Well-known Maritime standardbred racing journalist Doug Harkness unfortunately lost his battle with lung disease on Friday, May 28. Many in the east coast harness racing industry have since offered their reflections
about the 71-year-old.
"He was Maritime harness racing. There wasn't a record that Doug didn't have right on the tip of his memory," Maritime race announcer Vance Cameron was quoted as saying in an article by The Journal Pioneer. "When you talk about putting the Maritimes on the map, there is one guy who comes to my mind and that is Doug Harkness."
In 1979, Harkness co-founded the highly-popular harness racing publication Atlantic Post Calls. The publication would later be sold, but Harkness stayed on as editor.
"I recall Doug telling me, back in the 1970s, that he had this idea of quitting the newspaper business and starting up a harness racing publication. Anybody he mentioned this to -- me included -- scoffed at the idea," said former Journal Pioneer Sports Editor Bill Semple. "He made all us skeptics believers with the hugely popular Atlantic Post Calls. He brought Maritime standardbred racing to the forefront for over three decades, an amazing accomplishment for a virtual one-man show.
"Maritime horsemen owe Doug Harkness a huge debt of thanks. He will be sorely missed."
Semple went on to say, "Everyone can probably claim to have met an 'unforgettable' character in their lifetime, and for me that person is Doug Harkness."
(With files from The Journal Pioneer)
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