Harness Racing: Dave Palone On His Way To Victory Record

From the USA Today Article

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If you took one victory for every day of Dave Palone's life from the time he was 8 years old, and added them up, it would about equal the number of wins Palone has racked up in his career as one of the greatest harness racing drivers of all time.

Palone, 50, has 15,179 victories in his 30-year career, and his next one will tie him with perhaps the sport's greatest North American driver, Herve Filion.

In comparison, Thoroughbred horse racing's all-time winningest jockey, Russell Baze, has nearly 4,000 fewer wins than Palone.

Palone's record-tying and possibly record-setting victories could come on Thursday at his home track, The Meadows Racetrack and Casino, in Washington, Pa.

Filion is expected to be on hand Thursday for the possible record by the man known as "The King of the Meadows."

"Yes, he's coming into town on Thursday and I'd really like to break the record on my home track on Thursday or Friday, but there are no guarantees in horse racing, that's for sure," Palone said by phone on Tuesday, a few hours before he went out and won six races to put himself on history's doorstep.

Palone, who was inducted into the Harness Hall of Fame two years ago Wednesday, says this would be the biggest highlight in a career filled with highlights, including winning the Little Brown Jug, the Breeders Crown and the Adios at The Meadows, the signature event on his home track.

"I was actually thinking about it last night. I think I'm going to have mixed emotions," Palone said about setting the record. "When I was a kid, Herve was my idol. In soccer, there's Pele. In harness racing, there's Herve. When you say Herve, everyone knows who that is.

"Since I grew up in the sport since I was 13, I've followed his career, and (15,000 wins) was a number that was unattainable. To get here, and get here as relatively quickly as I did, it really hasn't sunk in yet. I don't think I could ever replace Herve as the legend that he is."

Perhaps most amazing is Palone's consistency over the years. He has won at least 532 races a year for 20 consecutive years, a record that is still current.

Fellow Hall of Famer John Campbell says what makes Palone great is that he "puts his horses in the right position practically every race.

"The other thing you have to admire is his consistency of excellence. That's what's really startling about this — to be at such a high level for such a long time."

Winning, Palone says, never gets old or ho-hum.

"That's the easiest answer in the world. It doesn't matter if it's a regular race on a card today or a major stakes race," he says. "I've got to go the The Meadowlands on Saturday to race in a feature race, then I've got to Yonkers later Saturday night to race in the Yonkers Trot. And I'm telling you — people don't believe this — but it's just as much of a thrill winning an ordinary horse race as it is to win a major stakes race. It's probably what has kept me going all this time."

Palone has kept going through illness and injury. He says he has broken just about every bone in his body, including a career-threatening broken leg in 2007. "I shattered my femur — it was described to me by the doctor as 'it shattered like a plate of glass.' They put a rod and screws in my hip. It was amazing that we came back in seven weeks," he says.

Yet he's stronger and in better shape than he's ever been, which he attributes to his longevity.

"Physical fitness is vitally important," he says. "If you doubt it, show me a 200-pound catch driver who's successful. There isn't one, not one in the game. That's not just coincidence."

Asked how long he can keep competing, Palone says, "I'm 50, and I think the answer changes per individual.

"Ronnie Pierce and John Campbell, they're at the top of their games right now. And they're in their mid-50s. To me, they haven't lost a step. When you quit seeing your name listed on numerous horses to drive, maybe your time as passed and it's time to lay back a little bit."

Palone, who lives in Washington, Pa., with his wife and three daughters, jokes, "With all the female things going on at the house, I run out of here every day to get to the track."

Yet life at the track hasn't exactly been a state of bliss for those involved in the sport. It's no secret that the state of horse racing has been eroding for years, and Palone acknowledges that help is needed to keep his sport going.

"All racing is fighting an uphill battle with the slots and all the poker that's going on Internet-wide, stuff like that," he says. "But stories like this, we need right now. It's attracted a lot of media attention, and the more new faces at the track we can get, the better."