The successful rebirth of an amateur driving club

The amazing reincarnation of an amateur harness racing driving club thought deceased at Pompano Park on April 17, 2022, enjoyed a spectacular season at the recently concluded Oak Grove Racing and Gaming race meet in Kentucky.

The club, known previously as The Florida Amateur Driving Club (FADC), reformed as the United States Harness Drivers Club (USHDC) and provided the Bluegrass State’s slick eastern Kentucky oval with lively, competitive racing.

Ironically, the reincarnation—or foaling—of the new USHDC began as the racing meet started at Oak Grove on April 16, 2023, very close to the time it takes a standardbred broodmare to have her new baby.

With 28 individual drivers donating 100% of their driver earnings for charitable causes, the USHDC was able to donate some $10,000 to worthy organizations assisting equine sanctuaries, therapeutic centers for children of all ages using horses, and organizations assisting military families, to name a few.

USHDC President Dein Spriggs lamented on the efforts of the Club saying, “It was just amazing to see the spirit and enthusiasm shown by our members—both veteran and new, young drivers. It was amazing and heartwarming.

“It wasn’t just the participants themselves involved, it was, truly, a team effort and it couldn’t have been accomplished without everyone involved here at Oak Grove from the racing side of the ledger to the officials.”

The “team” that made it all possible consisted of horseman Mike Murphy, who played a key role in getting owners to enter horses in races, USHDC members willing to donate their earnings from driving for charitable causes and Oak Grove personnel including Race Secretary Kevin Mack, Racing Manager Cara Collins, Judges Tim Schmitz, Dave Magee and Jeff James, Announcer Robin Burns, Photographer Mark Herron and Ken Jackson of Kentuckiana Farms.

President Spriggs continued, “Ken Jackson got this whole shebang started and horseman Mike Murphy and his wife, Barbara, got us support we needed from the horsemen and that spilled over to the racing department with tremendous cooperation from Race Secretary Kevin Mack and Manager Cara Collins and the rest became history, recorded in the form of the work done by photographer Mark Herron.

“It really was a team effort and judges Tim Schmitz, Dave Magee and Jeff James lauded the performance of our member drivers.”

A total of 24 full fields of racing were contested during the 13 weeks of racing with Tony Dinges taking home honors as the leading driver in our series as 10 different charitable organizations benefitted from the USHDC, which now has over $310,000 in charitable contributions since their inception.

Dinges had nine wins during the meeting with his charitable contributions amounting to $2,500 alone.

Other USHDC winners during the meet were Dein Spriggs, who got his milestone 500th win on North American soil during the meet, Roy Dinges, Cassidy Whitton, Zachery Highers, Carson Conrad, Danarius Dortch, Adarryl Gates and Jim Brown.

Horseman Mike Murphy also lauded the club by saying, “There were a lot of young drivers involved during the USHDC competition and the club closed out the festivities by supplying sandwiches, treats and soft drinks in celebration of a very successful meeting.”

Attendance was bolstered on amateur Sundays with large crowds from the benefactors coming to the races and enjoying starting gate rides, visits in the announcer’s booth and winner’s circle pictures which Fort Campbell AUSA President Kimberly Cody described as “a memory that will last a lifetime!”

USHDC Treasurer Tom Eiches added, “This is what our sport can do for worthy charitable causes, the horse industry, the surrounding community and in getting more people interested in our great sport. It’s what our club is all about!”

by John Berry, for the USHDC