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Cat Manzi Elected Into Harness Racing's Hall Of Fame

© Kimberly Rinker

Cat Manzi has been around for 52 years, and for the majority of those years, he has been involved in harness racing. This year, on July 7, 2002, he was inducted into harness racing's Living Hall Of Fame. Cat moved to the Meadowlands in 1976 after enjoying success at some of the smaller venues on the national harness racing scene. "I needed something different for myself even though I was doing fine," Cat remembered. "The Meadowlands opened at the perfect time for me. I needed a spark, and the new challenges at the Meadowlands were right for me. I was able to turn the corner of my career and go after new goals."

"There were about 6-8 top drivers back then. Gilmour, Webster, Remmen, Doherty, Wing. Guys like that. Great drivers," Cat said. "Today, there are great drivers too-but more of them. There are at least 20 guys who can drive with anyone, and the number seems to go up every year."

"It's very important as a driver to be very patient," Cat noted. "It is in all sports. So is poise. Keeping your mind on your business."

"A driver can give a horse confidence and a horse can make a driver confident," Cat continued. "They can work off of each other. Confidence is very important in this game. If I get the right horse, I feel I can drive as good as anybody."

"Not all talented people get the opportunity to show what they can do. A lot in this business is timing and being in the right spot."

"I trained a lot early in my career," Cat said. "But it eventually got to the point where I didn't want to. The last time I trained a horse I believe was in 1990. I don't really miss that part of the game."

Cat has the second most drives in harness history approaching 63,000.

"There are not a lot of sports where you can still compete at the top level at this age. It is VERY important for me to stay in shape. I jog a couple of miles a week, bike 10-12 miles a lot and walk-I basically do whatever I can to stay in shape."

Cat says he was thrilled about being voted into the Hall of Fame, and didn't really believe it at first.

"Disbelief. I didn't think about it. It wasn't something I was dreaming about, because I didn't really see it as something that would happen. I wasn't striving for it. I had no idea that it could happen."

The copyright of the article Cat Manzi Elected Into Harness Racing's Hall Of Fame in Standardbred Horses is owned by Kimberly Rinker. Permission to republish Cat Manzi Elected Into Harness Racing's Hall Of Fame in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.