Your choice to ride.

[Casino]

1.Willie Shoemaker
2.Laffit Pincay
3.Chris Mccarron
4.Angel Codero
5.Jerry Bailey
6.Eddie Delahoussaye
7.Pat Day
8.Gary Stevens
9.Braulio Baeza
10.Russell Baze

I know some might say Acaro,Hartack, i never got to see them ride.

IMO big race 1 1/4 i need one of theses jocks to ride my horse without any question,Eddie D. may not be the best but thats my choice.

My second choice would be Jerry Bailey

My 3rd choice would be Codero.

[Casino]

No votes for The Shoe or Codero:confused:

[mannyberrios]

Angel Cordero!

[Gapfire]

IMO big race 1 1/4 i need one of theses jocks to ride my horse without any question,Eddie D. may not be the best but thats my choice.


Especially, if the track is playing kind to closers. :ThmbUp:

[Casino]

Especially, if the track is playing kind to closers. :ThmbUp:

IMO Eddie D was the only rider that couldve ridden A.P.Indy.Maybe Pincay.

[Casino]

Pat "wait all" Day fans out there wow,great rider but theres better in a big race.

[Casino]

Pat "wait all" Day fans out there wow,great rider but theres better in a big race.

No Bailey?:confused:

[lamboguy]

great list and what i find that is amazing is that the riding colony in california was great up until this century. i must admit the racing was top notch there too. you always had great horses coming from there. i have to give bob baffert a ton of credit for being able to compete at the top level of racing coming from california. with jess jackson's passing away i wonder if you are going to see steve asmussen on the west coast again.

[hugh]

Baze....
Always wondered why he doesn't get mounts in the really big races... like the triple crown ect...
I think he's too in love with California.

[Saratoga_Mike]

Would those who voted for Pat Day please explain why? I consider him one of the most overrated riders of our time.

[Casino]

Would those who voted for Pat Day please explain why? I consider him one of the most overrated riders of our time.

SM, i agreed a bit overratted there are better riders in big races.

[Robert Goren]

If I could get the Pat Valenzuela before he got into trouble over drugs, he would be my first choice. I was a big fan of Jose Santos too. I like Garrett Gomez alot. Of the one listed Gary Stevens was the best. Baeza was the best rider in the 60s.

[Stillriledup]

Depends on the situation, type of horse, etc. If i owned Zenyatta i would pick Eddie D, if i owned Rachel Alexandra i would pick Gary Stevens.

[Brogan]

Would those who voted for Pat Day please explain why? I consider him one of the most overrated riders of our time.
I second that thought!

[Pell Mell]

Barrington Harvey and if he wasn't available I'll take Hartack.:D

PS..I've caught BH on 2 50/1 shots.:ThmbUp:

[thaskalos]

Would those who voted for Pat Day please explain why? I consider him one of the most overrated riders of our time.
Pat Day is seldom mentioned among the game's best ever jockeys...so I don't know if he qualifies to be called "one of the most overrated riders of our time".

In fact, if a poll was put in place asking who the better jockey is/was between Pat Day and Ramon Dominguez...I'd expect that Dominguez would win hands down. People forget so quickly...

Not only was Pat Day an all-time great jockey...he was an even better human being - and a great ambassador for this game.

Not overrated at all in my book...

[Saratoga_Mike]

Pat Day is seldom mentioned among the game's best ever jockeys...so I don't know if he qualifies to be called "one of the most overrated riders of our time".

In fact, if a poll was put in place asking who the better jockey is/was between Pat Day and Ramon Dominguez...I'd expect that Dominguez would win hands down. People forget so quickly...

Not only was Pat Day an all-time great jockey...he was an even better human being - and a great ambassador for this game.

Not overrated at all in my book...

Don't agree - he wasn't nearly as successful when he tried the NYRA circuit (vs the midwest). He may be a great human being. I'm not disputing that at all.

[CryingForTheHorses]

I picked Willie Shoemake.As a trainer I love small people on horses

[cj]

How in the world did Gary Stevens get on this list?

[JustRalph]

I wouldn't ride any of them. But if I did, I don't think any of them could get a quarter in under 45 seconds, even with my recent weight loss

[johnhannibalsmith]

How in the world did Gary Stevens get on this list?

Thank you.

[Stillriledup]

How in the world did Gary Stevens get on this list?

Maybe its all the Derbies and grade 1 wins? Just a wild guess.

