A deal was made with then CP Air regional manager, who happened to love the races, to y the 10 young
inaugural Ice Races in 1979. The old trotter, Prince Demon owned by Claire Smith, won easily, and Hull was presented with the trotter, which he raced at the Fair meetings in Manitoba where he had his cattle ranch.
The race event garnered close to 2 hours of live television broadcasting and generated coast to coast newspaper coverage of the event as well as ve pages in Sports Illustrated.
Other notable promotions were the Race against Multiple Sclerosis which raised $5million for the MS Society while garnering tremendous awareness of the sport.
Although now long since retired from formal employment, Bill Galvin, now in his mid 70’s, remains sharp and continues to nd
apers. drivers to Toronto in exchange
go for advertising sponsorship . The
tting young university students roomed d at the Constellation Hotel where an ith eventful press conference was held orse to promote the Championship. 50 ole Members of the Burlington Teen
blic Tour Band lead a procession of down each of the drivers with horse and e sulky carrying their country ag. In me the days that followed the young
for drivers were treated to a tour of Blue uarter Bonnets in Quebec as well as water
Artist
John Verdura provided all of the original artwork for the Guineas’ Gazette
ways to engage our youth to become enamoured with horseracing.
His latest effort was to bring back his Youth Literary Derby, a horse themed writing contest designed to engage Ontario-resident youngsters in Grades 5 through 8.
According to his website youthliteraryderby.ca there are divisions for both poems and essays with content to be based upon encounters and impressions gleaned from visits to local Standardbred breeding farms in the midst of foaling season in April and May.
The three prize winners per category would receive $250, $150 and $100 respectively, and identical amounts donated to the entrant’s school or local library if home schooled.
The winners were announced in August and at the beginning of October were treated to a fabulous day which included a visit to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, in which Bill was inducted in 2016, a visit to the track announcer booth and jockey room during racing at Woodbine along with
a special VIP award presentation and dinner and racing at Mohawk Race Track.
Today when fan and youth engagement in our sport is waning, it might be time to look at the photos and paintings in the back halls to learn of the past successes behind the photos and paintings. The photo of White Apache ultimately revealed the story
of Bill’s life, a gentleman who made a
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skiing in the Kawarthas. The night of the Championship consisted of two divisions and the nal. Bill is proud to report that four of the youth taking part in that event are still involved in horseracing today.
When John Mooney left the OJC Bill then took a position at the Canadian Trotting Association which gave him an opportunity to do more nationwide promotions. From the CTA of ces Bill resurrected one of the more unique racing events in Canadian harness history, racing on the ice in Ottawa. They hadn’t raced on the ice in the nation’s capital since 1892 when there was a 5000 seat grandstand overlooking the racing strip on the Ottawa River.
In 1979 close to 40,000 spectators
braved a driving snowstorm to watch
the 8 double heat races going 1/4
mile on the ice cover of the Rideau
Canal. Anyone who was anyone
was in attendance that day including
Canada’s Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau and his three young sons.
Bill had also sent a letter to “The Golden Jet” Bobby Hull inviting him to race against 4 junior hockey players in a relay race on the ice. Bill was recently quoted to this regard,”
I arranged to have Bobby Hull drive a 15-year-old trotter in a quarter mile dash against a relay of four hockey players on the Canal at the
difference in this sport and I am thankful that on that day we took the time to notice the pictures on the walls.
Thoroughbred Highlight, December 2018, Page 13
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