In B.C.’s tight-knit harness racing community, Scott Knight was well liked off the track and deeply respected on it. “He was a pretty good driver,” said friend and fellow harness racer Randy Rutledge. “He always ended up close to the top in the standings.” Knight was competing at Desert Park Raceway in Osoyoos on Sunday when he was involved in a fatal collision. His close friend David Hudon was racing alongside him. “After I win the race and I was pulling my horse to go back to the winner’s circle, another driver beside me said, uh oh,” said Hudon. “Somebody said that the horse that Scotty was following made a bad step or something, and he fell down. Scotty didn’t have a chance.” “They were trying to revive him and they had a helicopter come in,” said Rutledge. “They were going to air ambulance, but he wasn’t moving. I think everybody knew it was not a good thing.” The 52-year-old from Langley succumbed to his injuries. Knight leaves behind a wife, two sons and three stepchildren. “Everybody’s in shock. It’s like a dream, or a nightmare,” said Rutledge’s wife Jennifer Dodsworth. “Scott was one of the good guys, you know. Always a smile. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him get angry.” “Always a happy guy,” added Rutledge. “And always there to help people out, you know? And he loved the horse industry.” Now, that industry is stepping up to support Knight’s widow and kids. Over $60,000 has been donated in an online fundraiser. “You feel for the family, because he left a young family behind,” said Hudon. Knight’s harness racing family is also grieving. “It’s a very, very big family. Yesterday, all the tracks in Ontario, they had a moment of silence for him,” said Hudon. After losing a close friend while harness racing together, Hudon briefly questioned his continued participation in the sport he loves. “It did cross my mind to say, ‘Well, maybe I won’t go back out there.’ But it’s the love of the game, the love of racing horses,” he said. When asked if he thinks Knight would want him to keep racing, Hudon replied: “I do. I do.”
