TUESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2006
PRESS RELEASE

CALIFORNIA FALL AMATEUR SERIES SETS THE BAR HIGH

Contact: David Siegel (dsiegel@axcis.com)

The successful inaugural fall meet of the Sacramento Harness Association (SHA) at Cal-Expo happily overshadowed the equally successful Fall Amateur Series that took place over 12 weeks at the Capitol's oval.

A total of seventeen races were included in the series at both gaits in a variety of classes. Other than the final race that was contested over a sloppy surface, the fall weather cooperated, as did the horsemen and the fans. Horses from more than 40 stables were represented and the fans wagered approximately 10% more than they did over similarly slotted races during the period.

Tim Clevenger took the championship trophy with David Siegel finishing in second place, Susan Boyce finishing in third, and Jason Maier, who won the finale by open lengths, finished in fourth. These four will represent California as the "West" drivers in the "East meets West" showdown to take place at Cal-Expo in mid-April. Representing the East will be some of the top national Billings drivers.

The California Amateur Driving Club (CADC) achieved its goals during the series. It provided racing opportunities for both long-term-intended amateur drivers like Siegel and Boyce, and up and coming drivers like Clevenger and Maier. In addition, it provided racing variety for the fans that they enjoyed as evidenced by their wagering dollars. In fact, the highest handled race of the meet was one of the amateur events.

David Siegel, CADC president commented, "Chris Schick and the SHA understand the benefits of amateur racing and we so much appreciate their support. Not only did we hold our own handle-wise, but also we have laid some important groundwork in achieving a key goal of attracting additional ownership. In less than six months, we have over 20 members, and have attracted new owners into our ranks. Moreover, some of our current owners have more acute interest in the sport than they would absent our series." He went on to say, "Most of the horsemen understand this as well and have been incredibly cooperative."

The CADC is working with the SHA on a spring series. "While the success of the Fall Series has set the bar high, the CADC expects the Spring series to be even more successful based on what we have learned from our fall experience", Siegel said.

For information about the CADC, please visit www.thecadc.com.