Harness Racing Information

Harness racing is when the horse is pulling a light two-wheeled cart and a driver rather than having a rider. The horse usually is not galloping, but performing at a trot or a pace. Pacers and trotters do not compete against each other, because the pace is an inherently faster gait than the trot. Harness races are held all over the world, but are particularly popular in Australia, France, Norway and Sweden.

  1. Breeds

    • The fastest harness racing horse is the American standardbred. However, there are races restricted to native harness racing breeds. In Russia, for example, Orlov trotters are slower but tolerate the harsh climate better. Other harness racing breeds include the French trotter, the North Swedish trotter and the ban-ei race horse of Japan.

    Types

    • Most races today are held over a one-mile dirt track. The first horse over the finish line wins. But in America, harness race horses originally had to win a best-of-three heats. This style of racing lasted until the 1970s, when races began to be held at night in glamorous tracks such as the Meadowlands. In order to lure bettors, races were changed from heats to dashes.

    Rules

    • All horses must be registered with the nation's breed registry. In America, this is the United States Trotting Association. Horses must stay at the designated gait all throughout the race. If they break into a canter or gallop, they are pulled to the extreme outside and usually are disqualified. If the driver falls out of the sulky, the horse is disqualified. Random horses in the race are submitted to drug tests.

    Speed

    • According to "Storey's Illustrated Guide to 96 Horse Breeds of North America," the average time for a horse to trot a mile was once 2 1/2 minutes. With improvements in breeding and making racing sulkies lighter, a horse can now trot or pace a mile in less than two minutes. The fastest mile paced was 1:46 1/5 by Cambest in a time trial in 1993.

    Top Races

    • In the United States, the top harness races are the Hambletonian for 3-year-old trotters and the Breeder's Crown series of races. In Australia, the top events for pacers and trotters are the Inter Dominion Series. France's top race is the Prix de Amerique. Sweden's biggest race is the Elitoppet, run in three heats. There is an annual World Trotting Conference and World Driving Championship held at various tracks around the world.