HORSE RACING: Aberdeen man has proven track record [American News, Aberdeen, S.D.]

May 19--Ron Krogman has done just about everything at the horse races in Aberdeen.

The Aberdeen resident has been involved with the horse races in Aberdeen since 1972. He has done everything from a jock room attendant, assistant general manager, general manager, steward, stall man, racing secretary and track photographer.

"I guess I have had about every job in racing," Krogman said, "except riding -- and I don't want to do that."

Krogman, 69, had never seen a horse race in his life until 1972. He started working at the track in Aberdeen when the American Legion ran the races. His first job there was as a jock room attendant.

"'What is that?'" he recalled asking. "'Just go in there and make sure they don't fight.'" I sat around the jock room and made sure they didn't fight. That is about as much as I knew about it. Over the years I gained quite a bit of knowledge about horse racing."

A few years later, he was the assistant general manager and was the general manager for 20 years, he said.

"When I was general manager of the Legion, you actually did things year around," Krogman said, "but now that I'm just an employee, I come out and do my job. When you are a general manager, there were things to do year around."

<p>Now that he is no longer the general manager, the horse races just keep him busy during the summer months. After the races are done in the Hub City, he will work at the track in Belcourt, N.D., for four weekends. Later in the summer, he will work at the track in Fargo, N.D., for two weekends. In recent years, he was also general manager at the track in Gillette, Wyo.

"I look forward to them all year long," he said about the races. "It is kind of an all-summer deal. It is hard to get my fishing done, but it is a lot of same people and you make a lot of friends through the years and I just really enjoy it."

How has horse racing changed over the years?

"The biggest thing is the competition with more gaming," said Krogman, who is now retired after working in the insurance business. "We were having days where we were handling over $100,000. Now (last Sunday), we thought we had a great day and we handled about $33,000. The competition from all the other gaming and a lot fewer horses now. There used to be a lot of people that would have three or four horses. Now most of them are trained by five or six trainers. It has evolved from more of a game to a business."

But it is a business that Krogman has learned a thing or two about over the years.

"I don't care if I don't ever bet on a horse and I don't care if I ever touch a horse," he said, "but I love the people. I just enjoy the people mostly and trying to keep horse racing going in Aberdeen and see a successful meet."

Northeast Area Pari-mutuel Horse Racing

Where: Brown County Fairgrounds on northwest edge of Aberdeen

When: Today, Sunday, May 27-28

Time: 1 p.m., betting windows open at 12:30 p.m., betting seminars being at noon in the clubhouse west of the grandstand

Admission: Free

Tradition: 63 years of live horse racing in Aberdeen

Today's Races: Check out today's racing card.

Online: Will Elkins of the American News will broadcast all the races all six days beginning at 12:45 p.m. at http://www.aberdeennews.com/sports

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