Earl Sande, Chris McCarron, Sir Gordon Richards, Willie Shoemaker, Pat Day, Eddie Arcaro, Laffit Pincay, Jr., Russell Baze, Lester Piggott, Frankie Dettori, Red Pollard, Tony Cruz, Jose Santos, Edgar Prado, Jerry Bailey, Ron Turcotte, Garrett Gomez
Jockeys are normally self employed, nominated by horse trainers to ride their horses in races, for a fee (which is paid regardless of the prize money the horse earns for a race) and a cut of the purse winnings. In Australia, employment of apprentice jockeys is in terms of indenture to a master (a trainer); and there is a clear employee/employer relationship. When an apprentice jockey finishes his apprenticeship and becomes a “fully fledged jockey”, the nature of their employment and insurance requirements change because they are regarded as “freelance”, like sub-contractors. Jockeys often cease their riding careers to take up other employment in racing, usually as trainers. In this way the appreniceship system serves to induct young people into racing employment.
Jockeys usually start out when they are young, riding work in the morning for trainers, and entering the riding profession as an apprentice jockey. An apprentice jockey is known as a “bug boy” because the asterisk that follows the name in the program looks like a bug. All jockeys must be licensed and usually are not able to have an interest in a bet on a race. An apprentice jockey has a master, who is a horse trainer, and also is allowed to “claim” weight off the horse’s back (if a horse were to carry 58 kg, and the apprentice was able to claim 3 kg, the horse would only have to carry 55 kg on its back). After a while, the jockey becomes a senior jockey and would usually develop relationships with trainers and individual horses. Sometimes senior jockeys are paid a retainer by an owner which gives the owner the right to insist the jockey rides their horses in races.
The emergence of women jockeys in the 1970s was greeted well in racing, with resilience that in fact helps to explain why racing is the oldest, continuing global sport. Racing modelled on the English Jockey Club spread throughout the world with colonial expansion, and in one view is a vehicle of hegemony. Emergence of women jockeys shows racing is adaptive. The emergence did raise argument about the suitability of women in the demanding role of jockeys, and they have been demonstrated to be baseless; nothing more than prejudiced whims with no logical basis. It is of interest that similar debate has not ensued about the employment of children in racing, and their exposure to all sorts of risks. The orientalism with which people are amused by robots replacing children in camel races probably blinds their eyes to what goes on in western countries - robots do have the distinct advantage that owners do not have to “sling” to them (i.e., pay them). Of course the use of battery shocks as a behaviour conditioner of horses is ubiquitous, and robots could be used in this practice to minimise injury to people. Hemingway deplored the plight of horses used in bullfighting. Sooner or later, people will be talking the same way about children in racing.
Famous jockeys include Earl Sande, Chris McCarron, Sir Gordon Richards, Willie Shoemaker, Pat Day, Eddie Arcaro, Laffit Pincay, Jr., Russell Baze, Lester Piggott, Frankie Dettori, Red Pollard, Tony Cruz, Jose Santos, Edgar Prado, Jerry Bailey, Ron Turcotte, Garrett Gomez, and Tony McCoy.