(This is the third of three stories on local harness horseman that are passing the torch to their children as Brian Jones, Kent Wilcox and Tom Hope turn the keys over to the next generation.) 

Harness horse racing now in the hands of the next generation
Passing the torch: Tom and Chris Hope
By George Starks 

DARKE COUNTY- When it comes to a family tradition in the Hope family, horses are exactly that. A tradition. 

Tom Hope is a third generation driver and trainer and it was all started by his grandpa, Virgil Carpenter. 

“I have no idea what made grandpa want to get into this business,” said Tom. “ All I know is that after a period of time, he passed it down to my uncle, his son, Perry Carpenter and it was passed on to me. If grandpa were still living, he would be close to 100 years old. When he started racing, they didn’t even have helmets yet. They were using the soft hats and I don’t even know when they started using helmets to be honest with you and the hats matched your colors but that’s what they used before the helmets came along.” 

Even though his grandpa and uncle were well into their careers as horsemen, Tom got his start on the old cinder track at the fairgrounds. 

“I was seven years old,” said Hope. “I was by myself doing this but I was seven years old.” 

That was just over 40 years ago as Hope is 49 years of age. 

Over the years, Hope has seen a lot of changes in the business with the biggest being the number of people and horses. 

“When I was younger, we didn’t have all the barns out here at the fairgrounds that we have now,” Hope pointed out. “The barns were filled back in those days. You couldn’t get a stall in the barns. Now, there are more empty stalls than horses. The numbers are way down. Today we race most of the year where as when grandpa raced, he raced just through the summer and that was about it. He would go to Lebanon a little bit in the fall but when it got cold, he was done. In those days, it was a hobby. Now, it’s a business.” 

Now, the fourth generation of horseman in the Hope family is on the scene on a full-time scale, Christopher, and Tom is teaching him the ropes. 

Just a few nights ago, Christopher got his first win in a money race, it coming at Bellefontaine. 

“He did everything the exact opposite of the way he should have done it but he still got the win and I was very proud of him,” Tom said of his son. “I’ve tried to teach him the right way to do things but in this case, the end result was what you want and that’s getting the win.” 

On that night, Chris Hope ran his five year old pacer, Hollywood Hustler, to the win in 2:08. 

“This is the first year this horse has ever raced,” said Tom. “He’s been racing at Hoosier Park this year but he’s just a nice, easy going, horse. When he crossed that finish line first, at that point I could take a deep breath. I was glad it was over and it all worked out.” 

At the age of 21, Chris never really took interest in the horses until after he graduated from Tri-Village. 

“I was playing sports in high school and wanted to concentrate on that,” said Christopher. “In high school, I ran track and played soccer and that’s what I was into. I had to come here after school and help dad so I was involved with them but it was because I had to do it and it conflicted with sports in school. 

“After I got the win the other night, I was pretty excited,” Christopher continued. “I was very nervous from the time I put the horse in the race. I was worried about how I was going to do and how it was going to work out. I realized just past the half going down the back stretch, that the race was mine to win or lose. The horse was smooth and was cruising by the rest of the field. The last horse I had to pass, the driver seemed to be getting on to his horse and it seemed like it was stopping and my horse was just cruising along.” 

For Christopher, the decision to pick up where dad will leave off is huge in his eyes. 

“I think it’s exciting,” Christopher admitted. “I know the numbers in this business are down and I don’t know what this generation can do to bring it back up. Hopefully, we can get more people our age involved in the sport and maybe it will start to grow again. I really don’t know what it will take to spark that interest again.” 

One thing is for sure. With people like Mandy Jones, Kerby Wilcox and Christopher Hope, harness horse racing and the standard bred horses could have a promising future as the keys are handed over to the next generation.