Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund

The ninth annual Jockeys and Jeans fundraiser for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF) will feature a live streamed speech from Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale, the Jockeys and Jeans Person of the Year. The speech will be broadcast from Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas this coming Saturday, June 24, at 8:30 p.m. PT/11:30 p.m. ET on the Jockeys and Jeans Facebook page. "Mattress Mack has always advocated for the safety of riders and horses and is one of very few who understands horse racing from the perspective of an owner,...

Hall of Fame riders Sandy Hawley, Chris McCarron, Mike Smith and John Velazquez, among many others, will team with FanDuel TV, the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA), Keeneland and Santa Anita on Sunday, Apr. 23rd for the fifth annual telethon to raise money for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), presented by Lane's End. The event will be broadcast on both FanDuel TV and America's Day at the Races in collaboration with NYRA and FOX Sports as well as livestreamed. Fans can participate by calling 1-844-884-7353 between 12:00 p.m....

Turfway Park and Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment have announced an extension to their partnership and will remain the presenting sponsor of the $700,000 GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks for an additional five years. Since 2018, Jeff Ruby has been the presenting sponsor of the Jeff Ruby Steaks. The race annually serves as a major steppingstone on the Road to the Kentucky Derby and produced last year's winner of the GI Kentucky Derby, Rich Strike. This year's 52nd running of the 1 1/8-mile event will take place Saturday, Mar. 25. "Turfway Park...

Tracks across the country will hold a moment of silence Feb. 18 in memory of the late jockey Avery Whisman. The Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund, in coordination with racetracks across the country, is leading the initiative in an effort to shed light on mental health awareness and the challenges jockeys face. Jockeys at all participating tracks will wear black armbands in tribute to Whisman, who died suddenly Jan. 11 at the age of 23 following a prolonged struggle with the physical and mental demands placed on riders. The 1/ST properties:...

After a two-year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Santa Anita's 53rd annual Charity Basketball Game versus Holy Angels Middle School will return to La Salle High School in Pasadena Thursday, Feb. 16. A distinguished group of Hall of Fame Jockeys will be on-hand beginning at 6:30 p.m. to sign posters and other memorabilia in the La Salle gym. Retired legends Laffit Pincay, Jr. and Gary Stevens will be available, as well as active Hall of Famers Kent Desormeaux, Victor Espinoza, Mike Smith and John Velazquez. Admission to the game...

The seventh annual sale of stallion breeding seasons--which ended Jan. 25 to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund--raised $112,050 compared to $72,500 in 2022. The sale marked revenue increases in both the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse stallion seasons with increases more pronounced in the Quarter Horse breeding industry, accounting for $71,500 of the total proceeds. The seasons were donated by breeders in six states, including several leading farms in Central Kentucky. To date, the sale has raised over $600,000 for the PDJF. "The season donors as well as the buyers...

Jockey Avery Whisman, who rode in the Mid-Atlantic region after beginning his career in 2018, passed away Wednesday at the age of 23 after what his family described as a "prolonged illness." He was at his parents' home in Versailles, Kentucky at the time of his passing. Whisman had not ridden since accepting mounts Aug. 23 at Presque Isle Downs. Though Whisman had been ill, his mother, Salli, described his passing as "a sudden an unexcepted event." "He absolutely loved the sport," Salli Whisman said. "He was an incredible horseman....

Bidding opens for the Jockey and Jeans Stallion Season Sale, benefitting the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund, on Tuesday Jan. 10 at 9 am ET and ends Thursday, Jan. 12 at 9 pm ET with a preview beginning Jan. 9. The sale features over 70 stallions from Kentucky, Pennsylvania, New York, California, Texas and Oklahoma and has raised over $500,000 for the PDJF to date. "Big farm or small, we thank them all," said Jockeys and Jeans President Barry Pearl. "There are many other valuable seasons and one for every pocketbook....

Bidding for the seventh Jockeys and Jeans Great American Stallion Season Sale to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund opens Jan. 10 at 9 a.m. ET with an offering of non-guaranteed Thoroughbred seasons on Starquine.com. Bidding ends Jan.12 at 9 p.m. The auction's preview starts Jan. 9. Bidding on Quarter Horse seasons begins Jan. 24 at 9 a.m. ET and ends Jan. 26 at 9 p.m. The preview starts Jan. 23. Since the all-volunteer Jockeys and Jeans was founded by a group of former jockeys in late 2014, it has...

The seventh Jockeys and Jeans Great American Stallion Season Sale to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund will be previewed on Starquine.com Jan. 9, with bidding beginning at 9 a.m. Jan. 10 and concluding 9 p.m. on Jan. 12. The sale includes both Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse stallions based in states including Kentucky, Florida, New York, California, and Texas. "Sadly, career-ending injuries happen to jockeys in both industries and this is a great example of the two coming together in a meaningful way to provide funding for those whose lives...

Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course will host its third annual fundraising event for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund Saturday, Oct. 29. This year's event will hold a new name, Jockey Jam, and see the addition of a karaoke dinner fundraising event, Jockey Jamboree, to be held Friday, Oct. 28. "The mission statement behind the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund is one of importance to us and the racing community here at Mahoning Valley Race Course," said Rob Swedinovich, Vice President and General Manager. In the events two previous additions,...

'Hats and halters,' an online auction in which racing fans will have an opportunity to bid on and win halters and hats of this year's GI Breeders' Cup Classic entrants, will raise funds for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF) and The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation. The fundraiser opened Oct. 25 and runs through Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. ET. The auction winner of each halter gets a meet and greet with the horse by January 2023, and if they select the halter of the Classic winner, they receive...