A 7-5599. 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     Ronnie: 
     
    
   
   
    
     .. m 
     
    
   
   
    
     k 
     
    
   
   
    
     51‘ '4’ 
     
     ‘5." .53.. 
     
    
   
   
    
     other. Ronnie stated, “Francis McIsaac 
     
     was a cut above the rest. He was a very 
     
     capable driver and trainer who was 
     
     respected by his peers and the public. 
     
     Francis was nice to me when I was a kid 
     
     and he didn’t even know me. He was a 
     
     very personable individual. For a very 
     
     busy horseman to take the time to talk to 
     
     me, that meant a lot to me.” 
     
    
   
   
    
     The first person that Ronnie worked for 
     
     at the C.D.P. was Korean war veteran Bill 
     
     Henderson. Ronnie then divided his time 
     
     for a number of years between Saint John 
     
     and Charlottetown in the Jody Hennessey 
     
     Stable. He then spent a winter working 
     
     for the Earl Smith Stable. This was fol— 
     
     lowed by a year in the Merrill MacLean 
     
     Stable at the C.D.P. It was apparent that 
     
     he had very capable tutors during his 
     
     apprenticeship but he also was a very 
     
     capable equine student. 
     
    
   
   
    
     The year 1980 was a watershed for 
     
     Ronnie because that was the year he 
     
     opened a public stable. It was an inaus- 
     
     picious beginning. He stated, “I had a 
     
     small stable when I started. I had 
     
     Rz'veruue Sandy and Sardinia for Dr. Blair 
     
     Kelly. I also had Woodmereflnx and Bay 
     
     River Flash for Jack Brown." Over the 
     
     years his stable continued to grow and 
     
     usually numbered over 20 horses. He 
     
     credited much of his success to the peo— 
     
     ple that had assisted him in the operation 
     
     of his stable over the years. They includ- 
     
     ed Donnie MacDougall, Bernie Berrigan, 
     
     Evan Ford, Madrene Hennessey, his son, 
     
     Jackie Matheson who was a promising 
     
    
   
   
    
     44 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     Behind the Gate 
     
    
   
   
    
     young driver, Billy Mulligan, Billy 
     
     MacKenzie, Dr. Blair Kelly, Dawson 
     
     Peterson, his dad Roddie Matheson, Jack 
     
     Keenan and others. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Lion '5 Boy owned by George Murphy and 
     
     trained by Gordie Hennessey finished 
     
     second in 2:11 in the mud at the C.D.P. in 
     
     1979. Ronnie remembered that race well 
     
     because he drove Lion '5 Boy that day and 
     
     it was his first official drive. He sat in the 
     
     middle of the pack during the race and 
     
     his horse finished strongly to win the 
     
     place spot. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Comanche Bill was a beautiful chestnut 
     
     gelding that would always hold a special 
     
     place in this horseman's career. He stat— 
     
     ed, “After my first drive, I went quite a 
     
     while before I had my first win. I was 
     
     working for Jody Hennessey at that time 
     
     and he drove his own horses. During 
     
     that period, the only horse I drove was 
     
     Comanche b’z'll whom I purchased from 
     
     Roy Wilson. He won in 2:112 for my 
     
     first win." Ronnie hit the wire first in 
     
     157.5 with Woodmerejei at the GDP. 
     
     This was this driver‘s fastest win to date 
     
     and a race he and co-owner Billy 
     
     Mulligan would never forget. 
     
    
   
   
    
     I asked Ronnie to select his six most 
     
     memorable horses from the literally hun— 
     
     dreds that he had worked with during his 
     
     career. After some thought, he respond— 
     
     ed, “ Dr. Blair Kelly’s Rivcmue Sandy was 
     
     a nice colt. He went on to he the three- 
     
     year—old colt of the year on P.E.l. Billy 
     
     Mulligan and I co—owned Woodmerejel.