Coulter Comments On WEG Circuit

“I wanted to reach 3,000 wins and go over the $20 million mark, and I thought if I could do both those things, I would call that a very good year.”

It has been a very good year for driver Scott Coulter. Known as 'The Tan Tornado' for the colour of his suit and the way he takes the racetrack by storm, the 40-year old from Brantford, Ont. has dominated the ranks among the reinsmen at Grand River Raceway this season.

With 75 wins in 458 starts and over $538,000 in purse money earned since racing began in April, Coulter is hoping to claim the title of Top Driver at Grand River Raceway. Now, with the season drawing to a close, he’s just a few races away from achieving another major accomplishment in what has already been a landmark year. In the last month, Coulter scored lifetime victory number 3,000 and saw his lifetime earnings top $20 million since he began driving in 1995.

“Now I have actually surpassed my earnings from the best year I ever had and I’m aiming for a higher win total this season,” said Coulter, who currently sits at 351 wins this year and ranks fourth for wins among all Canadian drivers.

“I think it was 406 prior to this year, so I’m aiming for 407. I want get better ever year. I don’t want to just rest on this.”

It takes an incredible amount of determination and dedication to make a career out of driving racehorses, but Coulter has both in spades. During the summer, he races almost seven days a week, spending as much time in the sulky as he does in his pickup truck driving to and from racetracks all over Ontario. But Coulter says that’s the kind of sacrifice it takes stay at the top of the game and that’s where he plans to remain.

“I like that I’ve become good at something and I like the fact that I can continue to grow. This year I feel I have turned a corner and I’m offering more now in the sulky than I ever have been able to before.”

With 17 years and 22,829 races’ worth of experience under his belt, Coulter says he feels more equipped than ever to compete on the racetrack.

“It’s totally experienced based,” he said. “The amount of time I have spent behind horses has given me the tools to deal with whatever I see in front of me. The important part about being a good driver is to be versatile. There are so many variables to each horse. They’re all going to throw something different at you and you have to be prepared to deal with it.”

When trainers are choosing the driver for their horse, they try to match the driver’s skills to what each horse needs most, whether than means a steady hand or a little extra encouragement.

“I assess what I think the horse is going to need from me in the race and I try to give them as much of that as I possibly can,” explained Coulter. “I drove a lot of younger trotters this year. I think that maybe trainers see that I’m able to settle a younger horse and keep their head on straight.”

Among the best beginner trotters with which he was matched, Coulter says a three-year-old filly named Defy Time was one of his favourites.

“I really liked her. I drove her most of the season and she has been a big part of my success this year,” he said.

Most recently, the pair captured the Ontario Sires Stakes $100,000 Grassroots Final on at Mohawk Racetrack on Oct 1.

“This year I’m finding myself on the big tracks, like Mohawk and Woodbine, a little more often,” said Coulter. “I want to be on the big stage and I would like to find my way there. I aspire to get there, but I’m completely happy doing what I’m doing. I’ll keep driving horses no matter what.”

(A Trot Insider exclusive by Hilary Eastmure)