True Winning Colors

In a world that is dominated by males,
Females are given so little of a chance,
To prove that they are able to play with the best,
And that they can dance the dance.

Thoroughbred racing is a sport dominated by the colts,
Who are often blessed with more God-given speed,
But a gray filly born in 1985,
Gave the girls exactly what they would need.

Winning Colors showed horse racing lovers,
That fillies can win against the best, too,
Proving again the point that Ruffian had made,
And that later Go For Wand would do.

Humiliating those whom would dare oppose the Queen,
In 1988, Winning Colors stormed through her races,
Then trounced the field in the Santa Anita Derby,
The whole time running at smooth, relaxed paces.

At the start of the Kentucky Derby,
Winning Colors broke clean and calm,
Waiting for her jockey Gary Stevens,
For the signal to pour the speed on.

Down the final stretch the Derby field came,
When Winning Colors put on a deadly burst,
Of speed that would bring this filly,
Across the legendary finish line first.

She showed her true Winning Colors,
And beat the colts at their own game,
Earning herself the title of greatness,
And Kentucky Derby fame.

Winning Colors was put on the Earth,
To show that all girls, too,
Can succeed at the things that matter to them most,
Including me and you.

By,
Jackie Mitchell

Man o' War

Spindly legs sprinting through the grass for fun,
This little chestnut foal was racing against the wind,
Because he loved to run.

Racing was what he was bred to do,
The racetrack was his fate,
But this little colt looked forward to his future,
Because running was something he could never learn to hate.

He was known around the barn as Big Red,
And not just because of his sheer size,
But also because his chestnut coat shone with health,
And there was the look of a winner in his eyes.

He loved to give his handlers a problem,
Put up a fuss when being saddled, everyday,
Readying him for his races was a task,
Because this colt just wanted to play.

But his manner changed, as he stepped onto the track,
Head held high and proud, ears swiveling back and forth,
Nobely arching his back.

He became a champion of Thoroughbred racing,
Winning nearly every race by a colossal span,
And some still consider themselves blessed,
To be at the tracks where this colt once ran.

No Thoroughbred is greater than him now,
Or ever was before,
Because this once little colt,
With the once long spindly legs,
Is none other than Man o' War.

By,
Jackie Mitchell

The Great Jockey

Head up, shoulder's back,
That is the way that jockey's ride
on the track
Crouched low on the horse,
with the cool wind stinging your face,
there is only one thing you crave;
and that is to win the race.
The horses powerful muscles
bunching under you as they run,
the sturdy horse beneath you won't
slow down until the match is done.
As a fellow horsewoman myself,
I'll give you this one tip:
Great jockey's use their voices,
Desperate one's use their wips.
While waiting in the gate, if your
mount feels like he's taking a snooze,
Wake him up with a nice, firm word,
and with THAT advice, you can't lose,
As a great rider once upon a time told me,
When it comes to horses you get less
with vinegar than honey, afterall
Sugar and Spice DO make everything nice.

You may never ride a horse like Seattle Slew,
to Triple Crown fame,
But the horse who wins claiming race
with you on his back,
It's worth it for you to remember his name,
He ran out his heart for you, and in the end he won,
He kept on running and didn't slow down until the race was done.
Whether your riding a colt, filly,
gelding, a stallion or a mare,
Every one of those horses contains the heart to win,
Just work as a team, and you
will come out on top, I swear
Stakes horses, allowance horses,
claiming horses too,
Each one has two goals,
To win the race for themelves, and to win it for you.
So next time that horse your riding
comes in second place or even third,
He deserves a juicy carrot, even one or two kind words,

Great jockey's use their voices,
Desperate one's use their wips,
it's amazing that the great jockey's
get results not by using crops
but by using their lips.

By,
Jackie Mitchell