The Southern California Thoroughbred training roster recently lost two members with the retirement of Ray Bell and Eoin Harty’s decision to relocate to Kentucky on a full-time basis.  Bell, 71, had his final runner at Santa Anita in May and opted not to ship a small stable to Del Mar for the summer meeting. Harty, 62, had his final starter in California at the end of July. He is currently based at Turfway Park.  Bell, a third-generation horsemen, said in a recent interview that he plans to focus on bloodstock work, buying horses on behalf of clients. He recently attended yearling sales in California and Kentucky.  “I’ve had some inquiries with people to go to sales and select horses,” he said. “I’ve had a good education in that. People think I have an eye for the horse, and I hope they’re right.”  Bell won 330 races in a career that began in 1976. He trained Rumbo, who was second in the Santa Anita, Hollywood, and Kentucky Derbies in three consecutive starts in the spring of 1980 and later won the Grade 2 Lawrence Realization Stakes for 3-year-olds at 1 1/2 miles at Belmont Park that fall. :: Bet Santa Anita with confidence! Get DRF All Access Past Performances, Picks, Clocker Reports and more. More recently, Bell’s stable was led by Twice the Vice, winner of the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks in 1994; Capitano, a three-time minor stakes winner from 2005 to 2007; and Juniper Pass, who won the Grade 2 San Juan Capistrano Handicap and Grade 2 San Luis Rey Stakes for marathon turf runners in consecutive starts at Santa Anita in 2011.  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages. In 2018, India Mantuana won the Grade 3 Red Carpet Handicap at Del Mar, Bell’s sixth and most recent stakes win at that venue.   Bell said he chose to retire in July when his stable numbered less than 10 runners.  “I decided instead of that added expense of going to Del Mar, it was a good time to pack it in and set my sights on something else,” he said. “We sold a couple of fillies to be broodmares, a couple were sent to Los Alamitos.”  Bell insisted he left on his own terms.  “It’s been a good run,” he said. “I don’t have any bad thoughts about racing at all. It’s been good to me and my family. We’ve done really well, and we’ve had some Grade 1 winners and some classically-placed horses.  “I’m still involved to a certain extent. I’m still young enough to enjoy life and do some other things. It’s hard to break away. It’s hard to make a change.”  Bell had four winners in 2023 but only one win from six starters in 2024. This year, he was winless with three starters.  Bell noted that the game has changed, with more limited partnerships and fewer instances of individuals or families owning horses. Prize money has also been an issue in California, a state that does not have a secondary source of revenue, such as slot machines, to boost purses.  “I pity these guys, the younger fellas, particularly in California when other guys in New York, Kentucky, and Florida are doing so well,” Bell said. “We see what they’re running for at Kentucky. It’s tough.”  Harty said prize money in Kentucky was a contributing factor in his decision to be based at Turfway Park with 35 horses. From there, he can easily reach tracks in Indiana, Illinois, Ontario, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, as well as elsewhere in Kentucky.   Harty has had a national stable for several years and had a limited presence at Santa Anita’s two meetings from late December to mid-June, winning one race from seven starters. He is a former assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, whose stable has largely dominated the 2-year-old and 3-year-old dirt divisions in California for years.   “My horses didn’t fit and it was hard to be competitive,” Harty said of racing in California. “It’s hard to run against Bob and think you’re going to be competitive. There are more opportunities out here.”  Harty is the president of the California Thoroughbred Trainers Association, a role he plans to continue until the end of the year. Bell is treasurer. The organization represents trainers regarding issues with track management and the California Horse Racing Board.  Harty had won 23 races from 119 runners this year through Tuesday. In April, Harty won the Grade 2 Beaumont Stakes at Keeneland with Verity, who resumed workouts at Turfway Park last week after a summertime break.   Last December, Harty won the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct with Poster, who was beaten in two Triple Crown prep races earlier this year at Tampa Bay Downs and Turfway Park. Poster has been working steadily at Turfway Park for a return.  Despite moving his stable away from California, Harty’s wife Kathy maintains their home near Santa Anita. “I don’t plan on retiring in Kentucky,” Harty said. “When the day comes and I take a step back, I’ll return to California.”