Trainer William “Bill” McMeans died after a long illness on Tuesday at his home in Sunnyside, Washington. He was 69.

One of Washington’s most successful trainers, McMeans was a former cowboy who began training Thoroughbreds under the name Emerald Stables in the 1960s. He was known for his ability to select and develop young horses.

His ability earned him several victories in the Joe Gottstein Futurity, Washington’s richest two-year-old race, including with Koko’s Pal (1972), Favored One (’94), and Saratoga Dancer (’77).

McMeans spent 20 years winning numerous stakes races in Washington and California and continued training at Emerald Downs as well as in California and Arizona until 2004.

Other stakes winners McMeans trained include Longacres Derby winners Table Run (1973) and Hoist the Silver (‘78), 1976 Countess Fager Handicap winner Raise a Holme, and multiple stakes winners Times Rush, Fleet Fair, and Kaui Prince. 

Services will be held on Monday in Sunnyside, Washington.