The format for the upcoming festive harness racing programme at the Bermuda Equestrian Centre has been slightly modified this year.

Unlike in previous years, the Boxing Day and New Year’s Day racing programmes will not feature the traditional stakes races, which saw the winners determined by the fastest times combined over four heats.

Instead, races will take place among all of the respective time bars and winners to be determined by the fastest on average time over the same amount of heats.

“The way it’s determined is exactly the same way as the stakes races,” Samantha Hayward, the Driving Horse and Pony Club president, told The Royal Gazette.

“Only instead of dividing them by age, we’re dividing them in their time bars, so all different ages will run against each other within the time bar as opposed to it being a two-year-old stakes, three-old stakes, four-year old stakes. So it will be a 1.04/5 and faster stake, then the Junior Free for All and so on.

“We are going to take the times from Boxing Day and New Year's Day and average them out within the time bars and give out money for the fastest in the time bar — and everybody should actually get something. That’s what we are hoping to work it out so that everybody at least gets their entry money back, and we will do the presentation on New Year's Day.

“I anticipate there will be a little adjustment to the time bars to make it a little bit more fun and more fair going into running for money.”

For the first time ever, the holiday racing programme will also include a Veteran’s Invitational Race featuring former drivers competing with the fastest harness ponies on the island in the Free for All division to be held on Boxing Day.

“This is the first time that we've done this invitational race and we are hoping to make it an annual event on Boxing Day,” Hayward said.

“What we have done is we've reached out to former members and drivers that haven't been in the bike for some time and asked them to come and do a fun race for the day, and I'm sure it's going to be hilarious.

“We have Bobby DeGraff who has raced for many years. Kenny Mills, who always draws a crowd, and Cleveland 'Chicken' Maybury will also be racing. We are waiting for either Arthur Hurst or Aaron Madeiros to complete the four.

“The people that we have invited are very good drivers and they will make a show of it, so I 'm really excited to see this go off. They're having Free for All horses to race so it's going to be the speed there.”

Hayward is also looking forward to the Powder Puff race featuring junior drivers to be held on New Year’s Day.

“We have six people already signed up for the Powder Puff race so that should be interesting too,” he said.

“It should be some exciting racing and we will have pony rides, face painting and a fun castle as well.

“The canteen will be provided by T's Home Kitchen. She has lovely food so it's going to be like a good family event for everybody to come out and enjoy.”

Action gets under way at the Devonshire facility on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day at 1pm.