Hesse, of New Jersey, dead at 71

Thoroughbred owner Charles Hesse III, who with his wife, Marianne, raced under the nom de course Char-Mari Stable, died in New York on Nov. 13 after a brief illness. He was 71.

Hesse campaigned the multiple graded winners Storm Tower, Feasibility Study, and Park Avenue Ball, the last of whom he also bred. Hesse also campaigned, alone or in partnership, such stakes winners as Navesink River, C. J.'s Boy, and Palance.

The Hesses received the 2003 Virgil "Buddy" Raines Distinguished Achievement Award from Monmouth Park and were named New Jersey's Breeder of the Year for 2005 by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association.

Hesse was a longtime friend of prominent bloodstock agent Buzz Chace, who noted that Hesse's father was the man who built the original Monmouth Park course.

"Charlie was a great sportsman who really loved the game, and he was an icon of New Jersey racing," Chace said.