After it was announced that longtime standardbred owner and former racetrack operator Lloyd Arnold, 82, passed away on Sunday, January 8, people have been offering their reflections on the popular figure
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Originally the owner of Arnold Cattle Co. in Iowa, Arnold raced hundreds of horses in Illinois and across the Midwest throughout the 1960s and early 1970s.
Trainer Bob Johnson and horseman/race secretary Rick Kuebler spoke about Arnold with the publicity team at Cal-Expo.
"I knew Lloyd for many years," Johnson said. "When I started out grooming, I was working for Bob Farrington, and he was Bob's main owner.
"He must have owned 40 or so when he ran Golden Bear and Los Alamitos. I remember when they needed horses to race at Sacramento, Bobby Gordon asked him if he could help and he went to Illinois and brought a dozen out here for different trainers.
"He was always trying to do good for the game in California, trying to keep it going. He was great for racing, got new people involved had lots of innovative ideas."
"Lloyd had a smile which made you feel like you'd been friends forever," said Kuebler. "He blurred the line between horsemen and management, having worn both hats with unequalled success. His passion for harness racing never broke stride. He trotted the whole mile."
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