Ex-Northern Cal Trainer Jim Hilling Dies

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Former Northern California trainer Jim Hilling, who sent out Show Dancer to a second-place finish behind Miesque in the 1987 Breeders' Cup Mile (gr. IT) at Hollywood Park, died the night of Nov. 11 from pneumonia and other complications.

Hilling had his son, David, and longtime companion Kit Conner at his bedside at Eden Hospital in Castro Valley, Calif. He was 66.

The trainer maintained a stable in Northern California from the mid-1970s until his retirement in the summer of 2007. In addition to managing his own horses, Hilling would often be entrusted to handle stakes runners that shipped in from Southern California. Among the trainers that regularly sent horses to Hilling was Neil Drysdale.

Services are pending.

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