posted on 3/5/2012 12:31 pm
Geoffrey Stein
1953-2012
Stein, known for his
enthusiasm for fitness, had completed his regular morning run and collapsed
shortly afterward. Although lacking any previously known complications, his
death was determined to be the result of apparent heart failure.
Stein was a resident of Millwood, NY.
He is survived by his wife of 33 years, Ann Landowne, and their children Holly,
Joe, Michael and Jordan.
He is also survived by his
mother, Dorothy Stein Froman, his sister, Carol, and brother, Bobby.
Funeral services are
scheduled for Tuesday, March 6 at 11 a.m. at the Plaza Jewish Community
Chapel in New York, New York, located at 630 Amsterdam Ave. at 91st St.
Services will be available in an online webcast at www.plazajewish.org.
The family requests that any
memorial contributions be sent to either the Harness Horse Youth Foundation, Harness Museum and Hall of Fame, or Standardbred
Retirement Foundation.
As much as being highly
regarded for his knowledge of the racing and breeding business--and for his
enthusiasm for the sport--Stein was universally liked throughout harness racing
for his gentle demeanor and friendliness.
Stein’s family lived
near Roosevelt Raceway during his teenage years and it was there that he became
a big fan of the sport.
"The first night I went
to the International and I saw Une De Mai, that was really what got me
hooked," Stein said in 2001. "It’s like going to a Super Bowl
and not liking football. You go to a Super Bowl, you’re going to like
it."
A 1975 graduate of Brandeis University, he began his career in
harness racing after graduation as a chart caller for Sports Eye (now Harness
Eye) newspaper in Long Island, NY,
and later became the assistant editor.
In 1981, after the birth of
his daughter Holly, he left Sports Eye to care for her and to concentrate on
buying, selling and racing horses, establishing a stable for limited
partnerships called Select Standardbred Inc. In 1988, he partnered with his
colleague David Reid and purchased Preferred Equine Marketing, which in short
order became the industry’s leading sales agency.
For a time Stein and Reid
managed the Garden State Sales Co. and were later tabbed to oversee the Tattersalls
Sales Co. when it was purchased by new owners. The Tattersalls Yearling Sale
would eventually partner with Kentucky Standardbred to become the Lexington
Selected Yearling Sale. Tattersalls now conducts both winter and summer select
mixed sales at the Meadowlands.
Stein was among the owners
of the great trotting mare Moni Maker, Moni Market Breeders, and recently added
the Ice Wine Stable, a Thoroughbred partnership, to his resume. Stein, through
Preferred Equine Marketing, was also the syndicate manager for the stallion
career of World Champion Crazed.
"The one thing that I'm
most proud of throughout my career is I don't think there's anybody in the
business that could say that they were ever cheated or treated
dishonestly,” Stein once said.
It was an understatement
typical of the man. Those who knew Geoffrey Stein were definitely richer from
the experience.
By: Preferred Equine Marketing
