SEVERAL of the Irish trainers and owners, who were profiled in The Irish Field in the run up to the 2025 season, mentioned their recent successes in Britain or hopes to plunder some UK prize money in 2025.

A key part of the race day experience on the British Harness Racing Club circuit is commentator Darren Owen (57), who hails from the North Wales city of St Asaph.

Darren is the main commentator at Tir Prince, York, Appleby, Tregaron and Musselburgh. He started out commentating at Llannerch Park, a grass harness racing track near his home. He has made the successful transition to ‘mainstream’ racing and is now on the select list for Racetech and the BBC.

Owen is well liked and in the mould of Delvin Miller and Roger Huston of the USA or Alistair Smith, who was secretary at Corbie Wood in Scotland, he is known as a goodwill ambassador for harness racing.

He is one of two main commentators for the Irish-backed Vincent Delaney Memorial, which he shares with Roger Huston from Ohio. Darren has also been asked to call flat and National Hunt at Down Royal - as we shall hear, he has many links with this country.

Darren was at his loquacious best as he spoke to The Irish Field less than 10 days before the pacing and trotting seasons get under way.

Season opens

Officially, the Ulster and Leinster region opens today at Annaghmore, the Munster season commences at Kilbrittain beach West Cork tomorrow, while on the same day, the British season gets going at Tregaron, Ceredigionshire.

His vast bank of experience is obvious. He has owned shares in a pacer and a trotter yet is sufficiently distant from the sport to give a candid analysis. He was Chairman of the BHRC for around two years, an experience that was ‘trying’ to put it politely. The BHRC is currently in a state of turmoil.

Personally, I believe that both the BHRC and IHRA have a lot to learn from the Jockey Club and the Turf Club in this country. Both organisations have kept a pure form of horse racing going for 300 years, so why waste time making strange rules which differ dramatically from a tried and tested model?

Darren is a valuable sounding board, who has seen the pros and cons of both codes of racing. Here follows only some of what he had to say:

Dan Carlin (DC): Tell me about your racing roots?

Darren Owen (DO): Ever since I was small, I wanted to be a racing commentator. One of my earliest memories is the Red Rum/Crisp Grand National of 1973. I had 10 pence each-way on Spanish Steps. I was hooked from an early age and used to rush home to catch the last race on the TV. I was not from a racing background, although my dad hunted.

The first race that I called live anywhere was at Llannerch Park harness racing around 1987. That led to a job at Billy Williams’ Tir Prince when the track opened.

Eventually I broke into flat and National Hunt commentary and, nowadays, I am part of a panel of 18 callers, who work a rota for several TV channels and for betting companies.

I refer to the Grand National as ‘The’ Grand National, not the English National or the Aintree National, as I believe there’s only one Grand National. I have been involved in commentary for now 21 Grand Nationals. Tony O’Hehir used to hand over to me at Valentines.

DC: Forgive the obvious question, but do you prefer harness racing or the thoroughbred game?

DO: I’m first and foremost a National Hunt man, but I do have a passion for harness racing. Harness racing got me started and I don’t forget my roots.

DC: Who were your influences?

DO: Well. Sir Peter O’Sullevan was the soundtrack of my youth. His commentaries of Sea Pigeon, Monksfield and Night Nurse could stir a corpse. Then in the 1980s, I think it was John Magnier who brought Jim McGrath (‘Aussie Jim’) to call at Phoenix Park. When I heard Jim for the first time, I thought ‘bloody hell, he’s good’. Jim later became a friend.

Strangely in North Wales in the 1980s, we could pick up RTE radio. I used to listen to Airs And Races with the late Val Joyce and I loved Dessie Scahill’s race calls. I’ve got to know Des well over the years also.

DC: Where is home these days?

DO: Northallerton, Yorkshire. My wife Sally is a Yorkshire lass. Her dad was Jumbo Wilkinson, who trained a Scottish National winner.

DC: I have watched you mould some young commentators at the trotting?

DO: I am proud to say that I helped the likes of Gary Capewell, Gareth Topham and Stephen Powell. When I was starting out, some of the commentators were gruff, military types who didn’t give me much encouragement. I vowed when I had the chance that I would help the young guys get on the ladder.

DC; Apart from the National, tell us about some of your ‘racing’ highlights?

DO: On one of my first jobs, I was calling the 1989 Welsh National for BBC Radio Wales won by Bonanza Boy for Martin Pipe. I was in a booth alongside the great Peter Bromley, who was working for another channel, that was quite a thrill.

I’m number two to John Hunt on BBC Radio. I had the privilege of calling Enable and Crystal Ocean in the 2019 King George.

I got to call several of the feature races at Cheltenham for Radio Five this year as John was absent due to the awful tragedy.

DC: Tell me about your harness racing commentary career?

DO: I worked at the historic Droylsden track (Manchester) before it closed. I love Tregaron and its committee. Tregaron is the template of how a trot should be run.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have called most of the big races and seen lots of champions. Stoneriggs JR’s and Stevie Lee’s British record at Wolverhampton. I said: ‘It’s Stoneriggs JR – he’s only got the clock to beat’. Also, Major League Star and Willie Drysdale won the free-for-all one year at Musselburgh, there were six horses across the track.

I always look forward to Appleby, it’s a wonderful meeting.

DC: You were willing to be BHRC chairman for a while?

DO: That was disheartening. In my opinion, we had a strong board of directors and one by one they dropped out because they got too much hassle. Some of our participants say ‘we have to be more ‘professional’, yet on race days these same people can do some very unprofessional things.

Harness racing is a wonderful sport, but we are held back by lack of resources and over-reliance on volunteers.

DC: You had some success as an owner?

DO: To be honest, I only had a share in Its My Check who we leased. The horse went to America. Then I was in on Emerant du Levant, who won Trotter Of The Year in Britain. Both horses were trained by the Haythornthwaites in Yorkshire. Alan and family are great horse people, and decent to deal with.

I believe both the BHRC and the IHRA are on the right track by fostering links with France. There’s another thing I am very proud of, I have provided the main English commentary for the last two runnings of the Prix d’Amerique for Equidia.

DC: Any other notable stamps on your passport?

DO: I worked Portmarnock and Dundalk over your way. Roger Huston who is known as ‘ The Voice Of The Little Brown Jug’ kindly invited Gareth Topham and I to call a race each for an attendance of 40,000 in Delaware, Ohio. Roger is a great ambassador for harness racing.

I’ve also called at Mohawk in Canada and tracks in New Zealand and Australia.