HAL WARD, LONGTIME TOP TV CAMERAMAN AT LOS ALAMITOS, TO RETIRE ON SUNDAY
Hal Ward, who operated the track’s main TV camera for 1,000s of horse races at Los Alamitos Race Course, will pan his final race before hanging up his headset one last time and retiring after more than 40 years in the racing industry on Sunday night.
A 1979 graduate of the Race Track Industry Program at the University of Arizona, Ward, 65, worked in a variety of jobs around the track during his long tenure in racing. His first job in racing was hauling hay to tracks during summer vacations before being part of the second internship class at Del Mar during the late 1970s. After graduating, Ward worked at Del Mar as steward’s aide for four years before eventually adding press box assistant duties at Hollywood Park to his resume in the early 1980s. Ward worked in a variety of department at Hollywood Park, timing harness races and qualifiers, serving as the track’s press box steward and even doing stints in the photo finish room.
Ward also worked for the Daily Racing Form as a chart taker at Fairplex Park in Pomona and eventually moved to Los Alamitos to begin a long and successful career as one of the main TV camera operators at the Orange County track. For the last 25 years, Ward has been the main racing camera operator at Los Alamitos, shooting every major race held here, from the Champion of Champion and Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity to races won by Eclipse Award winners California Chrome and Shared Belief during the track’s daytime Thoroughbred meets.
Through it all, Hal has been a fun part of the press box with his quick humor, passion for a variety of interests and love of the game.
“Working in horse racing has never felt like working,” Ward said. “When I leave my house, I just never felt like I was going to work. I enjoyed my work at the track every single day.”
Hal Ward met the love of his life, Debi, during their time together at Arizona University. They’ve been married since 1984 and shared their beautiful home in Orange, California with their three dogs and a cat. An excellent golfer, Hal was a 10-time champion with the Southern California Racetracks Golf Club. Ward, who still golfs at least once a week, has a plethora of interests that will keep him busy during his retirement. His passions include being a craft beer brewer and professional beer judge, traveling around the world, skiing, and cheering on his beloved San Francisco Giants and all University of Arizona sports teams, especially basketball.
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