Well known Bendigo resident, former top class cricketer, footballer and now a member of the executive team of the Bendigo Bank Dennis Bice has been awarded Life Membership of the Bendigo Harness Racing Club.

Dennis has been an active member of the BHRC for over 25 years

He served nearly fifteen years on the BHRC committee with 5 year break when he moved to Queensland in his employment with the Bendigo Bank.

On returning from Queensland, he was elected as a Vice President and then elected President in 2007. Dennis served BHRC as President for 8 years, stepping down in 2015.

During this time Dennis led the committee and staff to many milestones which included:

• The Maori Mile for trotters was conceptualised, rising from Group Three to Group One status
• The Bendigo Cup was and now continues to be sponsored by Petstock
• Personal Digital TVs were installed on window dining tables at Lord's Raceway.
• The Race For Fun Club was launched with the Bendigo Advertiser
• He oversaw the celebrations for the 60^th anniversary of the opening of Lord’s  Raceway
• The Veteran Driver’s Challenge, now in its 6^th year,  was created
• BHRC being awarded HRV Club of The Year
• BHRC developed and implemented a five year strategic plan
• Investigations into alternate steams of income were investigated, with a staffing restructure aimed at increasing non-racing income initiated

Other highlights of Dennis’s time as President included

• Being a member of the Country Clubs Association representing middle-tier clubs
• With his wife Brenda, sponsored events and racing at BHRC through their Yorkshire Park Stud venture.
• Being a driver behind the conceptualizing of and growing of the Aldebaran Park Maori Mile trotter’s race, from a Group 3 race to a Group 2 and in 2016 a Group 1 race.

Dennis has a long family involvement in Harness Racing.

His grandfather Stan Lyon was an owner/trainer, owning the FFA pacer Mystic Robert which won several races at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds in the 1970s

Graeme Lyon, Dennis’s uncle, is a trainer/driver with many successes including Inter Dominion final placed trotter Northsea Rover, and promising trotter MaybeToTheMax

The Lyon family including another Uncle, Peter, have been involved in ownership of many harness racing horses.

Brenda and Dennis are successful owners with a highlight being owners of Moonee Valley Cup winner Rare Courage, and recently have several fillies including Watch The Dream  racing.

They are breeders and yearling sale vendors with Yorkshire Park Standardbreds at their property in Axe Creek.

Dennis and Brenda will be guests at Lord’s Raceway this coming Wednesday, February 3, to celebrate the Life Membership. A race, the Dennis and Brenda Bice Pace has been named in their honour. Appropriately, nine of the ten starters are owned or trained in the Bendigo district.