Nathan Scherr, Raced Preakness Winner Aloma's Ruler, Dead

Nathan "Red" Scherr, a Baltimore builder who won the 1982 Preakness Stakes (gr. I) with Aloma's Ruler, died Nov. 21 of Parkinson's disease at Cherrywood Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Reisterstown. Md. Born and raised in Baltimore, he was 80.

Scherr, whose nickname came from his full head of red hair, bought Aloma's Ruler's for $92,000 and watched him win Maryland's greatest race over heavy favorite Linkage.
"If I had to pick one race in the whole world to win--the Kentucky Derby, the English Derby, the Pimlico Special, one of the Breeders' Cups--this would be the race. It was the most exciting moment in sports, maybe my most exciting moment in life," Scherr told The Sun in a 1996 interview.

Aloma's Ruler also won that year's Withers Stakes (gr. II), Jersey Derby, and Bahamas Stakes, and earned a career total of $498,883. He died this year.

Scherr, who served as a member of the Seabees in World War II, bred and raced several other stakes winners. At one time, he owned the Baltimore Blast soccer team

Scherr's survivors include a son, Bruce; a daughter, Barbara; and seven grandchildren.