A day in the life of a harness racing track man is anything but routine. Depending upon the weather, the team of Bruce Kilton and Michael Bilodeau could be working all day, all night, or all day and night on the racing surface at First Tracks Cumberland.
Prior to the Sunday, Dec. 21 card, the dynamic duo had been maintaining the track for the previous 48 hours straight, responding to rain, freezing temps and high winds as it wreaked havoc upon the stone dust, and the horsepeople, of Southern Maine.
As expected, the track lost power on Friday, Dec. 19 during a storm, which produced an inch of rain coupled with gusts up to 60 miles per hour. While power crews and linemen worked feverishly overnight to restore electricity, Kilton and Bilodeau went to work to ‘freeze dry’ the racing surface so that the track’s 17th winter card, and the Au Revoir retirement ceremonies, could be held on Saturday, Dec. 20.
“We knew that it was going to be a long night,” noted Kilton, who has been driving big trucks and heavy equipment his entire life.
The Portland-born 56-year-old was the track man at Scarborough before that facility closed and he moved over to Cumberland in 2022.
“Ultimately, we cannot start working on the track until, number one, it stops raining and, number two, the track starts freezing back up,” added Kilton.
“The conditioner is our best piece of equipment for getting the track ready to race,” he continued. “We like to keep a cushion on the surface as best we can so the horses get a break from the firmer conditions evident on the fair circuit.”
Speaking of fairs, Bilodeau grew up at the Rochester (Maine) Fair and has been driving track implements since he was “two years old,” noted the lifelong New England resident.
The 35-year-old stated, “As I got older I went on to do the Oxford Fair, then went to Pompano, then to Scarborough Downs and began here when Cumberland opened in 2021.”
Bilodeau learned from his experience in South Florida to add more stone dust to the track after a rain to help soak up the water. But he also credits New York’s Kim Crawford with providing him timely advice when necessary.
First Tracks General Manager Ben Kenney gave him the nickname ‘Pompano Mike’ back when he first came aboard and the moniker has stuck.
“Bruce and Mike are an invaluable part of our track’s day to day operations,” stated Kenney. “They battle all types of weather conditions and the mayhem it leaves on the track surface. One of the best parts about the team is that they both approach situations in different ways. In doing so, it makes them highly effective.
“But most of all, we appreciate that no matter what the situation, they have a great attitude and a good sense of humour … which is always required when you’re a track man in Maine.”
The proof of all the hard work and dedication to the track surface was on full display on Sunday when several series finals went postward at Cumberland.
The featured $17,123 Blitzen Pop-Up Series final went to Hespoisedtopounce A in a wire-to-wire romp in 1:59 for driver Aaron Hall, trainer Jimmy Nickerson and owners Tim Bojarski and Tony Gruppo. The nine-year-old son of Bettors Delight-Perfectly Poised returned $3.40 to his backers.
The $13,699 Comet Series final was captured by Cigars And Port in 1:57.4 for driver Wally Watson, who co-owns with Fox Ridge Stable. The eight-year-old son of So Surreal-Sweet On Art is trained by Lisa Watson. He paid $9.60 to win.
Jones Hanover took the $13,699 Dasher final in 1:59.3 in wire-to-wire fashion for driver Kevin Switzer Jr. Owned and trained by Zach Vickerson, the four-year-old son of Huntsville-JK Mollys Delight returned $3.40.
Todd Whitney took the $10,274 Maine Amateur Driving Club final with the Michelle Lefebvre-owned and trained pacer Legal Bettor in 1:58.3. The 10-year-old son of Bettors Delight-Legal Entity scored by 6-1/2 lengths and paid $2.20 to win.
Driver Aaron Hall grabbed a natural hat trick and leading reinsman Kevin Switzer Jr. picked up three of his own on the Sunday card.
Switzer was recognized for topping the leaderboard at Cumberland for the 2025 calendar year during Sunday's card before adding a pair of wins to his seasonal total on the rescheduled Monday card to close out the season.
One of his closing day winners for was trainer Ryan Berry's Juneparker, who swooped the field to take the $13,698 final of the Vixen Pop-Up Series in 1:59.4, paying $12.60 to win.
Switzer ended with 118 wins at Cumberland in 2025. Aaron Hall (63 wins) and McGwire Sowers (62 wins) rounded out the top three.
First Track Cumberland's Chris Tully presents Kevin Switzer Jr. with a plaque as the 2025 leading driver at the Maine oval.
McGwire Sowers had three wins on the mid-day Monday card, including the final race of the year with his wife’s pupil, Miss Quality, to give Autym Sowers a total of 45 wins over the 2025 season and her first season-long training title. Benson Merrill finished second with 40 training wins.
Tully presents Autym Sowers with a plaque as the 2025 leading trainer at First Track Cumberland.
The Monday card concluded the 52 extended pari-mutuel race dates at the iconic Southern Maine oval. Racing will resume at Cumberland in mid-March 2026, pending regulatory approval.
(With files from First Tracks Cumberland)