l . 
     
    
   
   
    
     Behind the Gate 1“? 
     
    
   
   
    
     a horse that l liked and paid for. One 
     
     week hefore the Rohhie Keizer. listes 
     
     Smith hacked his truck in front of my 
     
     ham and unloaded this horse which was 
     
     not the horse l had seen and hought in 
     
     Rockingham. The arrival turned out Io he 
     
     King Mike and Billy O‘Donnell had 
     
     King .lli/ee 
     
     hy Amelia/II .'i(/1'()s would prove to he 
     
    
   
   
    
     shown me the wrong horse." 
     
    
   
   
    
     one of the top invitational horses in the 
     
     Maritimes in the early 1970s and the hest 
     
     investment Soupie ever made in a horse. 
     
     sight unseen 
     
    
   
   
    
     'l‘he Donnie Turner .\lemorial has always 
     
     heen regarded as one of the premier 
     
     stake races for three—year—olds in the 
     
     Maritimes. Since the unfortunate closure 
     
     of Sackville Downs. this lucrative stake 
     
     event has heen staged annually at the 
     
     'l‘ruro Raceway. It is an event that 
     
     Maritime colt enthusiasts marked on their 
     
     calendar. Soupie was no exception. "l 
     
     won the Donnie 'l‘urner with .l/(1/2/e 
     
     (fro/e Vim/ow owned hy Donnie 
     
     Livingstone and this may have heen my 
     
     most memorahle race. A close second 
     
     would have to he my first (‘rold (?up and 
     
     Saucer with King .lli'lee hecause every— 
     
    
   
   
    
     hody wants to he in this race." 
     
    
   
   
    
     I asked this trainerdriverhlacksmith to 
     
     mention a few of the changes he had 
     
     noticed in his ~13 years in the industry. 
     
     \V'ithout hesitation he responded. “The 
     
     huh rail is gone. hikes are faster. harness 
     
     is lighter. wheel~disc is safer. helmets are 
     
     compulsory and more suhstantial. and 
     
    
   
   
    
     simulcasting and slots are saving some of 
     
    
   
   
    
             
     
    
   
   
    
     Soupie Campbell 
     
    
   
   
    
     the smaller tracks from extinction." 
     
     Soupie loved the competitive nature of 
     
     the game hecause. physically and men— 
     
     tally. it kept you sharp and on your toes. 
     
     \V'hat he didn't like ahout the game was 
     
     the fact that we are all getting older. 
     
    
   
   
    
     l asked Soupie what he felt were the 
     
     most important things you must do for a 
     
     horse. He answered. "The most impor— 
     
     tant thing is to keep your horse healthy 
     
     and sound. He must he fed properly and 
     
     receive the proper nutrients. 1 le must get 
     
     sufficient exercise and proper grooming. 
     
     I don‘t helieve in racing a horse three 
     
     times a week hecause if he has prohlems 
     
     he doesnt have time to get over them. 1 
     
     have reservations ahout racing horses 
     
     under extreme winter temperatures hut 
     
     sometimes you are forced to do it.” He 
     
     suggested that using common sense is 
     
     usually the hest thing we can do. 
     
    
   
   
    
     There are many talented youngsters who 
     
     would love a career in harness racing 
     
     perhaps as a trainer. driver. hlacksmith or 
     
     some other capacity. This experienced 
     
     and capahle horseman who raced exten~ 
     
     sively in (Ianada and the I‘nited States 
     
     advised. “Stay out of trouhle when you 
     
     are young. l‘se your intelligence and 
     
     common sense. If you get in trouhle 
     
     when you are starting out in this game. it 
     
     could come against you later in life when 
     
     they look at your record. \Vhen you are 
     
     young you may say it is only a positive 
     
     test hut they all add up." This is indeed 
     
    
   
   
    
     sage advice. 
     
    
   
   
    
     59