BIBLE HILL, N.S. – A member of team P.E.I. outmatched his competition Friday evening at Truro Raceway and captured the Atlantic Regional Driving Championship.
Gilles Barrieau recorded a driving triple in the eight-race event at the Nova Scotia oval to earn him a spot in the National Driving Championship set for September at Grand River Raceway in Ontario alongside second-place finisher Redmond Doucet of Nova Scotia.
A native of Saint John, N.B., Barrieau has become a regular at both Red Shores tracks on Prince Edward Island in recent year giving him the necessary win totals to gain him a spot as a P.E.I. representative.
“I had a great night,” Barrieau said after being crowned victor in the Atlantic regional competition. “All of the drivers are competitive. It was a great evening and everything just worked out for me.”
Barrieau finished the competition with 72 points to punch his ticket to the national championship. Redmond Doucet finished second with 61 points, Jason Hughes was third with 60 points while fellow Island representative Marc Campbell was fourth on the evening with 57 points. Rounding out the field were Darren Crowe (42), Todd Trites (40), John Gerard Kennedy (23) and Island representative Ken Murphy (21).
Barrieau scored wins in Race 2 with Sock It To Em in 1:58.1 for owner-trainer Kenneth Parker Jr., of Gays River, N.S., Race 5 with Miss Sangria in 1:58.2 for trainer George Rennison of Truro and the Race 9 finale with Four Brass Starz in 1:59.4 for trainer Nick MacGillivray of Stratford, who shipped over for the regional contest.
Barrieau won the inaugural National Driving Championship in 2007 to represent Canada in New Zealand and Australia.
In other Atlantic Regional Driving Championship action, Redmond Doucet opened up the night at the Nova Scotia half-miler with a victory aboard CJ Bluefin in 2:00 for trainer Neil Bambrick of Charlottetown. Doucet continued his early dominance in the third race of the night in 2:01 for trainer Parker.
Hughes then had a strong surge in the middle of the competition as the Stratford horseman won two races from his own stable scoring with Silverinyourpocket in 1:58.1 in Race 4 and Jeb in 1:57 in Race 6.
Race 7 saw Truro’s own representative, Darren Crowe, visit the winner’s circle with Montreal Phil in 1:57.2 from his own stable.
The card also featured a $2,500 preferred pace with Hughes cutting all the fractions to romp by four lengths with Mr Irresistible in 1:54.2 for a training triple from his own stable. Danny Birt of Stratford owns the pacer.
At the National Driving Championship in September, Barrieau and Doucet will join Western Regional finalists Jamie Gray and Kelly Hoerdt, Ontario finalists Trevor Henry and Louis-Philippe Roy and Ontario/Quebec finallists Guy Gagnon and Stephane Brosseau.
The winner of the National Driving Championship will represent Canada at the World Driving Championship in Sweden in 2019 alongside defending World Driving Champion James MacDonald, a native of Kingston, P.E.I.
– Compiled by Nicholas Oakes for Red Shores.
