CLERISSE, A WINNER OF MANY STAKES RACES ABOARD SGT PEPPER FEATURE, HAS PASSED AWAY
Kenneth Clerisse, a top 10 leading jockey at Los Alamitos during the track’s golden age of Quarter Horse racing, passed away on October 19. Clerisse was 67 years old.
Born in San Gabriel, California, Clerisse was a top rider in the late 1970s through early ‘90s at Los Alamitos, winning 608 Quarter Horse races and 19 stakes race at the Orange County oval. He often finished in the top 10 standings here, competing against the likes of greats Kenneth Hart, Danny Cardoza, Bobby Adair, John Creager, Bruce Pilkenton, Steve Treasure and others. Clerisse won 51 races in 1983 and by 1984 he ranked 11th all-time in Quarter Horses wins and 14th in stakes win.
Among the outstanding Quarter Horses Clerisse piloted, the legendary Sgt Pepper Feature certainly tops the list. Clerisse rode the eventual AQHA World Champion to victory in the 1981 Skoal Dash For Cash Derby, a win that completed Sgt Pepper Feature’s 11-race win streak and in stakes record time of :21.70 at 440 yards, and in the 1981 Los Alamitos Derby, both wins helping Sgt Pepper Feature earn national divisional honors.
Clerisse and the Mike Robbins-trained Sgt Pepper Feature teamed up to win two key races in 1982, the Chicado V Handicap and the 1982 Skoal Dash For Cash Maturity in a blanket finish over Senator Sage and Shawnee Hoo. Under a stakes record 127 pounds, Sgt Pepper Feature also teamed up with Clerisse to win the 1981 Laddie Handicap.
Clerisse’s other wins included the 1976 Independence Day with China Doll Su, the 1980 Double Bid Handicap with Song O My Heart, the 1978 Jet Deck Handicap with Dickeys Fireman, and the 1979 Leo Handicap at Los Alamitos with Struck Gold.
Clerisse’s daughter, Cassidy Clerisse, rode in Southern California from 2015 to 2017. She won 17 races, including one Quarter Horse win. Kenny is also survived by his son, Shaun. A Go Fund Me page has been set up by Clerisse’s family to help pay for the costs of his funeral. The page can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/kenneth-clerisse.
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