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Sam Spear, Bay Area Media Legend, Passes Away

Golden Gate Fields is saddened to learn of the passing of Bay Area media legend Sam Spear at age 72 following a lengthy illness. Spear, born Nov. 3, 1948 in Oakland, Calif., and raised in Alameda, was a lifelong horse racing fan who passed away Saturday at 1 a.m. After graduating from St. Joseph's Alameda and San Francisco State, he quickly became a major fixture at Thoroughbred racetracks throughout Northern California.

Spear was employed in the racing industry for over four decades. He served as media relations director at Golden Gate Fields and Bay Meadows, assisting media personnel, horsemen, front side staff, owners, breeders, horseplayers, and fans. Sam thoroughly enjoyed helping others and was devoted to creating the best possible experience for those he encountered on and off the track. His affable personality quickly made him a “fan favorite” amongst fans and horsemen, and he was often seen chatting it up with turf club patrons and railbirds alike.

A close friend and confidant of legendary San Francisco native Joe DiMaggio, Spear often drove “Joe D.” to and from both Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields and ensured he was well taken care of throughout many race days in both the press box and Turf Club.

One would be hard pressed to find an individual who did more to promote Northern California racing than Sam Spear. Sam hosted and produced Bay Area racing's popular race replay show on KTSF-Channel 26 that began in 1978 and ran until 2017. He also hosted “At the Track with Sam Spear,” a weekly radio program every Sunday morning that attracted a large following of listeners and some of racing's biggest names as guests on the show. Spear had contacts with every newspaper and news station in the Bay Area, and successfully promoted horse racing through these channels.

Whenever leaving a voice mail, he would invariably tag each message with the admonition, “And we'll see YOU at the races.”

Spear was described as a “human encyclopedia” for all things horse racing and Bay Area Sports—Giants, A's, 49ers, Raiders, Warriors, and more. His uncanny ability to remember specific races, names, dates, and statistics was second to none. Sam was a natural storyteller and enjoyed sharing memories from the past using humor, wit, and charm. Spear was also a big supporter of the younger generations and a mentor to many journalists, television/radio personalities, and race callers who have gone on to be very successful in their respective fields of work.

The Golden Gate Fields racing community will never forget Sam Spear and the countless contributions he made to Northern California horse racing and the community at large. From all of us at Golden Gate Fields, we extend our deepest condolences to Sam's family and friends.

A funeral Mass is scheduled for Sam Spear on Monday, Nov. 1 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Isadore Catholic Church in Danville, where Spear had resided for the past 20 years with his longtime partner, Barbara O'Neill.

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Northern California Icon, Trainer Bob Hess Sr., 86, Dies After Contracting COVID-19

An iconic figure at Golden Gate Fields in Albany, Calif., for five decades, trainer Bob Hess Sr. succumbed to the effects of COVID-19 early Saturday morning at age 86. Consistently among the leaders in Northern California dating back to the 1970s, Hess, who was the father of trainer Bob Hess, Jr., began his training career at Playfair in Spokane, Wash., in the late 1950s, then moved south to Agua Caliente in Tijuana, Mex., in the 1960s and to Bay Meadows and Golden Gate in 1971. He was a highly respected horseman throughout his career.

Initially hospitalized in mid-November with COVID-19 following a test administered by track officials, Hess was subsequently released and then re-admitted when symptoms returned. This heartbreaking news comes just one day after Golden Gate officials announced the continued suspension of live racing through Dec. 25.

“Our hearts and prayers are with the entire Hess family at this time,” said David Duggan, general manager at Golden Gate Fields. “To lose a longtime trainer and friend is simply heartbreaking to our entire horse racing family.”

Hess was born in the Lancaster County, Pa., town of Lititz on Oct. 10, 1934, and moved west to the Pasadena, Calif., area after high school. After serving in the U.S. Army while stationed in Washington state, he found his way to the racetrack, first at Playfair in Spokane and then at Longacres near Seattle. It was when he migrated to Agua Caliente that he met the love of his life, Maria Elena, at a bowling alley across from the racetrack. The two were married for 56 years and had four children, Bob Jr., Howie, Erica and Anna.

Bob Hess Sr. in the Golden Gate winner's circle with No Name Fred and jockey Kent Desormeaux on March 8, 2020

When advised Hess, who spoke fluent Spanish, had passed away Saturday morning, jockey Abel Cedillo was moved to tears.

“When I was riding up north, he was like a second father to me,” said Cedillo, a Guatemalan native who was the leading rider at Del Mar's recently concluded Bing Crosby Meeting. “I had so much respect for him. I'm shocked. I'm going to really miss him.”

