by Matthew Lomon

While their work often takes place behind the scenes, including at times when everybody else has yet to rise, their vital contributions to the harness racing industry should never be kept in the dark.

Track maintenance crews across Ontario work tirelessly to ensure the safety of every human and equine athlete that graces the province’s dozen standardbred ovals.

But as the calendar turns and the weather dips, what’s already a challenge on the best of days becomes an even greater test of ingenuity, resolve, and prudent thinking.

Few, if any, understand those hurdles better than Dan and Greg Coon of Coon and Associates, the mastermind duo who designed the tracks at The Red Mile, Delaware County Fairgrounds, and Pompano, as well as the recent Grand River expansion project.

“There’s a lot of moving parts,” Dan said. “These are dedicated people, and it’s to everybody’s advantage to recognize them.”

Dan was a keynote speaker at the Racetrack Surfaces Symposium put on by Ontario Racing this September.

Facing the crowd of seasoned track superintendents, he started his presentation by “simply telling the truth” about track crews and the obstacles they’re confronted with year-round.

“These crew members bust their hump all summer trying to keep the cushion right, keep it wet, and put in long hours doing so,” Dan said. “That’s the easy part.

“Now, we’re in the winter. The freeze and thaw, the part [of the track] in front of the grandstand that freezes first because of the shadow, the tractor didn’t start. It’s one thing after another. My hat goes off to these guys.”

Clearing the freeze and thaw hurdle, and in a timely manner, is particularly important according to Greg.

“If it’s 35 degrees [Fahrenheit] and the track’s thawed but it’s going to freeze at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning, somebody’s got to be there at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning, especially if it’s going to stay frozen for the next week,” Greg said. “If you don’t harrow it dry, you’ll be up against it for the next week.”

However, that’s only half the story.

Even if the crew makes it to the track on time and successfully freezes it dry, then comes the next challenge: dust.

While Greg says there are ways to manage the dust with calcium chloride, magnesium chloride or salt, it still comes with baggage.

In essence, maintaining a racetrack in the winter is about balancing trade-offs to achieve the most desirable racing surface despite undesirable conditions.

“You’re out there harrowing the track when it’s thawed,” Greg said. “The idea is, as it freezes, you’re breaking it up. You’re not letting it freeze like a skating rink. You’re trying to keep some cushion loose, and the cushion might have a feel like popcorn when you get done, but it still takes the sting away.

“If there’s nobody there to freeze it dry at 2 or 3 or 4 in the morning, the next day, it’s a rink.”

As if that wasn’t perplexing already, the winter months also throw a bevy of wildcards at track crews, including sudden drops in temperature.

“You get to the third race, and it’s sloppy; it’s 30 degrees, and then it goes down to 12,” Greg said. “You can’t be out there working it while the race is on. There’s a chance you could lose it where it freezes faster than you can groom it.

“And it just happens, it’s not anybody’s fault.”

Dan added that it’s possible to skid over the top, but it’s still tough to make a cushion.

With no shortage of conundrums to sort through, both Dan and Greg agree that a shared understanding between horsepeople and track crews is of utmost importance.

“Horsepeople are a pretty hearty group,” Dan said. “They know what you’re up against, probably better than most.”

That was evident during his time at Hawthorne Race Course in Cicero, IL.

Januarys in Illinois are quite comparable to that of Ontario – wind, snow, sleet, all of the above.

As Dan recalls, “Everyone knew it was going to be windy and cold and miserable. In the daytime, it would be thawed, and in the evening, it would be frozen.”

However, instead of sharing their gripes over the less-than-ideal conditions, Dan said the horsepeople were aligned on what matters most.

“Credit goes to the horse people as well; they know what you’re up against,” said Dan, adding with a laugh, “They’re capable of giving you a little bit of a hard time, but you know who to listen to.

“It’s not all about the time. It’s about equine and human safety.”

This line of work is not glamorous. It is demanding and requires a certain level of expertise and skills that take years to hone.

It is also an invaluable discipline that the harness racing industry simply could not function without.

“There’s nothing easy about it,” Greg said. “I mean, we’re not splitting the atom, but it requires effort all day and all night.

“We all know how tough it is for these track managers to find staff. And then you’re telling them you’re going to work nights and weekends? Even though you’re on the day crew, you’ve got to show up at 2 o’clock in the morning.”

The brothers specifically lauded the track crews at smaller venues that may not have access to the same resources as Grand Circuit establishments.

“At Hawthorne years ago, if you needed 250 tons of stone dust to put on the racetrack, you just went to the garage and got it,” Dan said. “Maybe that’s not an asset that some of these smaller tracks have.

“These guys do a lot with sometimes very little in terms of assets. They’re a very resourceful crew.”

Before signing off, the track gurus gave the folks that tend to Ontario’s ovals year-round one more coat of shine.

“It’s a challenge in the summer and even more so in the winter. But don’t think it’s easy in the summer.

“These are great people who work hard.”