For IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Erin Doty-McQuaid
(859) 224-2702
STANLEY BOWKER, HERBERT CLARK, DAVID HOOPER, AND DONALD LE VINE NAMED 2018 PETE PEDERSEN “OUTSTANDING STEWARDS” AWARD WINNERS
Lexington, Ky. (December 4, 2018) — The Racing Officials Accreditation Program (ROAP) today announced the winners of the 2018 Pete Pedersen Award, which is presented to stewards who have demonstrated professional excellence, integrity, and benevolent consideration in the performance of their duties. Contributions of time and expertise to the horse racing industry on the local and national levels are also significant factors in the selection of Pedersen award winners.
The award is named in honor of Pete Pedersen, the nationally recognized California steward and accomplished journalist who set a standard of excellence to which all stewards should aspire. This year’s recipients were recognized today at the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program’s Global Symposium on Racing and Gaming Awards Luncheon in Tucson.
Stanley K. Bowker (Active Category)
Stanley Bowker celebrated his 50th career year in horse racing in March 2018. Currently, he is serving as commission steward in Arkansas, and previously worked as a steward for the Virginia Racing Commission and at Indiana Grand. Other racetracks he has worked at or consulted for include Ak-Sar-Ben, Canterbury Downs, Prairie Meadows, Will Rogers Downs, and Colonial Downs. Bowker also has past affiliations with the National Thoroughbred Racing Association’s Safety and Integrity Alliance and the Association of Racing Commissioners International. He was a member of the group that established the Racing Officials Accreditation Program, where he served as chairman for seven years and is still active on various committees and teaches at the schools and continuing education seminars.
Herbert Clark (Retired/Posthumous Category)
The late Herbert Clark first became at steward at Thistledown in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1980. He served as Ohio state steward from 1992 to 2011, and then became chief steward at Presque Isle Downs. Clark was also named the country’s leading apprentice jockey in 1960, and later served as placing judge and clerk of scales at Pocono Downs.
David Elliot Hooper (Active Category)
David Elliot Hooper has been working in racing for nearly 60 years and is currently serving as chief steward for the Minnesota Racing Commission. His first job in racing was as a publicist, racing editor, and handicapper. Hooper has worked as an association or state steward in Kentucky, Arizona, Idaho, Louisiana, Oregon, Washington, and Texas. Among several other positions in the racing industry, including executive secretary of the Illinois Racing Board and executive director of three breed organizations and one horsemen’s association, he was also the coordinator of the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program in the late 1980s.
Donald Le Vine (Retired/Posthumous Category)
Donald Le Vine served as a steward at a number of racetracks, beginning in 1978, until his passing in 2000. Among these tracks were Atlantic City Racecourse, Gulfstream Park, Keystone Raceway, Tampa Bay Downs, Turf Paradise, and Philadelphia Park. He also spent a number of years at the Radnor Hunt and Fair Hills races. His memory was honored with the naming of the Donald C. Le Vine Memorial Clinic at Philadelphia Park (now known as Parx) in 2001.
The Pete Pedersen Award special selection committee is composed of seven members; Rick Baedeker, CHRB executive director; Hall of Fame jockey, Pat Day; Wendy Davis, The University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program director; former The Jockey Club steward and NYRA track veterinarian Dr. Ted Hill; Dan Metzger, TOBA president; Scott Wells, president of Remington Park and Lone Star Park; and former leading trainer and ROAP accredited steward Hal Wiggins.
Pete Pedersen, for whom the award is named, worked as a steward in California for 50 years before retiring at the age of 85 in 2005. The Seattle native became the second steward to receive the Eclipse Award of Merit in 2002. He was also the recipient of the Laffit Pincay Jr. Award in 2008 for serving the racing industry with integrity, dedication, determination and distinction. Pedersen worked at nearly every track on the West Coast, and his reputation for objectivity and kindness was widely known.
***
ROAP, which receives primary funding from The Jockey Club and is based in its Kentucky office, is a 501(c)(6) organization whose board of directors is made up of representatives from 18 industry organizations and eight at-large representatives. Stewards and judges receive their accreditation and continuing education credits through this program. The website address for ROAP is horseracingofficials.com.