New PJ at Meadowlands

It was just a coincidence, but in his first race as presiding judge at the Meadowlands on Wednesday night, Jan. 17, Michael J. McCarthy posted an inquiry. McCarthy, whose first job in harness racing was as a night watchman for the W.R. Haughton Stable, had previously worked in the stand at Freehold Raceway.

McCarthy, who brings more than two decades of experience in the judges stand to the post, takes on the task of overseeing the most prestigious harness meet in country with a sense of mission.

“It was time for me to step forward and pay back harness racing a little bit,” he said. “I felt a debt to harness racing. I owe harness racing a lot. It has given me a great life.”

McCarthy, who lives in Freehold, N.J., had been comfortably ensconced in the stand at Freehold as an associate judge since March of 2005 when the opportunity came to move up to the Meadowlands and the unique challenges that come with being in the sport’s biggest spotlight.

“Our job demands that we treat the Hambletonian the same as a non-winners of three, and you drill yourself into that mindset,” he explained. “In some respect, when you’re dealing with the best horses and best people, the greatest drivers and trainers, it is easier for an official. You know the horses are going to be sound and rigged right.”

McCarthy was not born into harness racing. It was while growing up in Watervliet, N.Y., 20 miles south of Saratoga Harness, that he was introduced to the sport. He and his friends frequented the track and, in 1976, pooled their resources to buy a $2,500 trotter. When that horse went off to Pompano Park to race for the winter, one of them needed to go to be licensed. McCarthy jumped on a plane in upstate New York in a blizzard and arrived in the tropical warmth of Florida. There was no turning back.

His first job was as a night watchman for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Haughton in Florida. When the horses went north, he was sent to Ohio and had been promoted to the job of caretaker. He remained with the Haughton Stable for four years. He worked for the Dave Rankin Stable and others along the way.

At the urging of another judge, Bill Dunson, McCarthy got his officials license in 1982 and worked as a paddock judge at Freestate and Rosecroft in Maryland in the early 1980s. His travels also brought him to the Meadowlands in the early 1990s as the equipment manager. While in that position, he developed and revised the method by which equipment changes were reported that was eventually tweaked a bit by the New Jersey Racing Commission and then adopted statewide.

After a few years away from racing, McCarthy returned in 1996. From 1999 through March of 2005 he served as associate judge or presiding judge at all the New York harness tracks.

“I feel I have had the experience to be the PJ at the Meadowlands,” said McCarthy, who enjoys playing golf and watching NFL football. “I’m comfortable stepping into this job. It was time for me to take the challenge. It will probably take me a couple of weeks to get around and meet the people here. I think people will notice that I’ll put up the inquiry more often. That’s just so people know we’ve seen the same thing they’ve seen, and we’re taking another look.” (Meadowlands press release)

« Back