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Long-Time SoCal Owner Donna Herrick Passes Away at 97

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Donna Herrick, a beloved and enduring presence in the Southern California racing community and a pillar of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, passed away peacefully Wednesday at the age of 97, surrounded by family.

Alongside her late husband Bill, Donna was deeply devoted to Thoroughbred racing for more than four decades. Together, they were not only passionate owners but also among Del Mar’s most loyal patrons, maintaining a fifth-floor suite for more than 30 years and becoming fixtures of the seaside track each summer.

Their impact on the sport extended well beyond their presence. As owners, the Herricks campaigned several accomplished runners, including Grade II winners Magnum (Arg) and Nuclear Debate; and several Grade III winners including Robyn Dancer who was twice third in the Breeders’ Cup; Classy Women; Lasersport; and Short Route. Magnum also delivered a memorable performance when finishing a thrilling second in the GI Santa Anita Handicap behind Lava Man.

Medici Code captured the 2007 running of the GII Del Mar Derby. Years later, that legacy came full circle as their daughter, Susie Galland, racing in partnership with Little Red Feather, returned to the Del Mar winner’s circle when The Padre (Ire) captured the 2025 Del Mar Derby in an emotional continuation of a family tradition deeply rooted in the track they loved.

Donna’s influence on racing lives on through her family. Her son Joe is a trainer, continuing the hands-on horsemanship that defined the Herricks’ approach to the sport. Her daughter Susie remains actively involved as an owner, while Joan and George Scott also carry forward their own family’s racing interests. Together, they represent a new generation guided by the same passion, integrity, and love for the game that Donna and Bill embodied.

More than her success on the track, Donna will be remembered for her warmth, generosity, and the deep relationships she built within the racing community. To many, Del Mar was simply a summer destination, but to Donna, it was home.

She is reunited with her beloved husband Bill, with whom she shared a lifetime of memories in racing and beyond.

Donna is survived by her children Kathy (Terry) Lathrum; Joan (George) Scott; Bill (Rose) Herrick; Leann (Jim) Van Langen; Susie (Britt) Galland; and Joe (Erin) Herrick, as well as 20 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren.

Their legacy endures not only in the record books, but in the family and community they helped shape.

The post Long-Time SoCal Owner Donna Herrick Passes Away at 97 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Closed for Seven Years, Harney County Fair in Oregon Seeks to Race in ’27

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After closing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopening, local interests in Burns, Oregon are attempting to get Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing going again at the Harney County Fairgrounds in that rural, high-desert town, with the hope of regaining a three-date spot on the state’s 2027 summer circuit.

“The community is highly motivated to reinstate racing,” Oregon Racing Commission executive director Connie Winn said during the board’s monthly meeting on Thursday.

Ideally, Burns, a county-seat town of 2,700 that is known as the “gateway to the Steens Mountains,” would revert to its traditional late July meet, which it last conducted in 2019.

The fairgrounds there has continued to host an annual five-day fair and rodeo around Labor Day.

Given the erosion of racing throughout the Pacific Northwest and the total collapse of the neighboring Northern California fairs circuit, Oregon has defied the odds by tenaciously retaining a foothold on mixed-meet racing with a four-stop seasonal circuit.

For 2026, Oregon will have race meets at:

• Union (Eastern Oregon Livestock Show): June 12-14.
• Grants Pass Downs: June 20, 21, 27, 28 and July 3-5.
• Prineville (Crooked River Roundup): July 15-18.
• Tillamook County Fair: Aug. 5-8.
• Grants Pass: Sept. 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28 and Oct. 4, 5, 11, 12.

Winn reported at the Apr. 16 meeting that she and other commission staffers recently toured the fairgrounds to see what would be needed to get the facility in shape to host racing.

“The list is long. These are the highlights,” Winn said.

“Improving the track surface and overall condition. They have a very clay-rich track. And no work has been done on it in six years. They would probably need a lot of sand and other work on it to get it into shape,” Winn said.

“They completely demolished their paddock and jockeys’ room. So both of those would have to be rebuilt. And they need a starting gate. So they have some really big purchases,” Winn said.

“On a plus, where the paddock and jockeys’ room used to be, they’ve built a gigantic pole barn that can be multi-purpose for many different things. A portion of that is open on three sides. It could even be used as a really nice covered paddock, so it may not be as bad as it sounds,” Winn said.

