Behind the Gate 
     
    
   
   
    
     strong to beat her. Dallas Roe/es could 
     
     come out of a hole faster than any horse 
     
     I have ever sat behind. You could move 
     
     Rosetown Eagle any place in a race and 
     
     he would continue to try right to the very 
     
     end of a race.” 
     
    
   
   
    
     Other horses that he remembered were 
     
     CD’S Richie, Rebel jay, Pans 0 Silver and 
     
     Victorious Bill who were all special in 
     
     their own particular way. His very 
     
     favorite horse of all would have to be 
     
     Rosetown Eagle. Brian explained, “He 
     
     had a bigger heart than any horse I have 
     
     ever had. He could make a poor drive 
     
     seem like a brilliant drive.” 
     
    
   
   
    
     A few years ago, Elwood Lawton called 
     
     him a month before that year’s Gold Cup 
     
     and Saucer Trials and asked if he would 
     
     drive Soutbview Matt in the Trials. It did 
     
     not take long for a positive response. He 
     
     finished third and drew the dreaded out— 
     
     side seven hole in the final of the presti— 
     
     gious Gold Cup and Saucer race. It was 
     
     muddy that night and Brian and 
     
     Soutboiew Matt were parked out every 
     
     step of the mile. In a photo for place, 
     
     they finished third to the deserving win— 
     
     ner Comedy Hour. Brian had participat— 
     
     ed in the biggest race in eastern Canada 
     
     and he would always remember 
     
     Southaiew Matt for giving him that most 
     
     memorable race. 
     
    
   
   
    
     One of the biggest changes in harness 
     
     racing today is the fact that racetracks are 
     
     conditioned five times better according to 
     
     this driver/trainer/blacksmith. Expertise, 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     time and energy have improved the ovals 
     
     at Summerside, Charlottetown and else- 
     
     where. According to Brian, another big 
     
     and important change in the industry is 
     
     in the driving itself. It used to be rare for 
     
     a driver to make a move before the hors- 
     
     es reached the three-quarter pole and 
     
     then there was a mad dash to the finish. 
     
     A few years ago, if you didn‘t move out 
     
     by the half. you would likely be hope- 
     
     lessly caught in for the rest of the race. 
     
     Now in the new millennium, if you don’t 
     
     move by the quarter pole, you probably 
     
     won‘t get out. Driving is much more 
     
     aggressive today, with a lot more strategy 
     
     being used by successful drivers. 
     
    
   
   
    
     What Brian liked most about harness rac- 
     
     ing was the people that you meet every 
     
     day in this industry. People from all 
     
     walks of life somehow become equals at 
     
     the track. Rich and poor, young and old, 
     
     male and female are all treated the same 
     
     when mucking a stall, jogging a colt, 
     
     printing a program or selling a ticket at 
     
     the racetrack. Brian believed strongly in 
     
     a positive approach to life and wanted to 
     
     see the day when people in the industry 
     
     concentrated more on the positives than 
     
     the negatives. Who knows what steps 
     
     could be taken if this were to happen? 
     
    
   
   
    
     Standardbred horses are high perfor- 
     
     mance animals and must be treated as 
     
     such. All horses in his stable required 
     
     lots of time to be spent on them. Proper 
     
     nutrition was a must in their regular feed— 
     
     ing. He stated that their problems may be 
     
     fixed almost before they can happen with 
     
    
   
   
    
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