(Straight from the Winner's Circle, the greatest jockey of...)
Straight from the Winner's Circle, the greatest jockey of all time draws on his vast experience on and off the track to spin one of the most suspenseful mysteries of the year.
(Bill Shoemaker, the greatest jockey of all time, made a s...)
Bill Shoemaker, the greatest jockey of all time, made a smashing fiction debut with his first novel, Stalking Horse, starring jockey-turned-sleuth Coley Killebrew. Now Coley is back, and this time he's up against the toughest odds he's ever faced.
(In Dark Horse, Shoemaker thrusts his amateur sleuth, Cole...)
In Dark Horse, Shoemaker thrusts his amateur sleuth, Coley Killebrew, into the toughest, tensest case of his career--a case that begins and ends with the Triple Crown, the most famous and lucrative trio of races in the thoroughbred business.
William Shoemaker was the greatest American jockey of the second half of the 20th century. For 29 years he had held the world record for total professional jockey victories. Besides, he authored three murder mysteries - "Stalking Horse" (1994), "Fire Horse" (1995), and "Dark Horse" (1996).
Background
William Shoemaker was born on August 19, 1931 in Fabens, Texas, United States. He was a son of Ruby Call.
He started to ride at the age of six and moved with his family at the age of ten to California, United States, which became and remained his racing base.
Education
William Shoemaker studied at El Monte High School in California, being later dropped out of it.
William Shoemaker began his track career in 1949 and was a professional jockey until 1989.
His first professional ride was on March 19, 1949. The first of his eventual 8,833 career victories came a month later, on April 20, aboard Shafter V, at Golden Gate Fields in Albany, California.
At the age of 19, Shoemaker was making so much money - as much as $2,500 each week - the Los Angeles Superior Court appointed attorney Horace Hahn as his guardian, with the consent of his parents.
Shoemaker won eleven Triple Crown races during his career, spanning four different decades, but the Crown itself eluded him.
Two of Shoemaker's most noted rides were in the Kentucky Derby. He lost the 1957 Kentucky Derby aboard Gallant Man, when he stood up in the stirrups too soon, having misjudged the finish line, where Gallant Man finished second to Iron Liege, ridden by Bill Hartack. At the 1986 Kentucky Derby, Shoemaker became the oldest jockey ever to win the race, at age 54, aboard the 18-1 outsider Ferdinand. The following year, he rode Ferdinand to a victory over Alysheba in the Breeders' Cup Classic; Ferdinand later captured Horse of the Year honours.
When Shoemaker earned his 6,033rd victory in September 1970, he broke jockey Johnny Longden's record. In 1999, Shoemaker's own record of 8,833 career victories was broken by Panamanian-born Laffit Pincay Jr.
Win number 8,833, Shoemaker's last, came at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida, on January 20, 1990 aboard Beau Genius. Two weeks later, on February 3, Shoemaker rode his last race on Patchy Groundfog, at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. He finished fourth, in front of a record crowd, to Eddie Delahoussaye, on Exemplary Leader. All told, Bill Shoemaker rode in a record 40,350 races.
Soon after retiring as a jockey in 1989, Shoemaker returned to the track as a trainer, where he had modest success, training for such clients as Gulfstream magnate Allen Paulson and composer Burt Bacharach.
He continued to train racehorses until his retirement on November 2, 1997. His final stats as a trainer were 90 wins from 714 starters and earnings of $3.7 million.
Shoemaker was involved in a solo drunk-driving car accident on April 8, 1991, in San Dimas, California, when he rolled over the Bronco II he was driving. The accident left him paralyzed from the neck down, and he thereafter used a wheelchair. Shoemaker sued Ford, and Ford settled with Shoemaker for US$1,000,000.
In addition, Shoemaker authored three murder mysteries - "Stalking Horse" (1994), "Fire Horse" (1995), and "Dark Horse" (1996) all featured jockey-turned-sleuth Coley Killebrew using his racetrack experience in and about his restaurant and the horse world.
(Bill Shoemaker, the greatest jockey of all time, made a s...)
1995
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Quotations:
"You just had to let him run his race... and if he decided to win it, you'd better hold on because you'd be moving faster than a train."
Personality
Physical Characteristics:
At 38 ounces (1.1 kg), Shoemaker was so small at birth that he was not expected to survive the night. Put in a shoebox in the oven to stay warm, he survived, but remained small, growing to 4 feet 10 inches (1.47m) and weighing 91 pounds (41 kg). His diminutive size proved an asset as he went on to become a giant in thoroughbred horse racing.