Page 77 - January 2022

YEAR in 202 REVIEW 1
“There are some who bring a light so great into the world that even after they have gone the light remains.” - Unknown
RANDY HILL RANDY HILL
(Feb. 26) - Longtime horseman Randy Lynn Hill passed away at the age of 63. Randy was born
in Ada, Oklahoma, and attended East Central University. Randy’s father trained Quarter Horses in New Mexico for two decades, and Randy obtained his groom’s license at Ruidoso Downs
at the age of 14. He trained horses in the 1980’s, qualifying Quickest Bug Alive for the 1982 All American Derby. In 1987, he began work as a Probation and Parole Officer and served a long
and distinguished career with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. He married Stacy Charette in 2006 and they lived at their Quarter Horse ranch in Lexington, Oklahoma, where they pursued their passion for training and breeding horses. Perhaps his greatest equine achievement
was the management of leading sire PYC Paint Your Wagon. Randy also co-owned APHA World Champion Ivoriona. Randy served as the mayor of Konowa, Oklahoma, was a member of the Fraternal Order of Police, the AQHA and the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association, working to pass legislation for the horse racing industry in the state. Randy cherished his family, was a man of faith and a man of his word. In a 2017 feature in Speedhorse, Randy said, “My dad always told me, ‘Tell the truth, no matter how much it hurts, because if your word is no good, you have nothing.’”
MARCH
POLLY COLEMAN
(March 5) - Polly A. Michelson Coleman, 73, passed away in Seguin, Texas. Polly owned Tri-City Electric Supply and Lighting for over
30 years. She was a member of the Builders Association in Comal County, Living Waters Church, Texas Quarter Horse Association and
the American Quarter Horse Association. Polly was a longtime fan of horseracing and in her name owned the earners of over $680,000, including Louisiana Champions Day Juvenile-G2 winner Coors Select. She was also ranked as the #51 leading owner by earnings in 2011.
C. RAY HOOVER HUGH TUCKER EDWARD THOMAS HARVEY II
(March 5) - Edward Thomas Harvey II, 39, passed away. Edward is the son of Mary Morgan Chamberlain and Richard Gray Chamberlain, former editor and longtime senior writer of AQHA’s The American Quarter Horse Racing Journal.
C. RAY HOOVER
(March 10) - C. Ray Hoover Jr., 75, passed away. Born in New York, Hoover graduated from Oklahoma Military Academy, was a member of the ROTC and then enlisted in the Army Reserves while attending Oklahoma State University. He worked for bloodstock agent Don Tyner Inc. and as a breeder/ trainer at Celestial Acres. He started Post Time Associates bloodstock insurance, pedigree and sales service, where he built a network of clients, and later became President of Heritage Place sales facility. He was also President of Affiliated Van Lines and owned several businesses with his son Bryan. Hoover was involved in the creation of the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association and remained involved throughout the remainder of his life.
COLTEN FARLEY
(March 25) - Colten Farley, 23, died in Birmingham, Alabama. Farley was a popular barrel racer, trainer, breeder, and Quarter Horse and Appaloosa enthusiast and ambassador.
APRIL
HUGH TUCKER
(April 12) - Former trainer Hugh Tucker, 82, passed away at his home in Texas. Tucker trained show, performance and cutting horses, as well
as Quarter Horse runners on the track. Among
his top runners were multiple stakes winners including Lil Bit Shiney, the winner of the 1986 Rainbow Futurity-G1 and 1987 Kansas Derby-G1 and second in the All American Futurity-G1. Tucker was the Texas State High School Tennis Champion, and after retiring from the horse industry was a tennis pro for the City of Boerne.
HOMER HILL
JOE MUNIZ
(April 22) - Joe Muniz, 94, passed away due to heart failure. A self-taught businessman, Muniz became one of the most respected pipeline contractors in Southern California. He found a love for Quarter Horses in the 1970’s and they continued to be a part of his life. Muniz, who campaigned horses at Los Alamitos for over 40 years, was part owner of multiple Champions sire Chicks Beduino. He also campaigned stakes winners Speedys Chick, Elite Chick, and many others.
HOMER HILL
(April 29) - Homer “Bud” Hill, 90,
passed away in Lubbock, Texas. Born
in 1930, Bud was a lifelong resident of Castro County in Texas. He was devoted to farming and ranching, owning and operating a feedlot for nearly 70 years.
His other passion was Quarter Horse racing, in which he campaigned alone or
in partnership such horses as Mighty B Valiant, Mighty Invictus, Jess Cuervo,
Jess B Glory and many others. He won the 2000 All American Futurity with 2-time Champion Eyesa Special, that he co-owned with Terry Bell and Jim Pitts. Hill and partner Bell’s You and Me Partners was inducted into the Oklahoma Racing Hall of Fame in 2012.
MAY
NEIL BRICKS
(May 8) - Longtime jockey agent Neil Bricks passed away at the age of 69. A native of New York, Bricks was a mainstay at Los Alamitos Race Course, first working as a groom, then exercise rider, jockey and finally as one of the track’s
top agents. Among his leading riders
are Ramon Guce, Cesar De Alba, Eddie Garcia, Ramon Sanchez, Vinnie Bednar and many more.
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