Maese Memorial Service Set for July 1
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A memorial service for popular
retired jockey Alex Maese will take place this Sunday, July 1, in Santa Anita’s
Turf Club Chandelier Room, beginning at 12 noon.
Maese, who passed away at the age of
83 on June 14 due to a staph infection incurred as the result of a routine back
surgery, was a regular rider in California from 1952 until his retirement in
1981.
A winner of Santa Anita’s prestigious
George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 1966, Maese is survived by his wife of 52
years, Rosemarie, and five children, Suzanne, Alex Jr., James and twin brothers
Christian and Carlton. He is also survived by nine grandchildren and four
great grandchildren.
Known primarily for his
accomplishments locally, Maese made his mark on a national stage in 1959,
winning the $250,000 Arlington Futurity in Chicago aboard future Hall of Famer
TV Lark. The race is believed to have carried the biggest purse in
America that year.
However Maese, who retired with
1,981 wins and career purse earnings of $8,673,676, is best known as the
regular rider of Terry’s Secret, an ornery sort with whom Maese won 11 races,
including the 1964 Del Mar Futurity and the both the Del Mar Derby and Del Mar
Handicap in 1965.
“Terry’s” final win came in the 1966
Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita.
Prior to his exploits in the saddle,
Maese gained fame as an outstanding quarterback at Anaheim High School. Maese
graduated from Anaheim High in 1947 and was inducted into the Orange County
Sports Hall of Fame 1986.
“His whole life revolved around
athletics,” said Maese’s son Christian, in a recent Pasadena Star News
interview. “He was just tremendously generous with his time and even
financially.”
Maese was a regular attendee at
Santa Anita, always dressed impeccably and in good humor. In addition to
his annual participation in the Santa Anita George Woolf Award, Maese also
availed himself annually to help promote the Santa Anita Jockeys/Holy Angels
Boys Charity Basketball Game.
“Maese was known as a leader among
track jockeys and employees,” wrote Janet Brown in an Anaheim High School
Alumni Association article. “He helped solve disputes among riders and
built camaraderie among riders by forming jockey football, basketball and
softball teams.”
In lieu of flowers, the Maese family
has requested that donations be made to the following: San Marino High
School Athletics, Anaheim High School Athletics or to Westchester (Ca.)
Lutheran School.
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