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Racing is a sport that can make dreams come true in a flash. And it can break your heart just as quickly. One day, you are at the top of your game—plenty of money, plenty of clients—the world is your oyster, as they say.
But if you are young and impetuous when all the fame and money comes your way, you may find yourself facing the best of times and the worst of times all at the same time.
Mark was an unlikely candidate to become a top jockey. In high school, football was his preference. He loved the game, but he was a little on the small side to be taken seriously. Mark kind of liked horses, and since so many folks had told him that because of his size he should become a jockey, he decided to pay a visit to the racetrack.
A country boy from Marion County, Kentucky, he ventured out to Keeneland one day and crossed paths with a lady by the name of Lee McKinney—a tough-as-nails, dyed-in-the-wool horsewoman.
Mark and Lee struck a deal. She would teach Mark how to ride, and while he was learning, he would work his keister off in her stable. It worked out well for both of them, and as fate would have it, Mark turned out to be a natural with horses. They liked him, and even more importantly, they ran for him.
And so began the rise of a young man’s star in the racing world. Winning an Eclipse Award as an apprentice jockey pretty much assures the recipient of getting plenty of really good mounts. Which in turn assures success. And prestige. And gobs of money.
And gobs of money, if you are not extremely mature (and who of us, being entirely honest, can say that in our youth we were?) can in turn make for some big problems.
Between hanging out with their agents after the races and being wined and dined by owners and trainers, there is ample opportunity for top jockeys to party.
For Mark, the growth spurt that he had wished for in high school that would have allowed him to pursue his dream of playing football unfortunately kicked in after he began riding. As is the case for so many jockeys, Mark’s weight became his mortal enemy.
There are two kinds of “flippers” on the racetrack. The horse kind is represented by The Unbelievable. They “flip” upside down in starting gates and trailers. The second kind, represented by many jockeys, binge eat and then vomit, or “flip.” Not a pretty thought, but extremely common in the Jock’s Room at any racetrack.
Although he was still expected to socialize with clients after the races, Mark was finding it harder and harder to sit through dinner without eating when he was ravenous, so he drank instead—rum and Diet Coke. And there was, of course, the abundance of the other kind of coke, which may solve the hunger problem but generally causes much bigger troubles from the standpoint of both addiction and finances.
Daily Notes: This scripture comes from 1 Timothy 6: 17-19:
Tell those rich in this world’s wealth to quit being so full of themselves and so obsessed with money, which is here today and gone tomorrow. Tell them to go after God, who piles on all the riches we could ever manage—to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they’ll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life.
The Message
Hmmm…money is here today and gone tomorrow is right—just look at what the stock market has done over the past couple of years and you have proof of that! I grew up with a dad that wanted for me what he called “security.” A steady job that would provide a good paycheck, regular raises, medical and dental insurance and a good retirement income.
Tell me, does that even exist anymore? I mean, it did back in his day. Unfortunately, even if it did still exist, as I’ve told you all before, I am afflicted with career A-D-D. And since it seems like our income is never, ever of the “steady” variety, when it does come in (usually in hunks at random times) I am prone to squirreling it away. My husband calls me a rat-holer. What I don’t have rat-holed away in a bank account, IRA or piece of property I have rat-holed away in some actual rat-hole-like spot in the house. I’m a never-put-all-your-eggs-in-one-basket kinda girl.
I am so very thankful that this blog project seems to be helping me learn to rely more on God than on myself to do the providing.
But if you are young and impetuous when all the fame and money comes your way, you may find yourself facing the best of times and the worst of times all at the same time.
Mark was an unlikely candidate to become a top jockey. In high school, football was his preference. He loved the game, but he was a little on the small side to be taken seriously. Mark kind of liked horses, and since so many folks had told him that because of his size he should become a jockey, he decided to pay a visit to the racetrack.
A country boy from Marion County, Kentucky, he ventured out to Keeneland one day and crossed paths with a lady by the name of Lee McKinney—a tough-as-nails, dyed-in-the-wool horsewoman.
Mark and Lee struck a deal. She would teach Mark how to ride, and while he was learning, he would work his keister off in her stable. It worked out well for both of them, and as fate would have it, Mark turned out to be a natural with horses. They liked him, and even more importantly, they ran for him.
And so began the rise of a young man’s star in the racing world. Winning an Eclipse Award as an apprentice jockey pretty much assures the recipient of getting plenty of really good mounts. Which in turn assures success. And prestige. And gobs of money.
And gobs of money, if you are not extremely mature (and who of us, being entirely honest, can say that in our youth we were?) can in turn make for some big problems.
Between hanging out with their agents after the races and being wined and dined by owners and trainers, there is ample opportunity for top jockeys to party.
For Mark, the growth spurt that he had wished for in high school that would have allowed him to pursue his dream of playing football unfortunately kicked in after he began riding. As is the case for so many jockeys, Mark’s weight became his mortal enemy.
There are two kinds of “flippers” on the racetrack. The horse kind is represented by The Unbelievable. They “flip” upside down in starting gates and trailers. The second kind, represented by many jockeys, binge eat and then vomit, or “flip.” Not a pretty thought, but extremely common in the Jock’s Room at any racetrack.
Although he was still expected to socialize with clients after the races, Mark was finding it harder and harder to sit through dinner without eating when he was ravenous, so he drank instead—rum and Diet Coke. And there was, of course, the abundance of the other kind of coke, which may solve the hunger problem but generally causes much bigger troubles from the standpoint of both addiction and finances.
Daily Notes: This scripture comes from 1 Timothy 6: 17-19:
Tell those rich in this world’s wealth to quit being so full of themselves and so obsessed with money, which is here today and gone tomorrow. Tell them to go after God, who piles on all the riches we could ever manage—to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they’ll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life.
The Message
Hmmm…money is here today and gone tomorrow is right—just look at what the stock market has done over the past couple of years and you have proof of that! I grew up with a dad that wanted for me what he called “security.” A steady job that would provide a good paycheck, regular raises, medical and dental insurance and a good retirement income.
Tell me, does that even exist anymore? I mean, it did back in his day. Unfortunately, even if it did still exist, as I’ve told you all before, I am afflicted with career A-D-D. And since it seems like our income is never, ever of the “steady” variety, when it does come in (usually in hunks at random times) I am prone to squirreling it away. My husband calls me a rat-holer. What I don’t have rat-holed away in a bank account, IRA or piece of property I have rat-holed away in some actual rat-hole-like spot in the house. I’m a never-put-all-your-eggs-in-one-basket kinda girl.
I am so very thankful that this blog project seems to be helping me learn to rely more on God than on myself to do the providing.
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