[raybo]

Pat Day, IMO, had the best "clock" of any jockey I've ever seen race.

He could win with the horses who were supposed to win, sure, but he could also win with the worst horse in the race.

He was one, with the horse, having an uncanny ability to get the very best performance a horse had to give.

You tell him to run 46 at the half and he'd run 46.

[Black Ruby]

How did R.A. "Cowboy" Jones get left off of this list?? :)

[exiles]

Chris Mccarron.:ThmbUp:

[Robert Fischer]

Russel, just wanted to say it's really cool that u board here. I can't make it 2 votes for you but keep up the great GG work :ThmbUp:

[jorcus]

Pat Day, IMO, had the best "clock" of any jockey I've ever seen race.

He could win with the horses who were supposed to win, sure, but he could also win with the worst horse in the race.

He was one, with the horse, having an uncanny ability to get the very best performance a horse had to give.

You tell him to run 46 at the half and he'd run 46.

I agree and really miss Pat Day. Maybe not the best on the list but there were a lot of things about his riding I liked. Because of his body type he had the most natural seat on a horse. His legs were straight and his back perfectly parallel to the horses back. He loved to sucker riders by letting them pass in the stretch then he would rally his mount late to go by them. He was also an underated front end rider. Given the right situation he could get horse out front to relax as well as anyone.

I have to think he would be a great Polytrack rider because of his ability to judge pace and save horse. I think he was a better rider than anyone based full time in the east right now.

[duncan04]

Russel, just wanted to say it's really cool that u board here. I can't make it 2 votes for you but keep up the great GG work :ThmbUp:


Lol thats good!!

[duncan04]

Hmm R. Baze is on the list but not Calvin Borel?? No love for 'bo-rail?'

[TrackManSam]

I'll take Garrett Gomez or Alex Solis..

[Casino]

Hmm R. Baze is on the list but not Calvin Borel?? No love for 'bo-rail?'

I had to put the jockey with the most wins.

[statepierback]

Big race 1 1/4 miles right. I voted Pincay but Shoe's a close second. Bailey's would be my third choice. It would also depend on my horses style and the race shape. But if its a photo finish I want Pincay.

[Spiderman]

Voted for Pincay who dusted New York colony in one season. Cordero, second choice, who seemed to give his best effort and had a savvy sense of placement.

[socantra]

How in the world did Gary Stevens get on this list?
I don't know, but I'd say still being alive and walking puts him close to the top.

[lamboguy]

you guys can have all these great riders, give me the right horse

[BIG RED]

Russel Baze is a NCal jock, and the best. Take him and a horse out of there, it's a gamble. Take him alone, and it's a bet against.

Leaves me Baily and Stevens (and I've seen all of the above). Both jocks were good, but also intelligent. They knew their mounts and when to pull the trigger, which leaves me with one vote.

I took Angel, because we all need one in horseracing :ThmbUp:

[v j stauffer]

Of the guys on the list I'd have to take Bailey. However, Gomez would be a VERY suitable replacement.

[The Judge]

Why shouldn't the jockey with the most life time wins be on the list? Whose going to catch him ?

[Casino]

Shoe is a all time great and imo hes not getting enough votes,should be top 3.

[The Judge]

I think its a recency thing, the Shoe is to far back.

[Zaf]

I would take Laffit :ThmbUp:

[raybo]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953 in Brush, Colorado) is an American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991. Day also received the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 1985, given annually to a North American jockey who demonstrates the highest standards of professional and personal conduct. In 1995, he was voted the Mike Venezia Memorial Award for "extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship".
Day has ridden winners of U.S. Triple Crown races nine times. Day was quoted in a recent interview on the TVG Network's "Legends" program that Easy Goer was the best horse he ever rode in his career. In 1999 he rode Menifee, who placed directly behind Charismatic in both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. Prior to the Belmont Stakes, where Menifee failed to place in the top three and Charismatic broke down in the final furlong, their rivalry was compared to that of Affirmed and Alydar in 1978.[citation needed]
In 1991, Pat Day won the Canadian Triple Crown and the Breeders' Cup Distaff aboard the future Hall of Fame filly Dance Smartly. He is the only jockey to have ridden at least one mount in each of the first 20 Breeders' Cups, and ranks second all-time in Breeders' Cup winners, with 12.
Day is also the all-time leading rider at Churchill Downs and Keeneland Race Course, the two largest tracks in his adopted home state of Kentucky. At the Downs, Day was often so dominant that veteran horseplayers would complain — bettors would often wager so much money on horses with Day in the saddle that the payoff odds would decline.
In 1989, he set a North American record when he won eight of nine mounts in a single day at Arlington Park.
Early in his career, he had serious substance abuse problems with both drugs and alcohol, but became a born-again Christian in the early 1980s. He has been involved with the Race Track Chaplaincy of America since his conversion, and is currently the racing industry's representative on the board of that organization.
After undergoing hip surgery that forced him to miss the Derby for the first time in 21 years, Day announced his retirement on August 3, 2005 after a 32-year career that saw him ride 8,804 winners, fourth on the all-time list, and set a North American record for prize money won, with his mounts earning nearly USD 298 million. He said he would retire and commit the rest of his life purely to spreading the Gospel.
Day and his family reside in the Lake Forest subdivision in Louisville, Kentucky.

