Sue Finley, in an article in Thoroughbred Daily News, posed the question, does racing really want new blood? It is a good question and the story she shared about a young man, Phillip Miller, attempting to venture into being a jockey agent indeed begged the question. Ferrin Peterson wanted Phillip to handle her book at the Aqueduct winter meet. He was told he was not qualified to take the test. The story reminded me of a similar resistance I found when I became a Jockey Agent in New York many years ago. Sometimes as much as things change they stay the same.
It is a bit of a long story, and I did try and shorten it somewhat. If you listen a little faster I won’t have to slow down so you can catch up.
The resistance of new blood doesn’t stop here. Not by a long shot. Some day and perhaps soon I will tell the story of my failed attempts of joining the NTWAB. All three attempts were somewhat bizarre. The last and most reason experience was the board decided not to put my application up for membership consideration. I don’t know, something about my writing too many handicapping related articles as opposed to racing news and features. 😳 The first two attempts defy belief but they happened and there are plenty of emails that prove it. Anyway that is a story for another day.
Racing has a knack for being their own worst enemy and the past performances show it as a recurring pattern.
Well here’s the story:
