Behind the Gate ‘WE 
     
    
   
   
    
     There were two Dairy Queen races that 
     
     he remembered with under‘standable 
     
     fondness. 'l'he lirst was lor two—year—old 
     
     l‘illies at the (2.1).1’. and it was l‘or' SSZ.()()(). 
     
     the largest purse eyer on l’.l’..l. at that 
     
     time. Earl Smith had asked (larry to driye 
     
     Dayler’s ‘lane while Iiarl would driye 
     
     (,l)[/I'/()/le’s Brill in the same race. Garry 
     
     recounted. "i had trallic problems and the 
     
     track was muddy." ;\t the wire. it looked 
     
     like a dead—heat between these two lillies 
     
     but a second print showed that Russell 
     
     Doyle’s 1)e.\'/er_/(me \\ as the winner by 
     
     the slimmest ol margins. liarl Smith had 
     
     made a shrewd decision in his choice of 
     
    
   
   
    
     a catch—driyer for that lucratiye race. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Another race that Garry would neyer for— 
     
     get was the Dairy Queen l‘or three—year— 
     
     old l‘illies in ’l'ruro. He had ls/(Im/ 1mm 
     
     which he had trained and dr‘iyen l‘or his 
     
     br()ther—in—law. Hill llogg. She was 
     
     plagtted with soundness problems but 
     
     she came tip big by winning her elimina— 
     
     tion heat and subsequently winning the 
     
     championship linal in a torrid 158.3. 
     
     This also was a yery special and mean— 
     
     ingful Victory for Garry .\lacl)onald. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Speed seems to be eyer'ything in harness 
     
     racing to.lay. Horses are going much 
     
     taster. ll uses are reaching the hall—mile 
     
     during races in almost unbelieyable 
     
     times. lii'er‘ybody is trying to make the 
     
     tracks l‘asier. 'I'oday the trend is to make 
     
     them as straight as you can with lewer 
     
     turns like the present conyersion at 
     
    
   
   
    
     Mohawk or the new track at Colonial 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     Garry MacDonald 
     
    
   
   
    
     Downs in \\'est \"irginia where times are 
     
     almost meaningless. (‘rarr'y belieyed that 
     
     this emphasis on speed would wear hors— 
     
     es out. llorses cannot last when so much 
     
     is taken ottt of them on a regular basis. 
     
     There is a bottom to eyer‘ything. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Harness racing declined in the Maritimes 
     
     since the untimely closttre ol Sackyille 
     
     Downs outside ol~ the Ilalilax—I)artm<)utlr 
     
     area. Garry belieyed that may haye been 
     
     the beginning of the end ol liye racing in 
     
     the .\Iaritimes. liyerything went downhill 
     
     becattse a major link in the chain was 
     
     missing. The only way that it will eyer 
     
     work again is to haye a major track in the 
     
     llalit‘ax—l)artrnouth area where the neces» 
     
     sary large population base is located. \‘ir‘e 
     
     need that base to keep our best horses 
     
     from being exported each year to the 
     
     larger centers. (‘rarr'y was catrtiottsly opti» 
     
     mistic because ot‘ deyelopments like the 
     
     inyolyemer‘rt ol‘ the Atlantic Lottery 
     
     Corporation and sirnttlcasting l‘rom tracks 
     
     in and outside ol the .\Iaritimes. 
     
    

    
     This resident Horn .\11. ;\lbion did not 
     
     layor or support sortie ol the more recent 
     
     innoyations in harness racing like passing 
     
     lanes. staggered gates and unorthodox 
     
     distances for a race. He felt too many 
     
     changes would take the handicapping 
     
     out ol‘ the betting and that would be a 
     
     tragedy lor the industry. In addition. he 
     
     didn‘t want to see the driying taken out 
     
     ol‘ racing. otherwise he lelt the horses 
     
     might just as well be loose like dogs in 
     
    
   
   
    
     dog races. 
     
    
   
   
    
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