in\'olyed to deyelop a colt or filly or to try to cure an older horse with physical ail— ments. You haye to love the game to be inyolyed because it is not an easy indus- try. The competition is keen and some— times nasty and difficult. The bottom line is I loye to win a race."

With the passing of time. we are losing or have lost many of the true horsepeople and real characters. These elders often permitted youngsters to pick their brains for hours on end. Their stories. experi— ences and expertise were so enjoyable and Valuable; unfortunately. they may not haye been truly appreciated at the time.

Veteran Charlottetown horseman. former hockey player and member of the Noya Ralph Shepherd reyealed to me that Robert .\Ic(Iain named .‘lm/reu'x Girl by .\'.1). Hall after Blair Andrew who had trained

Scotia Sports Hall of Fame

and driyen horses for him. This was the same Andrew's (lirl that raced in the John "Buddy" Campbell Stable for owner Bill Boyles. lirroll Macliachern. a former judge at the (I.I).l’.. elaborated that Richie

[\lacPhee purchased .‘rlmlreu's (/1')‘/ for

broodmare purposes. She was bred to Quebec Hana/er and her first filly was (.kl/‘(in'Iz l).

.\Iacl’hee deyeloped into one of the best

This mare raced by Angus mares eyer produced on l’.l{.I.

In harness racing. some of your best moments are often unexpected. Brian

explained his best moment or experience on the track. "Iiarly in my career. l was

152

Behind the Gate

driying Dixie lx'i/lemz. a mare owned by my father. We won the race and I was yery thankful. I met Bobby Mills on the turn as we were leaying the track after the race. Bobby excitedly informed me. 'That‘s a hell of a mile! Any idea what your mile was in? That was a mile in 2:01 and you droye her well. Congratu— lations." It wasn‘t a big moment with a lot of fanfare but somehow. winning that race with his dad‘s mare was special. Bobby .\Iills‘ reaction meant a lot to Brian.

'l‘hankfully, serious accidents are rare but they are ineyitable and a fact of life at the racetrack. This Veteran horseman had a few spills and he knew how hard the track could be. Brian knocked on wood because he knew that he had been fortu— nate to haye escaped a serious injury that would haye kept him off the bike for any length of time: howe\ er. he did experi— ence an incident early in his driying career at the Summerside Raceway in a qualifying eyent. He remembered it well. “.Atcm/icm .Ilisl was a two~year~old filly that we intended to race in the RBI. Colt Stakes. I took three scores with her before the race and she was fine. In the race. there was a half—hobbled trotter who went to his knees and four of us fol— lowing went down. I went as high as the board fence at the track. Luckily. I was young; I landed on my feet with my stop— watch and whip still in the one hand. 'I‘ragically. the racing career of Acadia)! .1115] ended. That accident taught me how quickly you could be out of it."