The post Closed for Seven Years, Harney County Fair in Oregon Seeks to Race in ’27 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Long-Time SoCal Owner Donna Herrick Passes Away at 97

---

Donna Herrick, a beloved and enduring presence in the Southern California racing community and a pillar of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, passed away peacefully Wednesday at the age of 97, surrounded by family.

Alongside her late husband Bill, Donna was deeply devoted to Thoroughbred racing for more than four decades. Together, they were not only passionate owners but also among Del Mar’s most loyal patrons, maintaining a fifth-floor suite for more than 30 years and becoming fixtures of the seaside track each summer.

Their impact on the sport extended well beyond their presence. As owners, the Herricks campaigned several accomplished runners, including Grade II winners Magnum (Arg) and Nuclear Debate; and several Grade III winners including Robyn Dancer who was twice third in the Breeders’ Cup; Classy Women; Lasersport; and Short Route. Magnum also delivered a memorable performance when finishing a thrilling second in the GI Santa Anita Handicap behind Lava Man.

Medici Code captured the 2007 running of the GII Del Mar Derby. Years later, that legacy came full circle as their daughter, Susie Galland, racing in partnership with Little Red Feather, returned to the Del Mar winner’s circle when The Padre (Ire) captured the 2025 Del Mar Derby in an emotional continuation of a family tradition deeply rooted in the track they loved.

Donna’s influence on racing lives on through her family. Her son Joe is a trainer, continuing the hands-on horsemanship that defined the Herricks’ approach to the sport. Her daughter Susie remains actively involved as an owner, while Joan and George Scott also carry forward their own family’s racing interests. Together, they represent a new generation guided by the same passion, integrity, and love for the game that Donna and Bill embodied.

More than her success on the track, Donna will be remembered for her warmth, generosity, and the deep relationships she built within the racing community. To many, Del Mar was simply a summer destination, but to Donna, it was home.

She is reunited with her beloved husband Bill, with whom she shared a lifetime of memories in racing and beyond.

Donna is survived by her children Kathy (Terry) Lathrum; Joan (George) Scott; Bill (Rose) Herrick; Leann (Jim) Van Langen; Susie (Britt) Galland; and Joe (Erin) Herrick, as well as 20 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren.

Their legacy endures not only in the record books, but in the family and community they helped shape.

The post Long-Time SoCal Owner Donna Herrick Passes Away at 97 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Closed for Seven Years, Harney County Fair in Oregon Seeks to Race in ’27

---

After closing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopening, local interests in Burns, Oregon are attempting to get Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing going again at the Harney County Fairgrounds in that rural, high-desert town, with the hope of regaining a three-date spot on the state’s 2027 summer circuit.

“The community is highly motivated to reinstate racing,” Oregon Racing Commission executive director Connie Winn said during the board’s monthly meeting on Thursday.

Ideally, Burns, a county-seat town of 2,700 that is known as the “gateway to the Steens Mountains,” would revert to its traditional late July meet, which it last conducted in 2019.

The fairgrounds there has continued to host an annual five-day fair and rodeo around Labor Day.

Given the erosion of racing throughout the Pacific Northwest and the total collapse of the neighboring Northern California fairs circuit, Oregon has defied the odds by tenaciously retaining a foothold on mixed-meet racing with a four-stop seasonal circuit.

For 2026, Oregon will have race meets at:

• Union (Eastern Oregon Livestock Show): June 12-14.
• Grants Pass Downs: June 20, 21, 27, 28 and July 3-5.
• Prineville (Crooked River Roundup): July 15-18.
• Tillamook County Fair: Aug. 5-8.
• Grants Pass: Sept. 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28 and Oct. 4, 5, 11, 12.

Winn reported at the Apr. 16 meeting that she and other commission staffers recently toured the fairgrounds to see what would be needed to get the facility in shape to host racing.

“The list is long. These are the highlights,” Winn said.

“Improving the track surface and overall condition. They have a very clay-rich track. And no work has been done on it in six years. They would probably need a lot of sand and other work on it to get it into shape,” Winn said.

“They completely demolished their paddock and jockeys’ room. So both of those would have to be rebuilt. And they need a starting gate. So they have some really big purchases,” Winn said.

“On a plus, where the paddock and jockeys’ room used to be, they’ve built a gigantic pole barn that can be multi-purpose for many different things. A portion of that is open on three sides. It could even be used as a really nice covered paddock, so it may not be as bad as it sounds,” Winn said.

The post Closed for Seven Years, Harney County Fair in Oregon Seeks to Race in ’27 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.