In this day and age at any racetrack across the country, you’ll likely find a female jockey in one of the races.
Lady riders (a Dire Straits song just whispered to me) have won Triple Crown races, Breeders’ Cup races and marquee Stakes such as the Kentucky Oaks and Pacific Classic.
Julie Krone, who won 3,704 races, is enshrined in the Racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Yet it wasn’t that long ago- the late 1960s when the United States was just coming to grips with equal rights, that you’d find that jockeys’ rooms were filled with men and men alone.
It wasn’t until 1968 that a small group of determined and courageous females – riders such as Diane Crump, Barbara Jo Rubin, Penny Ann Early and Kathy Kusner – stood tall in the face of the prejudice against them and fought victorious battles in the court system to gain the right to become licensed jockeys.
While there were several important firsts as female riders gained equality with men, Crump is the one recognized as the first woman to compete as a licensed jockey at a U.S. racetrack.
Crump, who passed away at age 77 on New Year’s Day this year, paved the way for a legion of women in future years.
Undaunted by the widespread hostility against her for breaking through the gate of the males-only occupation, she rode BRIDLE ‘N BIT in a race at Hialeah Park on February 7th, 1969.
BRIDLE N’ BIT finished 9th that day, but it didn’t matter where he finished in a field of 12.
What made that race so important in racing history is that after more than a century of resistance, a woman was finally able to perform a job restricted to men for so long.
In May of 1970, at 21 years of age Crump was the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby. She finished 15th that day on a horse named FATHOM, which is ironic in that it’s hard to fathom it took that long to break the gender barrier.
March is Women’s History Month in the United States, so what better time to salute one of racings’ true pioneers of the sport.
A tip of the cap and a wave of the crop to Diane Crump who braved a tough trip, stayed in the irons, and scored a tremendous victory for women’s rights.
