Jeff Siegel, a major player in South California for more than half a century, died in his house in Duart on Saturday after an expanded battle with cancer. He was 74 years old.
There are several roles in the races, in addition to the coach or Zhokai, which Siegel has not performed since he first received work in the advertising department in the Hollywood park in 1974.
The last work of Siegel in the races was as the owner on the XBTV, the service belonging to the Stronach group, which specializes in horse training video. He was also a manufacturer of the morning line for both Santa-Anita and Del-Mar. He continued to perform work until his health was no longer allowed at the beginning of this year.
But what made Zigel a compulsory personality in races was his ability as a handicap. Andy Beier, the legendary handicap and the nas The Washington Post, called Siegel “The Greatest World Handicap” in his 1993 book “Beyer on Speed”. Siegel gave Beyer six horses to bet on a daily card of races in Southern California. All six won, according to Beier.
Siegel was born in Los -Angeles on October 8, 1950 and grew up in South California. He visited Fairfax High, where he ran a path, and he worked in a school newspaper in La Valley college. Later he went to San Jose, where he was indicated on the radio and television journalism. He came home and got a job in the KLAC radio station, where he worked with Jim Hili, who had the highest show of sports comments for many years. Khili knew that Siegel loved the races and set him a job in the Hollywood park, without even asking Zigel, who said that he liked his current work. Heil told him that he would love to work in the Hollywood park even more.
And he did. Siegel never looked back.
Due to his access to trainers, asses and owners, as well as the possibility of seeing things that others did not do, Siegel was valuable public Gandikapper, and soon his elections were presented in many newspapers of South California, including The Times, The Daily News, Pasadena Star-News and San Diego Union-Tribune.
“Jeff was my main mentor in this game,” said Bob Aik, a long-standing public handicap in Southern California. “He made performance ratings before Beyer's figures were published. He is on the video of the gate in the mid-1980s. His general knowledge of the pace, the pedigree and European form is unsurpassed. Like a public handicap, he is a goat. ”
Coach of the Hall of Glory Bob Bafferth Often accepted the Council from Siegel and loved his time to talk with him about horses.
“I had a complete respect for his opinion and thoughts about horses,” said Buffers. “When [Triple Crown winner] Justify broke his girlfriend, Jeff told me that the horse was going to win the derby of Kentucky.
“He just liked to be part of the game, and I respected his gandication. If he took your horse with the first, second or third, you knew that you have good chances to win. He could see the horse’s running, and he immediately understood. After he saw. [Triple Crown winner] The American Faroa runs for the first time, he came up to me and said: “You have a real good one.”
“I will miss him. I would ask him what he thinks, and he could say: “I do not think that he can go so far.” And he was right.
Siegel also became the co -founder of the Clover Racing and Team Valor partnership stable, the most successful partnership at that time, with his friend Barry Irwin.
“He was the best gandikapper, whom I met when I met.” Irwin said. “That which separated him from his peers is his ability to add a habit to his gandicaps. He knew that much of what had gone to training. He was not just a guy with nuts and bolts, he understood the animal. “
Irwin recalls the time when he was in Siegel's house to talk about buying a horse.
“I asked if he has any old racing forms so that I could look at the horse,” said Irwin. “He said:” Go look at the bathroom. ” He had racing forms folded on top of the soul where water comes out.
The volume of work on his plate has never been restrained – unless it contradicts football in UCLA or basketball match – Siegel decided to try broadcasting. So, he joined the HRTV, the jump in 2004 and remained for almost a decade as an analyst.
“In addition to the great work that he did on the cell, he was a real fan and a devoted student of the game,” said Bekki Somerville, senior director of Fanduel TV. “He was passionate about this, which went through everything that he did, and this passion was contagious, raising everyone around him.”
Somerville worked closely with Jeff in HRTV from 2004 to 2015, including the production of his first call show.
Siegel was experienced by his brother Barry Siegel; sister Michelle Weiss; nieces Karin and Mara; Robert's nephew; Great nephews Kai, Beckett and Roman; And the great niece of Monroe.
The funeral is under consideration.
