Karyn Malinowski on harness racing
Archived article from Oct 6, 2003
By Amy Vames
For those who wonder what it’s like to sit in a sulky and take part in a harness race, Karyn Malinowski suggests they do the following: “Get in your car and drive down a straight highway at 35 miles an hour. Now open the car door and look down at the ground. That will give you an idea of what it’s like.”
While Malinowski isn’t serious about the suggestion, she says having people imagine that scenario is the best way to help them understand what it’s like to drive a harness racer. “There is nothing like it in the world,” she says of the feeling of holding the reins that control a 1,000-pound horse and seeing virtually nothing in front of you — except for the horse’s back side. “When I get behind him in the jog cart, I can forget all of the stress of work and focus entirely on him and the fun I am having,” she adds.
Malinowski, dean of outreach and extension programs at Cook College and director of the Equine Science Center, has long loved harness racers and occasionally drove them. “The standardbred is a very special horse. They are very forgiving, very patient and have a wonderful temperament. They are much quieter than a thoroughbred.”
Her dream of owning her own pacer became a reality in September 2001 when she bought a 10-year-old gelding standardbred, who goes by the name Could Be Magic.
Malinowski was not satisfied to simply own a harness racer; she wanted to be an active participant in the horse’s racing career. So she began to train with him. In their very first race together in April at Freehold Raceway, they won. In a race in June, they came in fifth out of 10 horses.
Malinowski is a member of the New Jersey chapter of the American Harness Drivers Club, which awards points to horses that finish in first through fifth places. If Malinowski gets enough points in the next few months, she will be eligible to race at the Meadowlands around Thanksgiving.
“The biggest challenge for me is judging where to maneuver the horse for the best position and being able to judge the distance between myself and other horses,” says Malinowski. To keep her arms strong, she regularly does upper body workouts.
Although she would be thrilled to qualify for the Meadowlands race later this year, she is also thrilled simply to have “Could Be Magic” in her life. “We have a special bond,” she says. “I have never been afraid while driving him, and I know he takes care of his ‘mom’ on the race track.”
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