On Friday, April 19th, some of the biggest names in racing will join us at Fasig-Tipton to share their fondest memories of their Derby winning experiences. This unique event hosted by D. Wayne Lukas will offer the chance to spend one-on-one time with Kentucky Derby winners through an experience auction. Today we announce the first guest panelist for our "It's my Derby"™ event, Gary Stevens.
Gary Stevens was born March 6, 1963 in Caldwell, Idaho into a family of horse people. He came to racing naturally, his father, Ron, is a trainer and had him grooming horses at age 8. His mother was a Rodeo Queen. His brother Scott is a jockey. Before he was 14, Gary was riding winners in quarter horse races at the bush tracks and fairs.
Although he remained a force in the California jockey colony, he also found himself a familiar face on the Triple Crown Trail. He won the Kentucky Derby aboard, Winning Colors (1988), Thunder Gulch (1995) and Silver Charm (1997). Winning Colors became one of only three fillies to win the Run for the Roses. He also added wins in the Preakness (1997 & 2001) and Belmont (1995, 1998 & 2001). Gary has won just about every major stakes in the United States including Breeders’ Cup races and established a very strong record abroad winning the Japan Cup, Canadian International and Dubai World Cup to name a few. He was awarded many personal awards, including the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and the Mike Venezia Memorial Award. He was inducted into the United States Racing Hall of Fame in 1998.
Gary retired from riding in 1999 due to chronic knee pain. His brief retirement lasted less than a year as he was back in the saddle in October of 2000. In 2005 Gary once again decided to hang up his tack. Besides his time in the saddle, Gary has developed a career as an actor, a television personality and sports anchor who works for both HRTV and NB Sports as a horse racing analyst. He was named as one of People Magazines 50 most beautiful people in 2003. He also wrote a book about his life appropriately called The Perfect Ride.
Hear Mr. Stevens share his stories live at "It's my Derby"™. Stay tuned for future announcements as we reveal the rest of the Derby winning panel.
Click here for more information. For ticket reservations, please contact: Carla Grego [email protected] or 502-992-5905.
