Paula Mason wears her heart on her sleeve and elsewhere
by Chris Lomon
Paula Mason’s adoration for harness racing can be found on the front of her driving colors.
They are easily noticeable, the two silver hearts, one on the left, the other on the right, that are featured against an eye-catching purple backdrop.
“My dad has maroon and blue as his colors,” Mason said. “When I was growing up, I wasn’t sure what I wanted my colors to be. When I got to be a teenager, purple just kind of clicked with me. It’s a derivative of maroon, so I am kind of sticking with the family pattern there. I wanted to make it my own, but I also wanted something more feminine, so I went with the hearts.”
Mason’s love affair with racing and horses can be traced back to the days when she took her first few steps.
Her parents, Darryl, who started driving in 1986, and finds himself one shy of 1,200 driving wins, accumulated in his home province and beyond, and Sherri Mason, a trainer with over 500 lifetime victories, are also long-time operators of the largest breeding farm in Manitoba.
It was no surprise that Paula, who earned her training license at 16, was eager to follow in their footsteps.
And it was by no means a longshot that success would follow.
“My parents always emphasized that the horses give you what you give them,” Paula said. “Meaning that the better you treat your horses, the more time you put in, and giving them the best care, it will reflect in your horse’s performance. The horses will race better and they will try harder. They instilled that when I was a little girl, and I live by that to this day.”
Twelve years ago, Paula debuted with a trio of starters on the afternoon of July 14, 2013, at Glenboro, a half-mile oval in the town of the same name.
Her first starter, A Minutes Grace, was third in the first race. Four races later, with her father in the race bike, Justabitfaster finished fourth.
In the eighth race, Mystic Maggie, a daughter of Camystic (AB), delivered the young conditioner a milestone victory.
“Obviously, a highlight of anyone’s career is their first win and that happened the first day I was racing as a trainer,” Paula said. “That was one you will always remember.”
Four years ago, Paula added driver to her racing repertoire.
In her rookie campaign, she posted three thirds from 12
starts.
One year later, in 2023, she recorded six wins and 14 top three finishes from 35 starts. In 2024, there were nine winner’s circle trips and 38 podium finishes from 69 starts.
Her most treasured victory to date came this year, on Aug. 9, in an elimination of the Manitoba Futurity, the province’s richest stakes event.
Paula was handed the lines of Pipers Luna, a daughter of Im the Pied Piper (MB) trained, bred and owned by Lorraine Rey.
“It was a mare I had never driven before,” Paula said. “I was driving her for good family friends, the Rey family. When I was going into the race, I read the program and saw that she was a very nice filly. She was undefeated at that point, so I felt we had a good chance to win it.”
When the starter car sped away, so too did Paula and Pipers Luna.
“I was able to get away from the gate and cut the fractions myself,” Paula said. “She made it easy. The second favorite came first over, I popped the plugs, and she just started to cruise away on them.”
Paula wasn’t about to let her guard down and gave herself an internal pep talk in the final quarter.
“Coming down the stretch, I looked over and there was no one within 10 lengths of me,” she said. “I said to myself, ‘Don’t screw up now.’ She was a little bit rough down the stretch, but we held things together and got her across the wire flat.”
The chart showed a seven-length score and a 2:01.1 mile.
“In the winner’s circle, there were quite a few congratulations and that’s when it hit me that it was my first big stakes win in Manitoba,” Paula said. “It was a great feeling of accomplishment. You don’t win those races every day, so it felt very good.
“It is definitely a confidence booster. I am the only female driver here in Manitoba. I race against the boys all the time, so it definitely gives your confidence a push, as well as knowing trainers have faith in me when they put me with a great horse like that.”
Paula isn’t only making her mark in the industry on the track – she is also a board member of Standardbred Canada.
Whatever role she finds herself immersed in on any given day, she approaches each one with a singular focus and the same high standard of care.
“The most rewarding part is seeing the horses develop, as a trainer,” Paula said. “My family is big into the breeding business, so I have grown up with that way my whole life. I have my own broodmare and I really enjoy foaling the mares out, raising them, breaking them, and getting them to the races. It’s a very rewarding process when you can get one of your own to the races.
“I am pretty involved in almost every aspect of the industry. I breed, train, and drive my own. I have also started shoeing my own, too.”
Paula, who graduated from Brandon University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and psychology, works full-time as a social worker.
She is also taking care of two young children.
“I am also a foster parent through the agency I work for, so I have two little kids right now, a 2-year-old girl and a 3-week-old boy in my care,” she said.
There is also an ice and diamond aspect to her life outside the office, barn and home.
“I play hockey and I also play baseball in the summer,” she said. “I like to be busy.”
And she also likes to be driven.
Goals for her standardbred career are not solely confined to the Manitoba racing scene.
“Like everybody, a long-term goal would be to race on the big tracks one day,” Paula said. “I often look at the International Women’s Day races at The Meadowlands and Woodbine – it would be a huge privilege to be in those races and race against some of the top females in the sport.
“In the short term, we are halfway through the season here and I just want to finish the season strong and look forward to breaking some babies this winter, then have a good start to the season next year.”
Paula will also continue to be an impassioned advocate and voice for harness racing in Manitoba.
“We’re not doing it as a career or for the money, per se, we are doing it for the love of the sport and we want to keep the tradition alive,” she said.
The horsewoman in purple and silver — the one who wears her heart on her sleeve and elsewhere — is undoubtedly doing her part.
