Canterbury Park lost an original member of it’s family this weekend. Jim Wells, Canterbury storyteller, died from complications of angioplasty on Sunday. You can read his obituary from his long time employer, the Pioneer Press, here.
Wellsy was more than a mentor – he was a friend. He was family. He was literally like an uncle. Jim and I talked about everything. Horse racing, sure. Boxing, sure. But family, politics, food, life were all on the conversational agenda. I think he may have been the originator of “Dad Jokes” (he always had at least one) and for sure he was the conscious and institutional memory of Canterbury Park.
Track President, Randy Sampson, said on Facebook “Jim was a Canterbury Classic and one of the first inductees into the Canterbury Hall of Fame. We lost a wonderful human being, a great friend and a lot of history. The press box will never be the same.”
When I first started covering Canterbury Park for the Daily Racing Form, Jim was welcoming but wary. I learned that my predecessor was a little fly-by-nighty so I needed to prove that I would show up and do the job. I distinctly remember my first interviews that year having to jockey with Jim for space. He was as good at boxing out as a basketball player (and we were the only two interviewing!). I don’t think he was intentional about it, I think it was just a skilled honed from being a sports reporter for 30+ plus years. Eventually we came to an undiscussed understanding. The last four seasons, with Heather and I utilizing this forum and Jim manning the Cantebrury blog, we were sharing quotes, information and possible angles on stories,
And oh, could Jim tell a story.
Do yourselves a favor. Go back and flip through the Canterbury Park blog and read Jim’s bylines. His stories brought you closer to those you rooted for and watched every summer.
Rachel Blount, a fellow Canterbury Park Hall of Famer (Jim was part of the inaugural class), tweeted in part earlier today “Jim could elicit those stories because he was a warm, personable man with a genuine love for horses and horse people.”
People trusted Jim to tell their stories. Heather has said more than once that Jim wrote like a poet. Please…read his pieces. He did. He found the good stories in EVERYTHING. Stakes races, breeding and racing were easy. Weiner dog racing and fireworks were hard – but he did it and made them interesting and informative and delightful to read.
As progressive as Jim was in his politics he was old school when it came to racing in my early days with him. He didn’t take a personal shine to “Extreme Day” or other gimmick days, but eventually he did come over to the proposition that as long as it got people into the Park and kept the racing product going, it was a good thing. He really warmed to the task of telling the stories of a corgi or a weiner dog that was interesting and fun.
His favorite weekend of racing was a tossup. He really loved Minnesota Festival of Champions Day. He enjoyed seeing the locals celebrated and would relish the stories that came with that weekend. When the Indian Horse Relays came to Canterbury, though, it combined Jim’s love of horse racing with his deep interest and respect of Native American history and culture. You may not know this, but the last few years Jim started taking courses to learn the Lakota language and history. Talking about those studies would light up his face.
The Indian Horse Relays brought out the best of Jim. He loved to talk to the riders, team captains – really anyone associated with the event and bring those stories to the people. He was rarely more excited than when he had the opportunity to tell their stories.
I’ve learned a lot from Wellsy and will try to put those lessons much more into practice going forward.
Jim leaves behind a granddaughter, Kassie, whom he absolutely adored. But if you think Jim didn’t leave behind a lot of family (Jim’s son Jesse was killed in 1998), think again. He left Jeff Maday. He left Randy Sampson. He left Heather and I. He left Paul Allen. He left David Miller. He left Sheila WIlliams-Metz. He left Kevin Gorg. He left Rachel Blount and Patrick Reuse. He left Brian Arrigoni, Jay Lietzau, Bruce Meyer. He also left behind countless trainers, jockeys, owners and fans. At Canterbury Park his reach was felt well beyond the press box.
Jim left a huge family behind.
Missing him doesn’t begin to describe the way we feel. Walking into that press box for racing next season will be different. A hole in our hearts different. One that will be impossible to repair or replace.
God bless you, Uncle Jim. We love you.
