Voice of the races: Hastings Racecourse's Dan Jukich can't stay away from the track

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Dan Jukich has been the “Voice of the Races” at Hastings Racecourse for the past 34 years and in that span of time he has never missed a day at work. Due to a bit of a health scare, his run almost came to an end last weekend. However, with an unmatched dedication to his craft, Jukich went directly from the hospital to call the races at Fraser Downs Friday night. And to keep his streak intact he called the first race at Hastings Saturday and Sunday before handing the microphone off to his son Matt who flew in from Edmonton.

“I probably shouldn’t have gone to work Friday,” said Jukich. “I felt fine when I left the hospital, but I was pretty wiped halfway through the card. I was happy to have Matt here for the weekend.”

Jukich, who ranks as one of the top announcers in North America, was feeling a lot better at Hastings Wednesday morning where he helps take entries for the races on the weekend.

He’s had a storied career and was inducted into the British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame in 2019. He is just one of four people from the thoroughbred racing industry to be elected to the Hall of Fame: jockeys Chris Loseth and Hedley Woodhouse and former track announcer Jack Short. Jukich was also inducted into the B.C. Thoroughbred Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2015.

Jukich has been part of the racing industry since he was a toddler. His late father Roy Jukich Sr. covered Horse Racing for The Vancouver Sun.

“I was an east end kid and spent a lot of time with my dad at the track. I fell in love with the sport at an early age,” said Jukich. “When I met Jack Short, I told him when I grew up, I wanted his job.”

He was 25 when he became the track announcer at Fraser Downs in 1978.

“I really wasn’t prepared for the job,” said Jukich. “After a few races my dad came up and asked how I was doing. I told him I wanted to quit, but he told me to hang in there, so I did.”

Jukich, 71, estimates he has called 100,000 races and has no plans on calling it quits any time soon. He seems to be as sharp as ever and he was proud of his call in the 12-horse British Columbia Derby Sept. 16.

“I’ve worked hard at being able to develop a cadence,” he said. “Some callers want to dress it up a bit, but my goal is to make sure people know where their horses are and what kind of race they are running. I went through the Derby field three times.”

Jukich is also cool under fire.

One of his most notable calls is when Private Mombo stumbled at the start and then ran blindly into the winner’s enclosure where she ran over security guard Dave Dahl. Jukich never missed a beat while all hell was breaking loose.

“It was the most horrifying thing I have ever seen and there is no doubt it upset me,” he said. “However, the race was on, and I felt it needed to be called as accurately as possible.”

Jukich has always willing to chip in where help is needed. He has organized the B.C. Cup golf tournament, has spoken at charitable functions as an emissary for Hastings and the sport in general.

“He’s done so much for the racing industry they should add Goodwill Ambassador to his job description,” said Greg Douglas, marketing and media relations liaison for B.C. Racebook.

Absolutely.

SATURDAY SELECTIONS: FIRST RACE 2:30 p.m.

RACE 3: KRIS’S GOLD ran a huge race when he debuted in the $100K Jack Diamond Futurity and has a right to move forward with a race behind him for trainer Patty Leaney.

RACE 4: Don‘t love that she drew the rail, but MINA MARINA has been working fast and debuts for trainer Cindy Krasner who has solid stats with first-time starters: 25% with a $5.25 ROI the past five years.

SUNDAY SELECTIONS: FIRST RACE 2:30 p.m.

RACE 2: RED RUSSELL is a bit of a stab, but leading rider Amadeo Perez bails on a very live MAX BOOSTER to ride the B.C.-bred son of Rails who has been working nicely for leading trainer Steve Henson. Red Russell is also bred to win early on his dam’s side.

RACE 4: DREAM B will be rolling late and her pedigree suggests she could thrive going around three turns for the first time for trainer Barbara Heads.

Randy Goulding has been handicapping horses and writing for The Racing Form at Hastings Park for more than 30 years. His column will run every Friday throughout the racing season.

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