To Chris Baise, it’s a room that has always felt like home - unchanged in spirit, a comforting space that endures through the years.
The Woodbine Mohawk Park Drivers’ Room is by no means flashy or extravagant, but for those who put on their colours there and race under the lights, it’s a welcome sanctuary, a place where the night’s often hectic pace settles into camaraderie.
For Baise, who runs the room with quiet precision and pride, it’s more than a workplace. It’s a living scrapbook of memories shared with men who spend their lives chasing the wire. It’s a space where victories are celebrated, disappointments are absorbed, and the business of harness racing gives way to kinship.
Every night, he meticulously ensures each driver’s gear is ready, their routines respected, and their spirits steady - the same way his father once did. By Chris Lomon.
“I know that it’s cliché, but hanging out with the drivers is the best part of the job,” said Baise, whose wife Lisa also works for Woodbine, in the Property Services Department.
“My dad, when he was talking about retiring, said they were going to have to drag him out of there. In one conversation, he couldn’t wait until the day came to retire, and in the next moment, I’d remind him that he would still be there every night, just hanging around. And he knew that.”
Unfortunately, the elder Baise never had the chance to make that decision.
On January 28, 2008, Jerry Baise passed away suddenly, at the age of 50. Four of the six pallbearers in his funeral were drivers.
“There was a huge snowstorm that day that shut half the city down,” Chris recalled, “and the O’Brien Awards were that night too - but they all still showed up. You spend half of your life in there [the drivers’ room] and they becomes like a second family.”
In the days following his father’s death, Chris wasn’t sure he wanted to pick up the torch and carry on the family legacy in the drivers’ room however.
At first, he hesitated - unsure if he could fill the shoes of the man who had been his mentor, best friend, and the heart of the room.
“I had no intention of doing it. I ran a bar in Kitchener, and I had rights to liquor inventory control in Southwestern Ontario. I got that three weeks before my dad passed away. That’s what I was going to do, and when my dad needed me, I would always be there to help out.
“When he passed away, I knew I couldn’t do both… I had to pick one over the other.”
Familiar faces reached out to check on him.
“A couple of guys took me aside and asked how I was doing, if I was okay,” recalled Chris. “I asked a few of the guys if they thought I should do this - maybe I wasn’t doing it the way my dad did? I doubted myself a bit. I was stuck. I had been in the bar business for almost 10 years then, and I was only 28 [years-old].
“I barely remember the month after he died. He was my best friend. I had moved back to Cambridge a year or two before he passed away - we had a lot of fun together. If anything happened that was funny in the drivers’ room, I got a call, whether it was midnight or nine in the morning.”
It was veteran driver Keith Oliver who pulled Chris aside and said, “We’re going to need you right now as much as you’re going to need us.”
Not long after that conversation, Chris had another discussion, this one with Woodbine’s then Director of Standardbred Racing, Barry Hewson.
“My dad was so proud of these guys,” smiled Chris. “And then it hit me. I lost my dad, but they lost someone too. They were very emotional. They said me being there was a good thing, that it felt right. That did it for me. I went to Barry and said, ‘Where do I sign?’
“After he passed, there would be times I would be driving home and I would look at my phone and think, ‘I’m going to call my dad’...And then it would hit me that I couldn’t anymore. That was tough.”
Despite his grief, Baise found comfort and purpose in his work with the Mohawk driving colony.
“Everybody respects each other. It’s a very even-keeled group. I thought there would be times that someone would take out their frustration on me, and I can say that it has rarely happened over my years. My door is always open. If they want to talk about racing, or about something else, I’m always there to listen.”
Baise is also there to ensure the evening runs smoothly for every driver.
Preparation is paramount for Chris - and not just on race nights.
“Everything is dependent on the weather. I just don’t trust the weather people anymore - all they want are clicks. But it’s also taken me a while to realize and accept that I can’t control the weather. I try to prepare the night before, and as long as I’m prepared there is no anxiety going into that night.
“On a typical night, I’m there around 5 in the evening. I have been doing it for so long that it’s now like second nature.
“It’s a tight ship that you have to run. The last couple of years, I organize the race bikes [too] - there are about 10 that I look after. If the driver is full-time at Woodbine, they’ll have multiple boots, helmets, suits - it’s very organized. I have some laundry to do and then I wait for the guys to come in. They show up, know which horses they are driving and I take care of the rest. Everyone has a pattern as to when they arrive. After that, we all settle in.”
