Successful efforts to improve Monmouth Park By MURIEL J. SMITH Posted:07/26/10
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Oceanport - It seems like a rare mix of talent and interests, but John Heims, who is Director of Media Relations at Monmouth Park during the racing season, is also an attorney in private practice who specializes in wills, trusts, and estate planning.
Actually, according to Heims this is a perfect blend of the two professions. And he takes advantage of the four months away from the racing industry to devote more time to his legal office.
It's the people he has met in the racing industry, and the high standards they have set, that made the law field so intriguing, Heims readily admits.
His love for racing started when he was a kid and his parents would take him by train from Spring Lake to Monmouth Park where he was mesmerized by the horses, the system, and the organization of the industry. He went to Clemson University in South Carolina and earned a degree in economics, then did graduate work at the University of Kentucky at Lexington, heightening his interest in the equine industry while living in the heart of it. That led to earning a post baccalaureate certificate in equine administration, in addition to the economics background. Along the way, he also did an internship at Atlantic City Race Course before relocating to South Florida as the simulcast coordinator for Gulfstream Park and Director of Media Relations at Hialeah Park.
While at Hialeah, Heims got his first taste of working in TV, and oversaw the production of a daily show on the Sunshine Network. When he went to Gulfstream during that same time period, he was responsible for a network of wagering that totaled over $635 million the last year he was there. His simulcast network included more than 900 outlets through the Americas as well as in the Caribbean, and it was part of his job to conduct the contractual negotiations and satellite providers. A daunting task, since at the same time he was working with the National Thoroughbred Racing Association marketing department arranging simulcast promotions focused on Gulfstream.
Ten years after first coming to Monmouth publicizing racing to a national network of television, radio and print, Heims oversaw media relations for the Breeders Cup championships, the largest races ever held at Monmouth, including worldwide coverage that spanned Europe, Asia, the Americas and Australia. That experience was easily the highlight of his racing career to date, he said, not only because of the magnitude of the work but also because he felt a part of Monmouth Park's successful efforts to improve and enhance the racing facility in Oceanport. "There's no doubt about it," he smiles, "the people of New Jersey were truly the biggest winner of the Breeder's Cup championships here."
Working in a position that is seasonal affords Heims the time to devote to his legal career. He asserts that the industry lends itself to blending with a legal career, and points to the number of high level, and highly respected Monmouth Park executives who were also attorneys...men like Dennis Dowd, Bruce Garland and Hal Handel.
Heims's wife, Linda Rehrer, is also an attorney, and a partner in a Toms River firm with her sister. But Heims maintains his own office, albeit in the same building as his wife on South Shore Drive. While Linda specializes more in family law, Heims prefers wills and trusts, occasionally defense work in municipal court, and real estate. He also gives seminars and talks to clubs and organizations on wills and money matters and believes his diversity is one of his major attributes.
"This isn't to say I'm leaving the racing industry, not by a long shot," Heims says, "there's a blend here, I can do both, devote more time to law during the four months off from racing, but I can always make myself available. I just want to combine the two professions because I really believe it's a great combination. In two hectic fields, it seems to bring a little sanity to each. I'm staying...I like it here."
