USTA District 7 meeting held

BEDFORD PA – The United States Trotting Association (USTA) annual meeting for District 7, Pennsylvania, was held on Saturday afternoon at the Omni Bedford Springs & Spa.

Officiating at the meeting was Sam Beegle, who was returned a Chairman of the District. Other USTA district directors present were Barry Brown, Rich Gillock, and Rick Kane. USTA officials Michele Kopiec, Mark Loewe, and Mike Tanner were also in attendance, as were Daryl Breniser, Tony Salerno, and Fred Strathmeyer of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission.

The gathering of 30 had as their primary business voting on 41 USTA rule change proposals. Many instrumental in the formulation or shepherding of these proposals were in attendance and gave the assembled additional background to the propositions, in addition to the language of the rules distributed with the rationales of the proposers.

A summary of the USTA District 7 voting:

1. Corresponding Officer/Ownership Percentages — REJECTED
2. Head Numbers Return — REJECTED
3. Minimum Requirements to Warm Up Horses — ACCEPTED
4. Judges Report Incident Details to USTA — ACCEPTED
5. Mandatory Win Photo Purse Deduction — REJECTED
6. Minimum Time Between Races for 2-Year-Olds — ACCEPTED with amendment of “three days” to “two full days.”
7. Cap on Number of Starts for Older Horses — REJECTED
8. Q/F Drivers Must Race Both Gaits — REJECTED
9. Judges’ Discretion/Race for Purse Money Only — TABLED
10. Sulky Performance Standards — ACCEPTED
11. No Gray/White Outrider Horses — REJECTED
12. Saddle Pads Not Counted as Equipment — ACCEPTED
13. Restrictions on Shock Wave Therapy — TABLED
14. Testing Where USTA Has Authority — ACCEPTED
15. Owner/Trainer Present During Sample Collection —ACCEPTED
16. HRMC Screening Thresholds — ACCEPTED  
17. Absolute Insurer — ACCEPTED
18. First Year Stallion – Cap of 160 Mares — TABLED
19. Prohibit OPU/ICSI Sperm Injection Procedures — ACCEPTED
20. Electronic Voting for Rule Change Proposals — ACCEPTED
21. Widen Window for District Meeting Scheduling — REJECTED
22. Director Elections Not Tied to District Meetings — ACCEPTED
23. Incumbents Declinations Due in July, Not September — ACCEPTED
24. Elections Due to Vacancies Not Tied to District Meetings — ACCEPTED
25. District 2 and 2A Realignment of Directors — ACCEPTED
26. USTA Officers Must Be Directors — ACCEPTED
27. Denial of Membership — ACCEPTED
28. Violations — ACCEPTED
29. Person Not in Good Standing — ACCEPTED
30. Failure to Report Fraudulent Proposal — ACCEPTED
31. Conspiracy to Commit Violations of Rules — ACCEPTED
32. Aiding of Abetting Violation of Rules — ACCEPTED
33. Prohibition Against Individuals Not in Good Standing — ACCEPTED
34. Trainer of Horse for Disbarred Person — ACCEPTED
35. False Ownership — ACCEPTED
36. False Trainer of Record — ACCEPTED
37. Effect of Penalty on Horse — ACCEPTED
38. Participation by Person Not in Good Standing — ACCEPTED
39. Fraudulent Transfer — ACCEPTED
40. Failure to Submit Information — ACCEPTED
41. Location of Hearing — ACCEPTED

Prior to the USTA meeting, the Pennsylvania Fair Harness Horsemen’s Association had a meeting, with President Lisa Dunn in charge; the group’s other officers are Vice-President Harold Brocklehurst, Secretary Michele Daugherty, and Treasurer Darla DeCarlo Ritenour.

The thirty attendees had as their focus issues that could be raised at the Pennsylvania Fair Convention in Hershey PA on the following Thursday, the 23^rd, mostly concerning  increasing the dialogue between the Association and the various Pennsylvania fair boards on subjects as state funding programs, racetrack maintenance, and scheduling of harness racing dates. The Fair Sire Stakes Championships were announced as being scheduled for Monday, October 13 at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania. Members of the USTA and the PA Commission also attended the Fair meeting and lent their expertise and knowledge to the thorough discussions.

From the PHHA, MSOA, PFHHA partnership