Golden Gate Fields' Director of Racing, Patrick Mackey, echoed the sentiments of many in the California racing industry.

“Bob was a wonderful horseman who was always there for his fellow race tracker,” he said. “His stories were legendary. He was a wealth of knowledge and imparted that knowledge to many over the years. He was a great man and his presence here at Golden Gate Fields will be sorely missed.”

Over a distinguished career that saw him saddle 1,592 winners from 10,448 starters, Hess's runners earned more than $17.2 million. His last winner came on Oct. 29 at Golden Gate with the Thoroughbred Just Like Fred and his final starter ran there on Nov. 8. He won with 11 of 80 starters in 2020, with 11 seconds and 15 thirds.

Bob Hess Jr. said his father had a very simple philosophy about life.

“Everything he did was honest,” Hess Jr. said. “He never allowed anyone to make him do what he knew wasn't right. He could look in the mirror and be proud. He would say to me, 'Son, if you don't tell lies, you never have to remember them. Just always tell the truth.'”

Services for Bob Hess, Sr. are pending.

Paulick Report staff contributed to this article.

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View From The Eighth Pole: Del Mar Can Add Year-Round Stability To California’s Racing Industry

California's horse racing industry has never been good at long-range planning. Instability will do that. Historic Bay Meadows racetrack in San Mateo in the Bay Area was shuttered for development in 2008. The same company that closed Bay Meadows had purchased Hollywood Park in Inglewood near Los Angeles in 2005 and almost immediately threatened to close that track, too, unless some form of relief from expanded gambling came along. It never did, and the “track of lakes and flowers” ran its last race in 2013. Despite advance warnings, the industry seemed unprepared when the tracks closed.

Thoroughbred breeders and owners like stability. The timeline from planning to breeding to foaling to racing is a four-year process. Owners who buy yearlings or 2-year-olds in training at public auction are looking at months to years before they can see their investments competing on the racetrack.

Instability, along with challenging economics, have led to serious declines in California breeding. The state's Thoroughbred foal crop in 2006 – the one eligible to race in that final year at Bay Meadows – numbered 3,320. The most recent California foal crop was 1,594 in 2019, a 52% drop over 13 years. There appears to be no slowing down, either. The number of mares bred in California fell by 12.5% from 2019 to 2020, from 2,018 to 1,766 mares, according to the breed's official registry, The Jockey Club.

Looking down the road, at least one more California racetrack is destined to close in the not-so-distant future. Dr. Edward Allred, the 84-year-old owner of Los Alamitos in Cypress, has made no secret of the fact his track will be developed in a matter of years. To his credit, Allred stepped up to provide additional stabling when Hollywood Park closed and expanded the Quarter Horse racing surface to accommodate year-round training, plus several weeks of Thoroughbred racing annually. Allred has been sufficiently compensated; in addition to host simulcast revenue during live Thoroughbred race meets, Los Alamitos receives $12,500 daily from the state's Stabling and Vanning Committee for providing 825 stalls.

Stabling at Los Alamitos was a stopgap measure. It's time for the California horse racing industry to develop a longer-term solution that provides some stability to the state's owners and breeders if this industry is to have a future.

Del Mar, just to the north of San Diego, could be the answer. The track races 12 weeks annually, with separate summer and fall meets, then closes its stables the rest of the year.

The racetrack property is owned by the state of California and leased by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club from the 22^nd District Agricultural Association, which until 2020 has hosted the annual San Diego County Fair – one of the largest in the United States. The fair represented a sizable percentage of the 22^nd District's annual revenue, but so did its lease agreement with the Thoroughbred Club, especially since the races traditionally attract large crowds that spend significant sums on food and beverage.

This year's fair, along with on-track attendance at Del Mar's summer and fall meets, were nixed by the coronavirus pandemic. The 22^nd District took an enormous financial hit – revenue is down 90% – and without deep cash reserves it was forced to lay off 60% of its work force of 157 full-time employees.

Year-round stabling would supply a significant financial boost to the 22^nd District, provided Del Mar would get the same per diem arrangement Los Alamitos currently enjoys. There would be hurdles to clear to make this possible, one of them being the San Diego County Fair that traditionally begins in early June and runs through July 4 is so big that it spills onto the racetrack and into the stable area. Downsizing the fair, however, may be a necessity in the wake of COVID-19.

Because it is a state-owned facility and not subject to the pressures of development, Del Mar presents an excellent long-term option for year-round training and, if given the opportunity, expanded live race meets. The track has already satisfied federal Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) water runoff requirements, something many other tracks are struggling with. Another benefit to year-round stabling could put the city of Del Mar in compliance with a state law requiring a minimum amount of housing for low-income families. Stable employees living on the backstretch might check that box.

