Harness horse racing in Leamington, Dresden and Sarnia could come to an end should a proposal out of London get provincial approval.
The proposal argues ending harness horse racing in southwestern Ontario would be better for the industry's long-term success with more dates and bigger purses to be had at Western Fair Raceway in London.
Tom Bain with the Lakeshore Horse Raceway Association isn't a fan of the plan.
"First reaction really was shock," says Bain. "I can't believe it."
He thinks the proposal would be an economic disaster for the region.
"It's not only going to affect the horse people, it's those who handle the supplies, bring forward the feed, the hay, straw; the blacksmiths, all the veterinarians," says Bain.
"We have out bet Dresden, we've out bet Hiawatha Park, we've out bet even London Raceway with live betting and to see this proposal come forward, it was a shock," says Bain, adding his group's focus now is to fight the proposal.
The LHRA will be meeting with a representative from the Ontario Racing Association late next week to go over concerns.
"Put our cards on the table, show that the three tracks are viable and if they do shutdown horse racing in southwestern Ontario it would be detrimental to our economy," says Bain.
The main thrust of the proposal from four London horse trainers is to redistribute provincial funding to allow for larger purses in the bottom two tiers of harness horse racing by increasing the purse sizes to $45,000 and $85,000 from the current $35,000 and $65,000 averages. The report argues in order to accomplish larger purse sizes, some tracks need to be shutdown.
The proposal also recommends further investigation into building a "Fair Racing Circuit" that would somewhat cover the loss of racing in southwestern Ontario.
The proposal is likely to come up at informal meetings in London and Milton on February 9 and 10 meant to review the new governing structure for the industry as the Ontario Racing Commission becomes defunct as of April 1.