I might also mention that at Oaklawn Park, it was nearly impossible to make a profit, if Pat was among the riders. You couldn't bet against him, because he'd beat you, and you couldn't bet on him, because the odds would be beat down by the crowd. He was the leading rider at that meet almost every year and I imagine that Calvin B and Eddie D, among others, owe much of their future success to having competed with, and having learned from, Pat Day.

[toetoe]

Barrington Harvey and if he wasn't available I'll take Hartack.:D

PS..I've caught BH on 2 50/1 shots.:ThmbUp:



Remember three (?) years ago when Barrington was 7/180 or something ... with a flat bet profit ?!? I told my buddy about Barrington, and he started betting him every time. B.H. was on a longshot in a G.G.F. turf stake. He beat them all ... except Modesto Linares. :lol:

[Rapid Grey]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


I might also mention that at Oaklawn Park, it was nearly impossible to make a profit, if Pat was among the riders. You couldn't bet against him, because he'd beat you, and you couldn't bet on him, because the odds would be beat down by the crowd. He was the leading rider at that meet almost every year and I imagine that Calvin B and Eddie D, among others, owe much of their future success to having competed with, and having learned from, Pat Day.

I could bet on him! I've hit or been part of probably a half dozen Pick 6s in my wagring life. In two of those, that I hit on my own, Pat Day rode 3 of the winners in the sequence and each of the them were singles.

I'll never forget the first one; I was five for five and Pat Day was on a 4/5 shot named Snake Eyes, a turf closer routing at Churchill in the final leg. During the race Day was playing his usual waiting game and I was pulling my hair out as he was still sitting chilly at the 3/16ths pole probably 5 lengths behind the leader. He finally cut loose at the 1/8th pole and the horse blew by the front runners to win going away. He probably never payed more than $10 on the tickets I won with him on but the P6s payed over 8K and 16K.

Only jockey I ever felt confident in singling on a multi-race wager.

edit: Someone mentioned Gary Stevens for Rachel Alexandra, imo she would have never lost if Day would have been available to ride her. Perfect rider for her front-running style.

[raybo]

I could bet on him! I've hit or been part of probably a half dozen Pick 6s in my wagring life. In two of those, that I hit on my own, Pat Day rode 3 of the winners in the sequence and each of the them were singles.

I'll never forget the first one; I was five for five and Pat Day was on a 4/5 shot named Snake Eyes, a turf closer routing at Churchill in the final leg. During the race Day was playing his usual waiting game and I was pulling my hair out as he was still sitting chilly at the 3/16ths pole probably 5 lengths behind the leader. He finally cut loose at the 1/8th pole and the horse blew by the front runners to win going away. He probably never payed more than $10 on the tickets I won with him on but the P6s payed over 8K and 16K.

Only jockey I ever felt confident in singling on a multi-race wager.

edit: Someone mentioned Gary Stevens for Rachel Alexandra, imo she would have never lost if Day would have been available to ride her. Perfect rider for her front-running style.


Well said! Yeah, Pat seemed to know exactly how much a horse had left in the tank, at all points in a race. He was a "true" horseman. He made his move, "incorrectly", seldom.

[classhandicapper]

I'm surprised Cordero got so many votes. I think he was great, but I thought this was a younger crowd and many had never even seen him ride.

[Casino]

I'm surprised Cordero got so many votes. I think he was great, but I thought this was a younger crowd and many had never even seen him ride.