California trainers surveyed for this story said they would jump at the opportunity to maintain part of their stable at Del Mar. Some speculate that Midwest or East Coast trainers would be more inclined to maintain an auxiliary string of horses in California if Del Mar played an expanded role.

“We need to have viable long-term racing and training venues in Southern California,” Thoroughbred Owners of California president Greg Avioli said. “There's no question owners and trainers appreciate the opportunity to train at Del Mar, and should the opportunity present itself for year-round training, it's definitely something the TOC would consider.”

California can't afford to wait for the next track to close before developing a better blueprint for training and racing, for stability in the industry. The time is now to work on that plan.

That's my view from the eighth pole.

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More Letters on Tracks Gone But Not Forgotten

In Sunday’s TDN, we published Bill Finley’s ode to shuttered racetracks, and asked others to try to beat his number of 28 at which he had attended live racing. The letters continue to pour in from readers sharing their own memories of their favorites. Here is a sampling.

Thanks for the article about all the race tracks that are now gone. I also grew up in Philadelphia and my parents were big horse race fans. I got my first exposure to horse racing at Delaware Park since they let children attend the races. Later I attended both Garden State Park and Atlantic City. When Pennsylvania legalized betting on horse racing I also attended Liberty Bell Park and got my first exposure to seeing winter racing. As noted those winter dates included some really cold days. When I became an adult I introduced my parents to some of the other racetracks around the country and made many trips to Hialeah as well as visiting Suffolk Downs, and the pre-fire-destroyed Arlington Park. I also visited on my own some of the other tracks mentioned such as Bowie, Bay Meadows and Hollywood Park. My job included traveling to other parts of our country and if there was a race track nearby I would always try to attend if live racing or simulcasting if it was offered. I have also visited the major tracks and attended all of the Triple Crown races. But as noted I preferred visiting the older, smaller, working-class tracks like Waterford Park now Mountaineer in West Va. As you can tell from all the old tracks I have visited I am an older fan. So I have seen first-hand how expanded gambling options and more tracks having longer meets have made it harder for any track to survive today. Let’s hope we are not the last generation to enjoy the excitement of attending a live horse race near our hometowns.
-John Chambers

Having spent much of my wayward youth on the Cape in Mass., my recollections of the Marshfield and Weymouth Fairs hold a special place in the horse racing crevices of my heart. Wasn’t there a Brockton Fair that had a one week meet, after Marshfield and Weymouth? Seems to me I recall going.. But it would be in the 60’s, if my memory serves. Anyway, thanks for the memories
—Tom Mina

Bill,
You wrote an entertaining but bittersweet tale.
I’ve been to 116 tracks worldwide (counting harness) but you’re way ahead of me on ones that no longer are running: Suffolk, Atlantic City, Hialeah, Hollywood Park, Bay Meadows, Portland Meadows, Greenwood (Toronto), Calder, Hippodrome de Montreal, Ladbrokes, DRC, Roosevelt. Just 12.

I’m sure if you counted harness that you’d have many more.
–Ed McNamara

Loved your piece that a friend passed on to me.

While my experience at North American tracks is not as extensive as yours, like you and your father, I’ve always tried to find new tracks whenever I traveled. I’ve done that throughout my travels, which fortunately have been extensive. I’ve even gone to a track outside of Paris that was later shut down: Evry.

Like you, I spent my formative tracks years in the U.S. in Massachusetts, when I was a graduate student at Brandeis in the 60s.

Two tracks that I went to then were Narragansett Park and Lincoln Downs. I guess by the time you were in Massachusetts, they’d been gone too. While Lincoln was still lively, Narragansett was on its last legs and was sad. I also went to Timonium once, visiting my parents in DC.

Like you in Philly, a colleague and I would pause our lab work in Waltham, drive the Mass Turnpike and then the tunnel to Suffolk. We arrived after the 6th, when it was free to enter. We’d pick up a program from someone leaving and bet four races. Then back to the lab the same way we came. Weekends were dedicated to Rockingham, easy to get to from Waltham: take 128 north to I-93, which led directly to the track. Lots of people there in those days.

I moved to Toronto in 1967 so my U.S. tracks days have been episodic since then. By the time I arrived here all the original tracks dotted around the city had been shuttered by EP Taylor as he consolidated racing at Woodbine, which then became Old Woodbine, then Greenwood and is now a park and housing. Fort Erie is only held together by political handouts, abandoned by the Ontario Jockey Club. It was a lovely summer track, not as grand as Saratoga, but with the same spirit.

All the best,
–Manuel Buchwald

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