DEL MAR, Calif.— Apprentice jockeys used to win riding titles at Del Mar. In fact, an apprentice named William Shoemaker won it in 1949. Apprentice jocks won back-to-back titles in 1972 and ’73. That being said, Steve Valdez with 61 victories in 1973 was the last time an apprentice won the Del Mar riding title. And, it’s not going to happen this year either.
But there’s always that competition between the apprentices to see who can win the most races and this year 28-year-old Emily Ellingwood appears well on her way to being Del Mar’s top apprentice at the summer meet. She has six wins. Abdul Alsagoor is next with two.
Ellingwood actually lost her ‘bug’ with that sixth win at Del Mar on August 27th, a day she notched two winners on the card.
“I’m pretty happy with how it’s been going,” Ellingwood say. “I’m going to try my best to keep kicking butt as a journeyman, or better yet, journeywoman.”
Ellingwood appears undaunted by the new journeywoman designation. Apprentice jockeys often find that business drops off significantly when they lose their status because they no longer have the weight allowance afforded apprentices, which trainers covet. Ellingwood had 46 mounts in the first six weeks of the summer meet. Since losing her bug a week ago last Saturday, she’s had six.
“I’ve heard that many times from trainers,” Ellingwood says, “but a few trainers that you would think would have that same opinion actually are very supportive of me. I’m just going to keep working hard, showing up at 4:30 in the morning and show everybody that I want this and belong here and this is what I’m meant to do in life.”
Ellingwood’s been around horses all her life, growing up in Agora Hills, northwest of downtown Los Angeles in the Santa Monica Mountains.
“I rode horses in my backyard,” Ellingwood says. “I was part of a 4-H and pony club. I did horse shows with hunters and jumpers and went to work with a few professional hunter-jumper trainers and prepped the horses for their clients to show in the afternoon. I got a little bored with it and realized racing was more so my niche.
“Horses have always been my passion since I was young,” Ellingwood adds. “They were always my best friends that I could go to when I was down. Growing up, they were my idols. I feel I really had a connection with them and they understood me. I always told myself I wanted to work with horses. I really didn’t know what it was going to be but as the years went by everything fell into place.”
She managed to get her first job at a racetrack at Santa Anita seven years ago.
“I got introduced to trainer Matt Chew when I was 21,” Ellingwood says. “He gave me a job working as an exercise rider. I also walked horses and did any chores around the barn to help out. He introduced me to trainer Tom Proctor because my ultimate goal was to become a jockey. I worked for Tom for two years galloping and breaking babies at Glen Hill Farms (in Florida).”
Trainer Peter Eurton gave Emily her first ride in 2020 when he gave her a leg up on Dairy Kid in a $16,000 claimer at Los Alamitos. She finished sixth.
Business picked up significantly in 2021. Ellingwood had 222 mounts in her first full year riding. She made it to the winners circle 22 times riding mostly claimers and maidens.
Through it all, she’s had to deal with the stereotyping often directed at female jockeys, let alone apprentice female jocks, though, she says, it’s not as bad as some would have you believe.
“I do have some people say I’m not strong enough or not as strong as the boys,” Ellingwood says, “but I have definitely proven a lot of people wrong when I do go out there and kick butt.
“At this point I’ve told myself I’m just going to be me,” she says. “I’m doing my best, I love riding horses, I don’t want to do anything else. I think people have realized that this is more than just a job to me. This is my life and I don’t want it any other way.”
She acknowledges making a living in the horse racing industry in Southern California can be a tough nut to crack.
“The competition here is definitely a lot higher,” Ellingwood says. “Everybody’s bringing their best horses and you just gotta put your agent in charge of finding the best one out of all of them.”
Her agent is old pro Patty Sterling.
As for losing the ‘bug,’ Ellingwood has a bright outlook.
“It’s like I’m just getting started,” she says.
Fair warning for the rest of the riders out there.
DMTC Press Release
Photo: Emily Ellingwood (Benoit Photo)
