Female jockey Julie Krone is a “Freak”

I was delighted to read that award-winning filmmaker Katherine Brooks (”Loving Annabelle,” 2006, and “Waking Madison,” 2009) is making a film based on legendary female jockey Julie Krone.  The film is called “Freak,” which refers to a racing term for horses who win over and over, even when they shouldn’t.

When it comes to horses, Krone is indeed a freak of nature. The film is an adaptation of her autobiography, “Riding for My Life”, which chronicles her rise to fame and unparalleled success as a jockey. A vivid look at the world of horse racing, “Freak” aims to explore one woman’s battle against sexual inequality in a classic tale of an underdog’s passage toward victory.

Dubbed the winningest female jockey in history, Krone is the only woman to be inducted into thoroughbred racing’s Hall of Fame.  She won 3,704 professional races, totaling over $90 million in prize money.

Krone is still the only woman to have won a Triple Crown race, flying across the finish line atop Colonial Affair in the 125th running of the Belmont Stakes in 1993. She’s also the only woman to ever compete at Belmont, where she raced on five occasions.

To achieve success, however, Krone had to overcome fierce obstacles. During her career,  Krone faced intense chauvinism in additon to suffering major injuries, including six fractures in her vertebrae, broken hands and cracked ribs.

For a long time, women didn’t even have the option of competing professionally because they weren’t legally allowed to ride at a track.  It wasn’t until 1968 that women were finally allowed to race, but they were prevented from doing so when male jockeys threatened to boycott the races.

Following in the footsteps of a handful of women before her, including Diana Crump who became the first woman to race professionally, Krone blazed her way to success. It wasn’t easy making a mark in the male-dominated “Sport of Kings” and for a long time no one took the petite (4′ 11”)  blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl seriously.

When a guy slashed Krone’s ear with a whip, she broke his nose. When people called her names, she looked the other way.  To the world, she was fearless. But inside, she was alone. The hardship fueled her desire to succeed even more. “Freak” is Krone’s heartfelt story.

According to IMDB, Brooks was initially against adapting Freak because she is a PETA member and spent much of her life rescuing injured horses off the track. It wasn’t until she met Krone and read her auto-biography, that she felt she could focus more on the intimate struggles of the character than the sport of racing. This is clearly a multi-layered story which promises lots of action and drama.

“Freak”, scheduled to shoot on location  in New York and Louisiana, is being produced by Sophie Watts of Gravity Films with an anticipated release around spring 2011. You can follow the progress via the film’s Facebook page or Twitter.

Official Website

Fashionable Filly: Rachel Alexandra poses for Vogue

It was just announced that Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra will NOT run in the June 6th Belmont Stakes. The first filly to win the Preakness in 85 years, Rachel Alexandra delivered a brilliant effort on May 16 to win the second leg of the of the Triple Crown series. She will be taking a “well deserved vacation” said her owner.

But don’t worry about Rachel Alexandra. The fashionable filly just posed for a photo spread in Vogue.

Pictures of the Preakness-winning filly were shot Friday by fashion photographer Steven Klein for the magazine’s August issue.

Rachel Alexandra had to be awakened in her stall at Churchill Downs when it was time for her star turn.

“Done photo shoots before, but first one for Vogue,” said Scott Blasi, assistant to trainer Steve Asmussen who held the shank on the filly during the session.

The magazine spread grew out of a trip to the Preakness by Vogue editor Anna Wintour.

“She was there at the Preakness and was inspired, like so many other women were,” said Caroline Shaw, a spokeswoman for Jess Jackson, the filly’s majority owner.

There was no such star treatment for Mine That Bird. The Kentucky Derby winner and Preakness runner-up quietly galloped twice around the track sans photographers. Maybe GQ will want to do a spread.

Eight Belles takes on the boys

May 2, 2008 – The Kentucky Derby, set to go on Saturday, will play host to  the best filly in the land, Eight Belles, who will take on the colts in the mile-and-a quarter classic. Suddenly, the run for the roses has a whole new look- with the distinct possibility of making history. Will she be the belle of the ball?

Only three fillies have won the Derby in its 134-year history. The first was Regret in 1915, the second was Genuine Risk in 1980 and the latest heroine, Winning Colors, scored 20 years ago in 1988. Thirty-five other fillies have tried to win the Derby and failed.

Entering a filly in America’s greatest horse race is, of itself, no small deal. The Kentucky Derby is loaded with tradition, part of which dictates that usually only colts run in America’s greatest race. The fillies have their own showcase on Derby eve, the Kentucky Oaks.

What makes Eight Belles’ appearance special and exciting is that she has a bright chance of winning. She has the speed, the performance, the staying pedigree and the massive frame to clobber colts.

And as if that were not enough, Eight Belles comes from the same owner, Rick Porter, and the same trainer, Larry Jones, who put the buzz in last year’s Triple Crown with their terrific speedster Hard Spun, who finished second in the Derby, third in the Preakness and fourth in the Belmont.

Jones made no secret of why he wants to tackle the Derby with Eight Belles. “All the boys are vulnerable,” he said. “There isn’t one that sticks out above the others. Every one of them is being asked to do something they have not done before.”

Eight Belles, who will be ridden by Gabriel Saez, a gifted 20-year-old Panamanian making his Derby debut as well, has won her last four races. She won those races, including the Honeybee and the Fantasy at Oaklawn Park, by a combined 30½ lengths. She has a perfect running style for the Derby, a stalker who sits just off the leaders. The filly turned in Sunday’s second-fastest workout, running 5 furlongs in 58.20 on the dirt at Churchill Downs.

A little girl power mixed with a great underdog story. Watch out boys!

Editors Note: On Derby Day, Eight Belles did  hang with the boys.  She ran the race of her life but all that heart and her gallant fight, which ended with a second place finish, ended in the worst possible way:  two broken ankles and no other choice but euthanization. RIP Eight Belles.