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Alamitos’ Top Rider Suspended for Year

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Times Staff Writer

Eddie Garcia, the leading jockey at the Los Alamitos meeting that ended last Saturday and the fifth-ranking quarter horse rider in the country, has been suspended for a year and fined $2,000 after being caught with two electrical prodding devices in his possession minutes before a race last week.

Garcia is the second top-ranking quarter horse jockey to be caught with the devices--known at the track as batteries or machines--in California this year. In August at Hollywood Park, investigators for the California Horse Racing Board found Kip Didericksen with two prods in his possession before a race. He later received a one-year suspension and a $2,000 fine. Didericksen won 309 races to lead the country in 1986.

Garcia, 23, was stopped by investigators as he made his way from the jockeys’ room to the paddock to ride in the ninth race last Tuesday at Los Alamitos.

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“He had two machines on him,” said Ed Stetson, chief investigator for the racing board. “They were Triple-A battery types and were taped to his wrists with black electrician’s tape.”

After the search, the Los Alamitos stewards took Garcia off his mount, Hot Wave, a 4-year-old mare trained by Blane Schvaneveldt and listed as the 4-1 fourth choice by the Daily Racing Form in the six-horse, $7,500 allowance race.

Jim Lewis replaced Garcia on Hot Wave, and she finished out of the money.

Garcia was not allowed to ride the rest of the week while an investigation was conducted. The penalty was assessed after a hearing.

With 69 wins, Garcia still finished atop the Los Alamitos standings. Through November, the jockey’s mounts had earned $1.1 million, placing him fifth nationally. In 1986, Garcia ranked 10th in the country with purses totaling $843,562.

Garcia reportedly left to visit relatives in Utah and was unavailable for comment.

Schvaneveldt could not be reached for comment.

“He (Schvaneveldt) was not involved in the investigation,” said Stetson. “I don’t know if trainers tell these guys to use these things. But even if they did, they wouldn’t admit it.”

Electrical prods are believed by some to give horses shocks that make them run faster.

Also, some horse racing experts say that horses can be trained on the prods and, further, can get accustomed to be prodded with them.

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