Support for Jockeys More Than a Song and Dance

Saturday, July 29, is National Disability Independence Day, which marks the 33rd anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Political history buffs will recall that the ADA was nearly hamstrung by adding an amendment that would have targeted the employment of people diagnosed with AIDS. The amendment was eliminated and the ADA passed its final vote in the United States Senate 91-6. Nays came from senators representing Idaho, Utah, New Hampshire, Wyoming, Missouri, and North Carolina. What's that got to do with the price of a $2 exacta? Well, chances are everyone knows someone whose life has at least been made a little bit kinder because of the provisions of the ADA, which codified rights relating to employment, health care, physical access, communications, and a bunch of other stuff that the fortunate among us take for granted. Furthermore, anyone who takes Thoroughbred racing seriously understands how important the ADA has been, because they know what happened to either Gary Birzer, Michael Straight, Stacy Burton, Ron Turcotte, Tad Leggett, Roger Blanco, Rene Douglas, Armando Rivera, Oriana Rossi, Gary Donahue, Jacky Martin, Anne Von Rosen, Jamie LaRocca, Vinnie Bednar, Joree Scriver, Paul Nolan, Linda Hughes, Vincent Amico, Nikeela Black, Sidney Underwood, Jackie Fires, or Rudy Baez. There are others. One stride they were riding high and doing fine. The next step they were down, but not all the way out. For most of them, life has been lived in a wheelchair, in a world made just a little bit more tolerable by the advent of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and by assistance from the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. Even the most innocent-looking tumble from a racehorse can result in disabling consequences. There is good reason to hold all tickets, in a manner of speaking, until that jockey is up and walking again. And this year, it seems like it's been raining riders at an unusal rate. Deshawn Parker, Samy Camacho, John Velazquez, Edgard Zayas, Andre Ramgeet, Chantal Sutherland, Jose Ortiz, Andre Worrie, Oscar Gomez—they've all sustained varying degrees of racing injuries. Jose Lezcano broke his hand in April and was deprived of five crucial weeks. On May 1, Mauro Cedillo injured his shoulder in a scary crash at Thistledown. Last Sunday at Del Mar, Abel Cedillo's number came up in the last race of the day when he was thrown leaving the starting gate and fractured a cervical vertebrae. Abel is Mauro's cousin. It is natural for horseplayers and fans to turn the program page and move on. Jockeys, after all, know the job is dangerous when they take it. They are not asking for special favors, but they would not mind a little show of support for their luckless colleagues. In that spirit, this Saturday, the annual PDJF Day Across America in Honor of the Americans with Disability Act will be celebrated by racetracks far and wide. Jockeys will emerge from the rooms to mingle and sign autographs. Coverage by FanDuel TV will pump up the volume for donations to the PDJF, and for fans watching at home or on the go, the PDJF makes it easy through a click of a couple of buttons on its website. This month's wave of events in the name of disabled jockeys got off to a splashy start on July 18 at GMP Farm in Schuylerville, N.Y., where owner Anthony Melfi hosted a performance of Robert Montano's one-man tour-de-force "Small," which dramatizes the actor's evolution from an apprentice jockey to a Broadway dancer. Proceeds went straight to the PDJF. "Anthony totally transformed his arena into a theater," said Montano, who opens "Small" off-Broadway on Aug. 12. "It was amazing, and very special, although I did sweat with that audience more than I ever have before. Those Saratoga people know their racing." On July 23, attention turned to Del Mar, where musically-liberated members of the jockey colony performed karaoke numbers in full costume at the Belly Up Tavern, just down the street from the track. The house was packed, and Adrian Escobedo, a seven-pound apprentice, made off with the evening's top prize for his rendition of "La Bamba." Ritchie Valens, it should be noted, did not roll over in his grave. Saturday's Day Across America will be followed by a splashing climax Sunday night, when the karaoke ball will be in Saratoga's court. Spa jocks will be entertaining the local troops at the Vapor Club, and the event is always a hot ticket. Hopefully, the relatively minor injuries sustained recently by Jose Ortiz and Johnny V. will not impact their singing and dancing chops. Word has it that Flavien Prat will be doing a Charles Aznavour medley, and Javier Castellano has been hard at work practicing a version of "My Way." It goes without saying, but let's say it anyway. There already should be in place sufficient funding for jockeys who are permanently injured while in service to the bottom line of a dangerous endeavor like Thoroughbred racing. But apart from the few states with disability benefits mandated by law, and insurance policies negotiated with individual tracks, there is no institutionalized support structure. So, to supplement what's there, jockeys sing and dance, sign autographs, submit to dunk tanks, wrestle alligators...whatever it takes to raise a few dollars for their grounded comrades. Let's face it, these men and women are natural-born exhibitionists, and we are constantly entertained. This weekend provides an opportunity to say thanks. And be careful out there.