Mar 9, 2026 By John Sacco 3 min read

The board of the Meadows Standardbred Owners Association had a change recently in the presidency of the organization and in the makeup of the board of directors.

Hall of Fame trainer Ron Burke was elected as MSOA’s president, succeeding Lisa Dunn, who board members said did not seek re-election.

Recently, member Brian Gillespie resigned from his position on the board. In a vote Monday, Daryl Price was voted in as Gillespie’s successor.

The current makeup of the board is Dirk Simpson, vice president; Tim Twaddle, secretary; and Sally Bolon, treasurer.

Other board members are Tim Betts, Jason Petri, Tom Svrcek and Stuart Williams.

“I think it’s a real important time coming up in the history of The Meadows,” Burke said. “I thought maybe it’d be a good idea to be involved in trying to make it the best it could be. My dad was on the board a long time ago. There are certain issues that I think are very important.

“The biggest thing is the erosion of the gambling at The Meadows to (other types of gaming), which we get no part of. I think things like that, we need to explain to our legislators.”

Burke said his No. 1 objective is to increase on-track attendance.

Burke also confirmed Meadow Twaddle has been named as the MSOA’s marketing director.

Dawnelle Mock has served as MSOA’s executive director since September 2024.

Miller $300 million man

Last month, Hall of Fame driver David Miller became harness racing’s all-time leading driver by earnings and a few days later surpassed $300 million, which made him the first driver to reach that milestone.

In harness racing, only Burke had surpassed $300 million in career earnings. Miller ranks seventh all-time in earnings between Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing jockeys and drivers, joining jockeys John Velazquez, Javier Castellano, Irad Ortiz Jr., Mike Smith, Joel Rosario and Jose Ortiz – each a Thoroughbred jockey – in the $300 million club.

Miller’s next milestone will be 15,000 career wins. He needs less than 100 victories to reach that mark.

Streak over

It took more than five years but one of the longest-standing win streaks in the sport came to an end.

Despite being unsuccessful in getting the victory Feb. 27, it was a win of sorts for trotter Mallard Hanover, just by getting back to the races.

The 8-year-old only raced five times early in his career, the last of which was in May 2021. He won that day, as he had done in all his previous races. He also set a lifetime mark at Hoosier Park of 1:52.4 for trainer John Butenschoen but an injury ended his season prematurely, with a lifetime record of five wins in five starts.

He attempted a comeback in 2022 but posted a slow time in a qualifier and never raced in a parimutuel event. On Feb. 18, after spending a handful of years in Amish country as a working horse, Mallard Hanover went to post for the first time since 2021. Trainer Eric Miller guided the Swan For All gelding to a qualifying win at The Meadows in 1:57.3 in his return to action after almost 57 months off, leading up to a parimutuel race.

Note: Track announcer Jeff Zidek contributed to this story.