Jockeys often are referred to as the best pound-for-pound athletes in the world, and for good reason. Standing little more than 5-feet in height and tipping the scales around 112 pounds, jockeys must control 1,000-pound animals while relying on their instincts and quick reflexes to maneuver through tight quarters and arrive at the finish line first.
Although some aspiring jockeys attend riding schools, most begin by exercising horses in the mornings until they are experienced enough to try race competition.
Laura Hillenbrand’s 2001 best-selling novel “Seabiscuit” is just one of many fine books about Thoroughbred racing and its participants. The sport has been the subject of, or backdrop for, many other works that can be found at bookstores and libraries, including popular fictional racing mysteries by Dick Francis and William Murray.
Online sources for Thoroughbred non-fiction include:
The book “Seabiscuit” was adapted into a movie of the same name which hit theaters during the summer of 2003, 20 years after “Phar Lap” told the similarly inspiring story of Australia’s greatest racehorse.
“Seabiscuit” and “Phar Lap” are but two of many movies about horses, and Thoroughbreds in particular.
America’s Best Racing maintains a Pinterest board dedicated to racing films, which you can access here.
Thoroughbred racing in the United States has a long association with celebrities and dignitaries, from presidents like Andrew Jackson, who owned and raced horses; to sports icons like Hall of Fame basketball star Michael Jordan, a regular at the Kentucky Derby; to supermodel Kate Upton, a known horse enthusiast and Breeders’ Cup ambassador.
Celebrities who regularly attend or attended the races, many of whom own and breed Thoroughbreds, include:
