Harness driver's death at The Meadows sends shock waves through horse racing community

An experienced harness racer was killed this week in a large accident at The Meadows racetrack in Washington County in what a racing representative said was a rare occurrence.

The harness racing community on Thursday mourned the death of Ohio native Hunter Myers, 27, who was severely injured Wednesday afternoon in the 11th race at The Hollywood Casino track. Myers was in a crash involving six horses, according to a social media post from track announcer Roger Huston.

Myers was flown in critical condition to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he died early Thursday morning of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner.

The Meadows Standardbred Owners Association announced that racing has been canceled for the rest of the week.

In a video posted in February, Myers said he had been racing since he was 16. He had raced 19,608 times, according to the United States Trotting Association, a trade organization based in Columbus, Ohio.

Details of the accident were not available Thursday. The Meadows would have videotaped the race, said Daniel Leary, director of communications and marketing for the Trotting Association.

Fatal accidents like the one that took the life of Myers are rare, Leary said. In his 14 years with the Trotting Association, this is the first fatality of which he is aware, he said.

The Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission governs horse racing in the state, but it does not keep data on human injuries and fatalities involving horse racing, said Shannon Powers, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Standardbred drivers are seated in a two-wheeled cart pulled by the horse and wear safety-certified helmets, Leary said.

Even though the horses are traveling at speeds up to 30 mph, Leary said one reason there are not a lot of serious accidents in standardbred horse racing is because of the gait of the horses. Rather than galloping around the track like thoroughbreds, the horses are either moving in a trot or a pace.

“It was a freak accident,” said Leary, who has not seen a video of the race in which Myers was killed.

While the accident occurred while Myers was working, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration does not investigate drivers in a horse racing accident, said Joanna Hawkins, an OSHA spokeswoman.

Organizations across the racing community have expressed their condolences to Myers’ family.

In a joint statement with Hollywood Casino at The Meadows, the Meadows Standardbred Owners Association offered condolences and prayers to Myers’ family.

“Our racing community has suffered an unimaginable loss. Hunter Myers was a daily part of many of our lives,” the statement read.

The organization is offering grief support to association members who may need it.

The Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association called Myers a “young star.”

“The OHHA sends prayers and condolences to Hunter’s fiancee, Chloe, their son, Hayden, and Hunter’s family and friends,” a statement read.

According to the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Association, Myers hit a milestone of 1,000 wins when he was 24.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Hunter Myers, and send our thoughts and prayers to the entire Western Pennsylvania and Ohio harness racing communities as they navigate this tragic loss,” the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame said in a prepared statement.

Myers started driving in 2014 and had amassed 2,450 career victories in less than 11 years, the Harness Racing Museum stated on its website.

“Myers was an integral, remarkable part of the fabric of the sport, and he died doing what he loved. Now those who loved him — and there are many — are left to contemplate an unexpected and indescribable loss,” the United States Trotting Association said.