By Bloodhorse.com
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (June 29, 2018) — About a month after members of the California Horse Racing Board promised changes to the composition of stewards on the Southern California racing circuit, changes have indeed been made ahead of the upcoming summer meet at Del Mar.
According to the CHRB, steward Scott Chaney, who has served in that position in Southern California for more than a decade, will be the first steward shuffled in an ongoing “rotation” between the two regions of the state.
Chaney will move to the Sonoma County Fair meet at Santa Rosa, which begins racing Aug. 2, according to CHRB executive director Rick Baedeker. Baedeker also said Chaney, who is a lawyer, will help the CHRB with “an upcoming investigation” that was in need of a lawyerly presence.
John Herbuveaux, who had been serving as a steward in Northern California, will take Chaney’s place at Del Mar, which begins racing July 18.
“It’s a difficult thing for any steward—picking up and going somewhere else,” said Baedeker, who, with CHRB chief steward Darrel McHargue, made the change after discussing the impact with each of the state’s stewards. “What we don’t know is how it will affect our stewards. They’ve got families and obligations, and it’s obviously tough to pick up and move.”
Baedeker said the change in stewards was “per (the CHRB’s) order.” After gamblers, The Stronach Group’s chief operating officer Tim Ritvo, and Thoroughbred Owners of California chairman Nick Alexander called for a change during a monthly CHRB meeting May 24, CHRB vice chair Madeline Auerbach said, “Anyone in this room who doesn’t think some changes are coming, they’re not reading us accurately. We’re going to get it done. You will see it shortly … as soon as everything gets ironed out.”
Auerbach said Thursday she was “happy with what was done.”
“I’m grateful for everyone’s cooperation in this process,” she said. “I think this will give us an opportunity for our stewards to perform at a high level. We listened to everybody, and I’m happy with what was done. It’s a strong statement by the board that we listen.”
Chaney, who is currently serving as a steward at the Los Alamitos Race Course daytime racing meeting, largely declined to comment on the move.
“I don’t (have a comment),” Chaney said. “I serve at the pleasure of the board.”
Baedeker said he was “impressed” how Chaney dealt with the shift in responsibilities, and said the move was not to target Chaney specifically.
“The board didn’t specify which steward to rotate,” Baedeker said. “By the time we got through everyone’s obligations (at home), Scott helped us out a lot. We went through each steward’s personal situation to see if they could handle a move, and at the end, we explained the situation to him. I was impressed how he handled it. He was very positive, and it speaks to his professionalism. And he understands how people are going to (incorrectly) draw conclusions about this, too.”
Baedeker said the process of cycling the state’s stewards will continue, but he did not have a timetable for when the next shift would occur.
“It will continue, but we haven’t thought much further than getting through this first part,” he said. “It’s going to be on a case-by-case basis. And it’s not popular with the stewards. A lot of people think the stewards are robots, but they’re real people, with real obligations.”