Page 29 - Speedhorse Canada Spring 2018

“Quarter Horse racing is 100% excitement; it’s an immediate charge.
Horses himself, has some unbeliev- able connections to the music indus- try and is the biggest music promoter in Canada. I won’t give away the whole secret, but I’m certain when people hear what we’re going to do, let’s just say, Rocky Mountain Turf will be rockin with racing and fun.
“We’re thrilled to have the caliber of Quarter Horses run here that we do. There are many opportunities for them to com- pete here and they are world class horses. Quarter Horses make
up one-third of our races, and I applaud them on their 50th an-
niversary. On behalf of Rocky Mountain Turf Club and myself, we send the AQHR A best wishes and will welcome the opportunity to celebrate this memorable event with them.’’
- As told by Max Gibb, Lethbridge, Alberta
in Alberta racing and we’ll always remember and be thankful that they “came along for the ride.’. This was a historical ride; a ride that lasted 50 years, from 1957 to 2007.
“If wishes were fishes, we’d all be throwing nets. If wishes were horses, we’d all ride.” - A famous quote by Doug Norton
COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE – A LOOK AT THE JOCKEYS
Anyone who ever has watched a horse race soon realizes a jockey is quite different from a normal rider. They must be fearless and brave; they must be athletic and light; they must like living on the edge; and they must enjoy the sweet taste of victory and hear the deafening silence of defeat. What must it be like to ride a Quarter Horse perched upon it as it is running close to breakneck speeds? How do you cannon out of the gates, make split–second decisions and simultaneously, push your horse to go faster, faster, faster? Welcome to the world of the riders. The AQHRA and the whole racing community wish to honor these jockeys for their contribution in riding fast horses.
When Quarter Horse racing
first began, jockeys rode with very little protection. They rode with no helmets and no flack jackets. They rode on muddy dirt tracks, little sports grounds and small town race tracks. There wasn’t much glory or money earned in being a jockey, sometimes you didn’t even get your picture taken to remember the event. Sometimes, jocks drifted on to dif- ferent places or different jobs, but inevitably they longed to be back riding, and maybe it was this memo-
ry that made them restless souls. Or sometimes, it was broken bones and injuries that made them stop riding. After all, just how many times can you get pitched from a two year old?
We remember the jockeys, though, for they are as distinct in our minds as the horses they rode. They were colorful individuals who left a legacy
When Quarter Horse racing first began, jockeys rode with very little protection. They rode with no helmets and no flack jackets and rode on muddy dirt tracks, little sports grounds and small town race tracks.
SPEEDHORSE CANADA, Spring 2018 29