Have you ever felt pigeonholed?
The Gold Cup and Saucer harness race at Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
(click image to enlarge)
I always wanted to be a sports photographer, perhaps because I was never quite good enough to make it as a professional athlete. God knows I tried.
As a kid growing up in the late 60’s and early 70’s, Bobby Orr was God. I believe it was every Canadian kid’s dream to score the game-winning goal in game seven of the Stanley Cup final. I can still envision myself flying through air with arms reaching to the heavens as Tony Esposito is sprawled on his back, clearly beaten. Then I wake up.
Sometime between now and then I acquired a camera and started shooting for the community weekly newspaper. Man that was heady stuff; my ego had never been so inflated. Payment was another roll of free film to shoot for the newspaper and access to the makeshift darkroom to do all of the processing and printing.
I was in my second heaven, of sorts. Even got to photograph Christopher Reeve when he “pulled alongside” in his sailboat.
But still, no sports.
Then harness racing seemed like a good career choice. Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island is known for producing some of the best horse people in the country. I moved along pretty quickly from groom to training, and worked from the Maritime tracks to the bigger tracks in the country at Mohawk and Flamboro, in Ontario. At Flamboro I got to work with some of the best people and horse talent in the country, and also had an offer to move to California to work with the legendary Joe O’Brien. The US government and their green card thought otherwise.
And here it is, twenty five years later and I finally receive my first assignment to cover a sports event: The Gold Cup and Saucer harness race at Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
The smells, the people, the language, and the heartburn rendering hot dogs have all remained the same. Intermixed with the sweat and liniments is the hope and dreams of young grooms spending long and late hours of hot-walking rank horses that will kick and bite at the closest thing - usually the groom. Some will make it to “The Big Time” and many, many more won’t.
I have always been amused at why most photos of horse races are high shutter speed, stopped action affairs. Anyone who understands this sport knows that the track is about quick reaction and reflexes, a fine line mixture of adrenaline and speed, all topped with a prayer that you make it through the night without being involved in an accident.
And so as I released the shutter, panned, and zoomed all at the same time, I also closed my eyes and hoped for the best.
You reach the first turn; eight, ten or perhaps even a dozen horses all racing for the front - or not, for fear of being boxed in. The speed is exhilarating, about 55Km/hr and you hope nobody runs into you, or worse still, you run into someone else.
And so it was, as I stood in safety behind the first turn fence remembering all that I loved about the sport. It is funny how time makes one forget, forget about mucking stalls, being bitten, and squeezed, and kicked; but instead remembering the good times, the fun, and the exhilaration and fear of going into that first turn for the first time.
But, as with my hockey dreams, I wasn’t quite good enough.
Yet the driver wearing the green and gold in this shot is good; damned good. He drives all across North America, and is based out of Flamboro Downs, near Hamilton. I knew his uncle when we were next-door neighbours and he drove horses for the farm where I worked. I knew his father quite well, too. His grandfather sold me my first horse; as a word of caution, never buy a racehorse at night in a dark barn from a horse trader.
I couldn’t help but cheer for Jody Jameison. He truly is one of the best in the business, and he comes by his talent honestly. How good? Good enough to be the world champion harness horse driver at age 25, and consistently a top winning driver in North America every year.
Incidentally Jody won this heat and as a result qualified for the prestigious Gold Cup and Saucer, one of the most sought after trophies in Canadian harness racing. Jody had a previous commitment and couldn’t drive in the Saturday night classic, so his father lowered himself into the bike and drove on to the win.
And so as I released the shutter, panned, and zoomed all at the same time, I also closed my eyes and hoped for the best. This image didn’t get to run in the spread, but to me it typifies everything I know about the sport: a symphony of hooves, wheels, colour and speed all reaching the climax in less than two minutes at the finish line.
So I am left to wonder if we do get pigeonholed? Yes, I believe so. Therefore the trick is to continue shooting what we love, whether on assignment or not. Oh yeah, I have also ventured back to the hockey rink to take shots (with a camera) purely for the love of it.
© Dale Wilson
March 20th, 2007 at 11:18 am
Dale,
Fine shot, good story! One of the main benefits about being a working photographer is that one is constantly learning – learning about things that have nothing directly to do about photography. Isn’t it great? On our blog here, I’m coming to realize that this is true even when the photographs aren’t your own. Before reading your post, I knew nothing concerning harness racing. Now I know at least a thing or maybe even two about it.