Harrisburg, PA --- Lots of people pull a horse trailer to Harrisburg, hoping to go home with a future champion, but not many of those trailers have Texas plates.

Greenville, Texas native Bernard Demars made the 20 hour drive to Harrisburg last year from northeast Texas and he’s back for more this year.

“We bought two horses last year and both of them made it to the races, only missed one check the whole time. I bought Fluffy Slippers, a Village Jolt filly, and Gobama, a Dragon Again colt, for $2,500 apiece. I broke them back in Texas.”

Demars has hosted racing at his farm track, including a race for modestly talented pacers called The Little Green Mug.

USTA/Ellen Harvey photo

Bernard Demars (right) and his family prepare to inspect horses at the Standardbred Horse Sale in Harrisburg.

“We’re rebuilding our track and once we do that, we’re going to limestone it and we’re going to try to line up some big trainers and drivers from up north to come down and support us,” said Demars. “Maybe it will give some incentive to try to start pari-mutuel (harness) racing in Texas.

“I sold the filly for $8,000 and she went on to pace in (1:)55 and a piece, but I still have the colt. I haven’t bought anything yet. Just missed a Western Hanover colt. I’ll keep trying. I’m looking for Pennsylvania-breds. They have a lucrative program, they have three different levels where you can compete, the fairs, the stallion series and the sire stakes.”

Demars and his family work with the horses, including wife Erika, sons BJ (age 15) and Nathan (age 8), but he also holds an outside job that gives him the flexibility to get away to compete with his horses in Pennsylvania.

“I work at Home Depot and am also in real estate investing,” he says.

Despite being way off the beaten path of harness racing, Demars says there is an active unsanctioned circuit of harness racing in Texas.

“There’s quite a few folks who have harness horses, from Dallas clear back over to Mississippi, there are lots and lots of Standardbred horses. It’s not sanctioned and most of the guys that do go to pari-mutuel tracks, go to Iowa or Illinois.”

Demars’ introduction to Standardbreds mirrors the evolution of the sport, as a social event involving races between friends.

“When I was a kid, we used to ride Saddlebreds. A guy slipped in with a Standardbred and we’d try to find a dirt road and see who had the fastest horse. The guy who was winning had a Standardbred, so we went up to Fairmount Park (in Illinois) and met Tom Tetrick (father of top driver Tim). I used to buy all his horses that just wouldn’t make it there, but back home (in Texas) they were very competitive.

“Then I found out about the sale in Delaware, Ohio and I knew about the sale in Harrisburg, but I always thought it was out of my price range. But I found some diamonds in the rough and I’m ahead (financially).”