Pat Lang, track photographer, dies at 65
Pat Lang, who endeared himself to countless horsemen as the track photographer at racetracks in Kentucky and Ohio, died Friday from complications of lung cancer. He was 65.
Lang retired in May 2014 after more than 30 years of taking action shots and winner’s circle pictures at Turfway Park, Keeneland, and River Downs. Among the horses he photographed were Kentucky Derby winners Spend a Buck, Alysheba, Winning Colors, Silver Charm, Animal Kingdom, and Street Sense.
“Every day I got to photograph winners,” Lang said in a Keeneland press release upon his retirement. “Being there for the wins and achievements, documenting people as they built on their success, for the milestones, even as they grew their families. . . . In most cases, my clients became my friends. You rooted for them daily, on the track and off. It made for a happy career, where every day was better than the last.”
Lang is survived by his wife, Karla; his daughter, Emily, and stepdaughter, Rachel; and his sons, Jonathan and Graham. A memorial service is scheduled for 4 p.m. Eastern at Hay Funeral Home on Beechmont Ave. in Cincinnati.