Across most sports, few competitors ever share the same locker room. Not so in horse racing. Veterans, rookies, and up-and-comers all share the same space.
“Sometimes, I’m there to break the ice a little bit,” noted Baise. “It’s real life. You pick your spots. Sometimes you joke around, other times you stay in your own space.”
Practical jokes are also part of the fabric.
Veteran horseman Rick Zeron believes yellow is bad luck, for example, so the odd time, Jerry Baise would hang one of Rick’s clean suits on a yellow hanger - just to get a rise out of him. Ricky would snap as the others would laugh heartily.
Chris has carried on the playful spirit.
For example, he recently brought in a handful of massive Q-Tip style cotton swabs, shaped like little dumbbells, and tells visitors he got them especially for Phil Hudon - who’s known for his big ears. A good-natured veteran of the room, Phil chuckles as Chris retells the tale and the room fills with laughter.
Big race nights, though, bring a different energy - a balance of pressure and pride.
“The hardest part of the job, especially on the big nights, is that you have 10 to 12 guys going for the big money. For some of the drivers, they might have one big horse all year, and this is a huge moment for them.
“They’re human and they have feelings. In a million-dollar race, there are nine guys coming up to that room who are disappointed, and one guy is in the winner’s circle celebrating. In those times, I generally stay away from them. You want to give them their space. Some of these guys are very hard on themselves - it’s tough to see that.”
But when a longshot comes through? It’s pure elation for Baise.
“One of the greatest things is when a driver might not think they have a shot to win and then they do - those smiles are amazing to see.”
It is also a common look for the man in charge, as Baise’s connection to the drivers’ room stretches back to his childhood.
“I have memories that go back to the Greenwood days, when I was only six or seven [years-old]. I always remember that my dad didn’t take any holidays, as soon as he started the valet role in 1987. He had about 10 drivers at Greenwood. I got my driver’s license around 16. By age 17, I was coming in with him, and he showed me what was going on. He told me he would help me with my car, but I had to come in and give him a hand, washing suits, things like that.”
The younger Baise was also soon well-versed as to each driver’s quirks and requirements.
“My dad would give me a biography on each guy and what they needed each night. It took me a while to get that, but I did.
“He would bring me in on the big nights. When racing was at both tracks, I would go with him to Woodbine as well. Then, when it shifted to Mohawk again, I would join him there too. Back then, four times a year we’d have to pack up everything and go back-and-forth. It was stressful at times, but I know my dad appreciated having me around.
“When I helped him, we always had a great time. Even when I lived out of town, I would come back and help out. He would focus on the night, and I had other things organized and ready to go. When he started, there were fewer drivers to take care of, but over the years he always took care of every driver with the same care.”
Like father, like son.
Once the drivers return to the room after the final race of the evening and then head out to their respective homes, Baise’s night is not over.
Far from it.
That commitment to preparedness, learned and handed down from his father, guides him through the next couple of hours before he makes the 20-minute drive home.
“I wash all the suits - most of them twice now because of the weather. I get all the equipment set, which makes the next day easier when I arrive. The night before, I get programs ready for the drivers and trainers. I’ll have the program marked for each driver and trainer, as to who they have that night and in what race. I make sure I check any scratches or changes. I just want them to be able to focus once they arrive.”
The respect Chris and his father have earned from the drivers has always been mutual.
“When my dad first passed away, the drivers and others did a memorial race for him,” said Chris. “That was very cool for me, personally, seeing them come out and support my family.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Canada in 2020, the long-reaching effects of the virus had a major impact on businesses, organizations and the sports sector across the country.
Racing continued under strict protocols, with a few complete shutdowns sprinkled in. Baise wasn’t sure how his role would look during the early days of the pandemic - until the drivers stepped in.
“There were times when I would wonder if what I did was appreciated, but the guys really went to bat for me during COVID,” recalled Chris. “I was the last person to come back, but those guys really stepped up for me to help make it happen. I thought, at first, maybe they were just tired of taking all their stuff home every night, but they really cared about me. It’s a close-knit group up there.
“Trainer Blake MacIntosh, and drivers Bob McClure and Doug McNair - they kept pushing for me to come back. It made me feel good. I already knew what these guys were all about, but that just verified it for me.”
