Track Topics for the Week of October 20, 2003

Weekly
Week of October 20, 2003
HTA ANNOUNCES SPECIAL NEW ART SERIES,
COMPETITION FOR TRACK PHOTOGRAPHERS
HTA has reestablished a working relationship with noted sports artist and sculptor
Jim Ponter, the former lead artist for the Philadelphia Bulletin and a top sculptor
for the Franklin Mint, who 30 or 40 years ago painted a classic series of the top
drivers in harness racing for HTA and the old Harness Racing Institute. Jim’s work
of athletic figures are among the best done anywhere, by anyone.
We already have commissioned four of the sport’s biggest current stars – John
Campbell, Mike Lachance, Luc Ouellette and Ron Pierce – as the first of a series
that Jim will do for HTA and its member tracks. They are available in either color
for giveaways or black and white for publicity use and can be seen here and in color
on our HTA Web site at www.harnesstracks.com. Those commissioned by us will be
available without cost to member tracks.
If you are interested in having your leading drivers or track officials or others painted
by Jim, we will have them done in color at the very special price of $300 each,
which is a real bargain for the work of this highly regarded artist, who these days
does mainly large commissioned bronzes. All you need to do is send a sharp, good 8
x 10 color headshot of the driver and another daylight shot of him driving a horse in
action, or a trainer or other personality, and we will take it from there, in color that
can of course also be used as a black and white.
Take a look at Jim’s work on the next page and avail yourself of this opportunity.
The next four drivers in the new series will be David Miller, Dave Palone, Chris
Christoforou and Cat Manzi, with more to follow during the course of the year.
Luc Ouellette
Mike Lachance
John Campbell
Ron Pierce
NEW COMPETITION FOR TRACK PHOTOGRAPHERS
HTA is introducing a new competition for member track photographers, in the hope
of encouraging greater creativity and backstretch activity as opposed to time spent
in shooting and selling winners’circle photographs. Feature pictures of horses and
individuals are becoming a lost art, and we hope to rekindle the spirit of creativity
and initiative that once characterized the profession and generated publicity coverage. Details will be announced in next week’s Track Topics.