special trains used years ago to take spectators to Shelly Bay to watch the horses race.

After the closure of the Shelly Bay Race Track harness racing ponies raced at PHC and Nationals and on Boxing Day in 1976 thousands turned up at Nationals to watch.

Since harness pony racing was re-introduced in 1989, Boxing Day has become the principal race day of the season for the Driving Horse and Pony Club of Bermuda. Trophies are presented for the fastest times in each time bar and this year two and three-year-old stakes races will be held for the first time ever in Bermuda in addition to the regular field races.

There will be more ponies racing this Boxing day than ever before in Bermuda.

Ray Brothers and Terceira's Gas Station are sponsoring the stakes races and the two and three-year-old ponies will be racing for a total purse of $1,000.

The ponies racing for the purses, trophies and coolers will be: Two-year-old stakes T.W. Second Try owned by Nicholas DeCosta, driven by Michael DeCosta.

Spencer's Taylor Maid owned and driven by Charles Whited.

Just a Gigolo owned and driven by Ross Adderley.

Three-year-old stakes Catch A Fire owned and driven by Edward (Tom) Matthews.

Eddie The Great owned and driven by Michael DeCosta.

Pleasant Surprise owned by Vincent Dill and Worrell Bean and driven by Worrell Bean.

Tina's Princess owned by the DeCosta family and driven by Anthony Rego Ponder Babe owned by William and Paul Ray and driven by Daniel Greenslade.

The three-year-old stakes promises to be one of the most exciting races ever put on. Eddie The Great and Ponder Babe were the top three-year-olds in the United States this year, between them winning all the major stakes races in the US circuit. Tina's Princess was one of the top two-year-olds in 1991. Tom Matthews' Catch A Fire is already a free-for-all pony in Bermuda and fast, and Pleasant Surprise is probably the dark horse of the race.

There will be a `dash', the slowest pony being eliminated and a final dash with four ponies in the three-year-old stakes race. In the two-year-old stakes race there will be two dashes, with the fastest time winning. Positions for the race will be drawn at the track.

Post time is noon and there will be six races between noon and 1.00, a short break to allow the next set of ponies to warm up. Then there will be a further eight races.

The first two dashes of the two and three-year-old stakes will be followed by a parade of carriages, featuring some beautiful antique carriages. The final two dashes of the stakes races will follow the carriage parade, after which the trophies and prizes will be presented.

Admission is $4 for adults.