Nationally known steward Bernie Hettel has been appointed to the Gulfstream Park judges' stand, the track announced Dec. 14Hettel, a 56-year-old Louisville, Ky., native and graduate of that city's university, became a Kentucky steward at the age of 29. He first worked with Jack Goode and Keene Daingerfield, widely regarded as two of the finest stewards in the history of the sport."Integrity at Gulfstream Park has been a constant, and Bernie Hettel's reputation is impeccable," said Bill Murphy, Gulfstream's vice president and general manager of racing.
Hettel has a national reputation as a racing authority. After leaving the stewards' stand a few years ago, he spent seven months as a consultant for Magna Entertainment Corp., owner of Gulfstream Park, and remained busy running his own consulting business before taking the position at Gulfstream Park."About 90% of my business is referral," he said. "Keene Daingerfield and Jack Goode taught me the necessity of learning administration, regulations, and applicable statutes and applying them with fairness and common sense."