The drivers and trainers view Baise as one of their own.
“He takes great care of us,” said MacIntosh, who has over 1,300 career training victories, including a personal-best 103 wins in 2024. “He knows when to leave us alone, if it’s a bad night, and also knows when to come up with a quick dig at you to get you laughing. If I’m stuck and can’t make it in, and have to go on the road, I can text him and he will have my stuff packed and get it to me so I don’t have to come in and do it.
“He works a lot of hours that people don’t see. He’s there for hours after we leave, cleaning the suits, helmets and boots, taking care of a bunch of different characters. He’s a great friend.”
It is a sentiment shared by many, including McNair and McClure.
“Chris is a great guy,” said McNair, who is closing in on 5,000 lifetime wins and $100 million in purses. “He does the best job. He loves to crack a joke at someone, especially when the room is full and quiet, which usually leads to the whole room laughing and talking about something funny that he said. I’ve known him since I was a kid. His dad would be very proud of his work and his young family.”
“Chris is more of a staple in the room than any driver is,” said McClure, a winner of over 3,700 races and almost $60 million in purses. “I didn’t have the good fortune of meeting his father, but the way people still talk about him to this day shows that Chris carried that over from him. Chris is far from just an employee of the racetrack. He IS the drivers’ room. He can have the whole room in stitches with his cutthroat jokes and also have the whole room tiptoeing around because there is a 1.5 percent chance of light showers that night (laughing).
“He’s a great person and takes a lot of pride in his job.”
Something that visiting drivers have taken notice of as well.
Chris recalled a conversation with New York-based Jordan Stratton, a driver with over 5,900 career wins on his résumé.
“When the guys come up from the States, they love it here. Jordan was here two years ago, and he sat on the deck overlooking the track for about two hours and he didn’t say a word - he just watched the races from out there. He asked me if anyone ever complains and I said, ‘Only if I screw up their driving suit’. He was just amazed at everything. That was nice to hear. It does mean a lot.”
The room has changed physically over the years - a renovation six years ago created separate spaces for drivers and trainers, plus a women’s locker room - but the atmosphere remains the same.
“We updated it in 2019 and made it two separate rooms, one for the drivers and one for the trainers. There is a little lounge and a card table [in the drivers’ area]. I’ve been to a few tracks over the years, and I think we have the best one in the sport.
“I take pride in the room, and everyone here appreciates what we have here at Mohawk.”
Perhaps none more than Baise, who now finds himself in a familiar father-son scenario as he did years ago, albeit with the roles reversed.
“When I bring my son, Keinan - he was born the night before Breeders Crown at Woodbine in 2015 - along to the races and to say hello to the guys, he loves it. He knows everybody. I guess he is like me when I was his age. I’m sure if you asked him now, he’d rather come to the qualifiers or the races than go to school (laughing).”
And now there’s a new member of the Baise family joining the tradition as well.
“We had a little girl, Markley, last December, five days before Christmas. She was a surprise. We did her gender reveal at Mohawk. The new racetrack lighting system that was installed - they made it into the colour of pink when they popped the balloon.
“That was [Director, Standardbred Racing Operations] Megan Walker’s idea. [Track photographer] Clive Cohen got a great picture of my son’s reaction, because Keinan wanted a little sister. He was over the moon. She’s a little angel.”
Not long after Markley was born, Baise’s phone pinged.
“[Former WEG driver] Mark MacDonald messaged me right away - my dad and him were very tight. He said, ‘You didn’t have to name her after me’. I just went along with the joke and said, ‘Yep, all for you, bud.’”
A textbook example of how Jerry and Chris Baise are regarded by drivers, near and far, and a reminder how much the ones that were close to Jerry, still feel about his son.
“I feel that,” said Chris. “And it’s wonderful.”
It’s also the same feeling that fills the Woodbine Mohawk Park Drivers’ Room. And no matter what led him to that room - fate, happenstance or divine intervention - Chris Baise has found his own field of dreams, a place that has always felt like a home away from home.
He feels it - that same sense of belonging his father once knew, and the quiet satisfaction of knowing he’s carried the torch well.
“I suppose the room means a lot of things to me - and each one of them is special.”
This feature originally appeared in the December issue of TROT Magazine. Subscribe to TROT today by clicking the banner below.