Classhandicapper,if you think the PA member are young then this game cant be dying,I going to take a wild guess and say the average age of a PA memeber is 45

[raybo]

Classhandicapper,if you think the PA member are young then this game cant be dying,I going to take a wild guess and say the average age of a PA memeber is 45

I would guess it's older than that.

[Valuist]

Don't agree - he wasn't nearly as successful when he tried the NYRA circuit (vs the midwest). He may be a great human being. I'm not disputing that at all.

In what, 1976 or 1977? He wasn't nearly the rider at that time that he was 10 years later. He also got off drugs.

At one point Mike Smith struggled to make it at Arlington and rode the summers at Canterbury. His career turned out pretty good.

Dominguez is the one guy who reminds me more of Day than anyone, style-wise.

[BlueChip@DRF]

Pat Day. If it were turf, then Jerry Bailey.

[BlueShoe]

Difficult to make a fair choice, is all of the above an option? Because early first impressions tend to stand out in one's memory, would tend to choose one of the old timers. Missing from the list are former greats such as Bill Hartack, Eddie Arcaro, and John Longden. If absolutely forced to make a choice would choose Laffit Pincay, with Braulio Baeza very close behind and Shoemaker and Bailey not far behind.

[Sysonby]

Jimmy Winkfield or Isaac Murphy -- how's that for old?

[Pine Tree Lane]

I may be dating myself.

Cordero: No one, NO ONE better on the lead or finding best part of track. He could win a race in the jockeys room.

Shoemaker: If another rider screwed up a ride on a big horse, the refrain was "Shoemaker is always a phone call away"

Baeza: Before his weight issues in the 70's was on arguably 4 of the greatest horses of the 60's (arguably of all time): Graustark (he stated he was the best horse he ever rode) Buckpasser, Damascus and Dr. Fager.

[Karakiozis]

Steve Sousounis:lol::lol:

[burnsy]

I may be dating myself.

Cordero: No one, NO ONE better on the lead or finding best part of track. He could win a race in the jockeys room.

Shoemaker: If another rider screwed up a ride on a big horse, the refrain was "Shoemaker is always a phone call away"

Baeza: Before his weight issues in the 70's was on arguably 4 of the greatest horses of the 60's (arguably of all time): Graustark (he stated he was the best horse he ever rode) Buckpasser, Damascus and Dr. Fager.
i agree on Cordero, when i was a kid he won so many riding titles in saratoga that one year they crowned him the "king of saratoga"...septor, crown and all. i'll never forget that. the guy could win with just about anything...not just the chalk. when they let him get the lead, many times it was a done deal. he used to dominate this meet more than todd pletcher does now as a trainer. i've been going to saratoga for the better part of 40 years and i've never seen anyone come close to what he did here. his run was amazing, he was that good. he won so many races when he was not on the best horse.

[molson721]

Baze....
Always wondered why he doesn't get mounts in the really big races... like the triple crown ect...
I think he's too in love with California.
Maybe he is not as good as you think. I wonder how many wins Pincay would have had if he raced up there and rode the favorites in so many 4-6 horse fields during his career against mediocre jocks?
You can't be considered the best if you don't compete against the best!

[v j stauffer]

57th post and first mention of Julie Krone. IMO one of the greats ever. Perhaps as high as top ten. If not certainly top 20:ThmbUp:

[cj]

57th post and first mention of Julie Krone. IMO one of the greats ever. Perhaps as high as top ten. If not certainly top 20:ThmbUp:

Top 20 female? Come on, she was a good rider, but I don't think many would have her in the top 50/100 of all time.

[BlueShoe]

Jimmy Winkfield or Isaac Murphy -- how's that for old?
Tod Sloan?

[appistappis]

avelino gomez

[antigeekess]

Well, I'm pretty new to the game, so the only one I've personally watched ride is Baze. I remember a couple of the others from the Derby on TV as a little kid.

Thing is, I think some of the most talented riders out there never become as well known as those guys. There are a couple I can think of right now who are pretty darn good at bringing in some outrageous longshots, and they do it fairly often.

Lots of obvious crazy talent out there that just isn't very well connected, but as good or better than the famous dudes. Give me a hungry one rather than a famous one every time.

And Gomez? He's lost me more money than I care to remember by sitting back there on his ass too long & only getting up for 2nd when he had plenty of horse left. Not a big fan.

[David-LV]

In a dead heat for me, it is Angel Cordero and Laffit Pincay overall with Fernando Toro on the turf.

________
David-LV