LOS ALAMITOS, CA—MAY 15, 2010—Dr. Edward C. Allred has resigned as president and chairman of the board of Los Alamitos Race Course effective Saturday, May 15. Allred also announced that he will be moving out of California, but will remain on the track's board of directors.

Cathy Monji, previously the vice-president and special assistant to the chairman at Los Alamitos Race Course, will be the track's new president and will join the board of directors. Rick English, formerly the track's controller and currently a consultant, will assume the role of chairman of the board. Allred made both appointments, which are subject to board approval. No changes to the company's present policies are anticipated in the near future.

“This decision is not based on health considerations, as I am doing well,” Allred said. “I will continue to have a very active role on the board of directors. It is on the execution of the day-to-day details and matters that I will not be involved.”

Allred has owned controlling interest in the racetrack since 1998 and has overseen the Orange County track as an exclusive Quarter Horse venue since 2000. He has owned the track or been part of a horsemen's organization that operated a race meeting there since the 1970s.

In recent years, Allred, 73, has had an active role in the day-to-day management at Los Alamitos, despite suffering a minor stroke in 2007. He spoke before the California Horse Racing Board in February, arguing for an increased takeout on wager as a way to offset losses in the statewide simulcast market.

Through Allred's guidance Los Alamitos has become the leading Quarter Horse venue in the United States. The track offers three seven-figure futurities, including the Los Alamitos Two Million each December and the prestigious Champion of Champions for older horses each December, a race that plays a pivotal role in World Champion voting.

Allred is the all-time leading breeder of Quarter Horse. He is a 10-time American Quarter Horse Association Champion breeder and a six-time champion owner. He was named AQHA champion breeder in 2009.

Monji is a longtime owner and breeder of Quarter Horses at Los Alamitos Race Course. She owned 1995 Governor's Cup Derby and Pacific Coast Quarter Horse Racing Association Breeders Derby winner Dicey Secret, the dam of 2006 All American Futurity winner No Secrets Here.

Los Alamitos Race Course is currently hosting year-round horse racing on a Friday through Sunday night basis. Since 1951, the Orange County track has been recognized as the premier of Quarter Horse racetrack in the nation and it has hosted Thoroughbred racing since 1993.

Courtesy of www.losalamitos.com