Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Odds On Racing's

Driver of the Month
for June 2011

Lucien Fontaine

Lucien Fontaine got his start in harness racing under Keith Waples in Canada and in 1957, immigrated to the U.S. and became a protégé of the great Clint Hodgins. It was Fontaine, in fact, that trained Clint’s champions Bye Bye Byrd and Elaine Rodney.

Lucien Fontain & Forrest Skipper

In 1960, Hodgins sent Lucien to Rockingham under the “threat” that if he was unsuccessful in winning races that he shouldn’t “bother coming back!” But win he did.

On he went to, first, Goshen and, then, Roosevelt Raceway where Fontaine won his first drive there (from the eight post, no less) with Carmita Hanover--at 35 to 1!!!

In 1961, Fontaine went on his own, participating as a “catch-driver” on the tough New York circuit and, by 1965, his name was always on the leader boards for dashes won and purse earnings.

Fontaine, at age 28, became the youngest driver in the sport’s history to reach the $1,000,000 plateau in purse earnings, a feat only achieved by “older” drivers such as Haughton, Dancer, Sholty and Chapman. That was in 1968.

In 1986, “Loosh” handled a pacer by the name of Forrest Skipper, who went through the year tackling the best pacers in the sport and beating them week after week. At the end of that year, he was unscathed—15 for 15—with track records just about everywhere at which he competed. Freehold, Rosecroft, Roosevelt, Canterbury , Dover Downs …all track records by Forrest Skipper. And, to top it all off, he tied the track record at Los Alamitos when he won the Breeders Crown.

Lucien Fontaine competed against many of the sport’s greatest performers, including Carmine Abbatiello, Buddy Gilmour, Mike Lachance, Bill O’Donnell, Del Insko, Herve Filion, Ray Remmen and Jim Doherty.

Besides 1986 Horse of the Year Forrest Skipper, Fontaine conditioned and drove such standouts as Big Towner, Country Don, Irish Napoleon, Pocomoonshine, Cigar Store Injun and W. W. Smith.

Fontaine’s career included victories in many of harness racing's most prestigious events, including the Breeders Crown, U.S. Pacing Championship, Messenger, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Dan Patch, Cornell and Driscoll, to name just a few.

“Loosh” was forced to prematurely “retire” from harness racing in 1989 due to open heart surgery, ending a career that saw him score over 3,400 victories accounting for over $21,000,000 in purse earnings for his owners.