Retired California trainer J.E. “Cotton” Tinsley was discovered dead Jan. 4, Daily Racing Form reported. Tinsley, who had been missing since New Year’s Eve, was 81.
According to a statement from the Arcadia Police Department obtained by the Form, Tinsley’s car was discovered after which a search and rescue operation was begun. The trainer’s body was found in a ravine in the mountains above San Bernardino.
Tinsley trained many years for Fred Hooper, for whom he won the 1963 Santa Anita Handicap with Crozier.