This article is 30 years old !

[The Skipper]

And I thought those were the good old days 

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1985-11-22/sports/8503200775_1_harness-driver-horses-sport

[beans and weenies]

Wow.   1985.  I bet he didn't think the downward spiral would be out of control  by 2015.   Will we ever see the "good ole days" of harness racing again?   I think not 

[LVGaryD]

  Busse pretty much hit it out of the park with that interview.

[badolpuddytat]

Was watching races at Pompano, brought back memories!!! Mel Turcotte training for Barb while Plano drives for him.

[The Skipper]

Wow.   1985.  I bet he didn't think the downward spiral would be out of control  by 2015.   Will we ever see the "good ole days" of harness racing again?   I think not 

The purses and handle were multiple times of what they are now 

What I wouldn't give to be able to spend one more warm August night walking in Sportsmans park, throw

Dennis my car keys, buy a program off Joe Leone and go up to the 2nd floor in the grandstand, buy a cold

beer from Bill the bartender go sit outside right by RTP and watch the ducks in the pond and the rabbits

in the infield while watching the horses warm up, about the 4th race I go grab a burger and walk down

stairs and grab a strawberry yogurt, back upstairs grab another cold beer and scream at Busse after he

wins a race "BUSSE POWER" and he does the chicken or does a fist pump heading back to the barn.

                                                                 

[LVGaryD]

Yeah.  Sportsman's Park was THE place to race horses if you couldn't race at Roosevelt.

Will never forget Doug Hamilton putting that firecracker under Busse's foot in the paddock, on the porch overlooking the track. Scared the living shit out of Busse.

[The Giss]

This really made an impact on me, regardless id $2, $20 or $2,000 bettors.
``When we moved back to Chicago (Cook County), we`d always start off big at Sportsman`s Park. And we`d keep moving around so we wouldn`t dry up those $2 bettors in one area. Besides Sportsman`s and Hawthorne and Maywood, we had Washington Park in those days.*

[beans and weenies]

This really made an impact on me, regardless id $2, $20 or $2,000 bettors.
``When we moved back to Chicago (Cook County), we`d always start off big at Sportsman`s Park. And we`d keep moving around so we wouldn`t dry up those $2 bettors in one area. Besides Sportsman`s and Hawthorne and Maywood, we had Washington Park in those days.*

wow........... I had to think about that for a moment. We have pretty well extinguished the $2 gamblers these days 

[badolpuddytat]

Yeah.  Sportsman's Park was THE place to race horses if you couldn't race at Roosevelt.

Will never forget Doug Hamilton putting that firecracker under Busse's foot in the paddock, on the porch overlooking the track. Scared the living shit out of Busse.

Roosevelt, ahh I remember us walking around the track during the afternoon. We picked up a lot of decent stuff. One time we were leaving early and KK sr,'s dad was driving. Well I said Gordy I think you'd better hit the gas.(As I saw my life go past me). he was going 15 on a 55 in NY!!!!!!