While maintaining a blacksmith shop at Bass Park, I’ve watched the rise and fall of harness racing in Bangor since 1980. Quality racing requires a substantial horse supply. About half (300 or 400) of the horses live and train at Bass Park during the race meet.

Penn National has proposed to build an all-season racing paddock and to remove the existing stables by 2010. They say that the horses may winter in the new paddock. Building a new paddock is a welcome improvement; however, removing the existing stabling from Bass Park is not a good idea. The paddock is a secure holding area for horses just prior to racing. It has open stalls so that the horses may be observed, tattoos may be read, and equipment may be inspected, etc. by officials prior to racing. Stabling is where horses live, eat, and sleep. There needs to be stabling for the horses while the paddock is being used for racing.

The idea of slots and racino was sold to voters as a way to save the tradition of harness racing in Maine. The front page of the Bangor Daily News had an artist’s rendition of a complex that included a new paddock and stabling for hundreds of horses. Voters supported the idea of using the slots and racino to save the harness racing industry. There are 400-plus stalls in the existing barns. Penn National rewired these barns and installed new lighting last summer. The basic structures are sound but need new roofs and siding.

The Bangor City Council needs to hold Penn National accountable and require them to maintain the tradition of harness racing and horses stabled at Bass Park. The loss of stabling at Bass Park will reduce the supply of horses available for racing and contribute to the decline of live harness racing in Bangor.

Kevin Oliver

Eddington