How harness racing helped save my life

Harness racing has become my whole life over the last few years.

As a kid, it was just something I enjoyed watching with my family but now it has become my whole way of life. I can honestly say that harness racing saved my life. With Jan. 25th being Bell Let’s Talk Day, it has given me time to reflect on my mental health. For those who are unaware, Bell Let’s Talk is a year-round initiative focused on engaging Canadians to take action to create positive change in mental health

I discovered a couple of years ago that I had strong traits of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Those who suffer from BPD can experience intense mood swings, inappropriate anger, feelings of dissociation and in extreme cases, self-harming with suicidal behaviour. I check most of those off my list and it can be a struggle to balance all the empty feeling inside.

The spring of 2019 is when things started going south for me. This was when my ex-wife and I started our separation. It was a challenging time, and it would be an understatement to say I started hitting the booze hard. Days, when I didn’t have my kids, were some of the longest and most difficult to manage. At some point during that spring, I decided I was going to enroll in school and started attending the University of Winnipeg. I was not certain what I wanted to take or where it would lead me but I was certain it was what I needed in my life. That little voice in my head kept telling me it was the right thing to do.

I started attending class in the fall of 2019 and it wasn’t too long before a job posting on Facebook caught my eye. “Announcer Wanted” in nice bold print on the Manitoba Harness Racing Facebook page. At the time, I was taking first-year classes and I had not settled on a program. But seeing the job posting made me ponder if this was something I could do. I never thought I would get the position but maybe something positive would come from it. I had never announced anything in my life and public speaking terrifies me. But during the difficult times, I was facing, doing something outside my comfort zone felt right. I sent away my resume and I just hoped for the best.

After just finishing up my first year back in university and living through a pandemic, I was not sure what to expect regarding the announcer position. However, the day came when I received an email from Manitoba Standardbred Racing Industry President, Trevor Williams, inviting me to attend a tryout day for the position. When the day of the try-outs came, my trip to Miami, MB became did not go as played. It started to rain so hard that my car’s windshield wiper couldn’t keep up. I received a text from Trevor saying that the qualifier races were not going to happen until later in the day if it dried up. Unfortunately, I had commitments to another job at the time, so I was unable to make it later. I thought my journey had ended right there and then. I thanked Trevor for the opportunity to that point but he still wanted to give me a shot.

I was asked to send in a few voice recordings of me calling some races. I found replays to races from Red Shore’s Charlottetown as they have similar field and track size to those in Manitoba. I watched the race replays multiple times and listened closely to how Red Shore’s Charlottetown announcer, Vance Cameron called the race. I felt like I needed to do everything I could to get an edge. What I sent in must of been good enough to get me the position and now three years later I’m still here baby! Getting the opportunity to be the announcer, opened up other exciting roads. Just on a whim, I applied for Standardbred Canada’s Junior Editor internship and got the job. I was lucky enough to get that position again for a second summer in a row and that experience helped me get the current spot I have at Harnesslink.

With it being Bell Let’s Talk Day soon I felt it was important for those of us who are inflicted by mental health issues and willing to talk about those issues to do so. I know many people see me as a happy, positive and energetic person but that is far from the truth. It is important to spread the message that it’s okay to not be okay. It’s okay to have times of despair but the important part is how we get out of it. I could not see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it did eventually come.

Harness racing came back into my life around the same time I met my partner Jazmin. Now my life consists of her, my three children and harness racing. I have zero complaints about where my life is today, and I hope that everyone who is going through a rough time right now can find happiness. No matter how down you may feel, there is always a way out and that message should be stated every day not just on Let’s Talk Day.

For more information on Bell Let’s Talk Day, visit www.letstalk.bell.ca.

by Trey Colbeck, for Harnesslink