TROIS-RIVIERES, Quebec – At first glance, reaching suc a threshold at the Quebec Regional Fair races at Ayers Cliff, could have seemed disappointing, but according to Stephane Brosseau himself, what a warm welcome the fans who were present there on Saturday, August 26 gave him on scoring his 3,000th career win.
As he says, it was a magical moment, intimate, sympathetic that the main interested is not about to forget.
"My father was a talented trainer in the 70s and 80s," Stephane said. "And so, did my uncles, Pierre and Jean-Guy Brosseau, from as far back as I can remember I never wanted to do anything other than be a horse driver. On the school benches, it took all my mother's conviction to keep me there until I graduated from school. And as soon as I was able to devote myself to this passion, as soon as I could live my dream, I threw myself totally into harness racing.
"My first years were atypical," Stephane explained, "In the sense that I was in the United States, working for my uncle Jean-Guy when the time came for my first tests on the track. Qualifying races at Brandywine, Freehold, Yonkers and a very first victory in 1988, at Blue Bonnets, to the guides of Sexy Skipper, but before I got there, at this first victory, I remember that I finished six times in second place!
"It was then the time for my first job as a horseman and driver," Stephane said. "Mostly very competent coaches from whom I learned a lot, people like Simon Pleau, Pierre Touchette, Jean-Louis Deblois, Serge Boulay. I was hoping for more than 700 appearances on the track, more than sixty victories, and it took almost ten years for me to find the numbers, but the massive arrival of some renowned veterans during those years made me undeniably backward in the pursuit of my dreams, of course the Blue Bonnets of the early 90's.
"Fortunately, there was the Prudhomme family," Stephane added. "Marcel Pelletier, a few people like this who allowed me to continue. To move forward, around 1997, it was imperative to take a step backwards to better relaunch my career, so I went to Quebec City, Serge Normandin, and there, too, a complicity was born that always lasted since, that with my good friend Marc-Andre Simoneau.
"I had an excellent pass that made it possible for me to come back stronger to Montreal," Stephane said. "Which had become the Montreal Hippodrome in 2002. In 2002, it was my best year, with more than 260 wins and gains that exceeded 2.2 $ million.
"In the early 2000s, I convinced two good friends to follow me in Trois-Rivieres," Stephane explained, "And race twice a week, and I am referring to Serge Turenne and Mario Charron. I had to do a lot of things, to find a job outside the races and to try to earn a living for my family. Races at H3R, it's great, but for someone like me, it does not allow me to live by my job.
"Of course, at 48," Stephane, of L'Assomption said. "When I take a look at my journey, I imagine that it could have been quite different, if the races in Quebec had been maintained, with three racecourses, even four, races almost every day, purses that allow people to live off their passion.
"It's beautiful that I now have 3,000 victories," Stephane continued. "But I am not without saying that under the current conditions, the 4,000th seems very far away."
Those who know and appreciate Stephane are very happy with what will happen to him in 2017. Good horses to drive, the support of several of the best stables have propelled this year more than ever to the forefront.
His talent and his hands are more recognizable with the young horses. This talent, this skill has always been there, but it was as if we did not appreciate them at their true value.
Personally, it has not often happened to me to leave my professional reserve, but today, let me tell you, that Stephane Brosseau, for me, is an accomplished driver to whom I would never hesitate to trust.
Here is a competent horseman, a man who knows how to make the most of the horses entrusted to him. Since the early 2000s, he is, in my opinion, one of the dominant forces on the race track.
With Pascal Berube and Mario Charron, he has always been there, against all odds, and it can easily be said today that he is identified with H3R at the tracks leading driver.
Stéphane is also an excellent ambassador for the industry. He expresses himself well, a quality sought to help sell the sport to which it is so attached.
He can clearly and unambiguously identify the reasons for success and failure. He is an emotional man, a passionate man. He does not like to lose, like most people he is thirsty for victories, but this year more than ever, he knew how to keep a cool head and as he told track announcer Guy Lafontaine last Sunday, he tries as much as possible to have fun!
We are all pleased that he has reached this enviable threshold of 3,000 victories. Who knows what tomorrow will reserve for him? He still has very good years ahead of him. Just enough that the races continue on a good track. And to his family, Marie-Claude and Philippe, Claudette and Marcel, you can be very proud of Stephane Brosseau!
By Daniel Delisle, for the Quebec Jockey Club