By CHRIS McGRATH
If there is somebody up there who has
granted Ted Bassett long life, then it's
not hard to see why. Because who would
want the competition? As a friend re-
marked, after hearing the 97-year-old's
husky, beautifully measured voiceover for
a recent Keeneland promotional video:
"What a voice! It's like listening to God."
Entering his office and seeing James E.
Bassett III rise behind his desk, your
instincts are more temporal: you want to
click your heels and snap into a salute.
Fo r a s u p r i g h t a s h e r e m a i n s , i n h i s
i m posing build, the word applies still
more forcibly to the integrity he exudes.