Winning Ponies" Interview with Ed Meyer

"Winning Ponies" Interview with Ed Meyer

Written by Ed Meyer

Tuesday, 04 August 2009 22:21

"Winning Ponies" Welcomes Jockey Rosemary Homeister

Rosemary Homeister is closing in on being the second all-time leading woman rider.

Homeister, one of Tampa Bay Downs' top riders, has won an Eclipse Award and ridden in a Kentucky Derby.

Today, the 36-year-old Hollywood, Fla. native recalls that she got the itch to be a jockey at tender age of 2.

It has been a historic career for Homeister, among her many achievements:

Dec. 18, she scored her 2,000th career win.
First female to win an Eclipse Award for outstanding aprentice rider (1992)
Twice-leading female winner in the nation (2000-01).
First jockey to receive the Babe Didrikson Zaharias Award for courage (2003) and induction into the Calder Race Course Hall of Fame at Miami Gardens (2006).
In 2003, Homeister became the fifth female to ride in the Kentucky Derby. Her mount, Supah Blitz, finished 13th to Funny Cide.

She ranks third all time in victories by a female, behind Julie Krone (3,704) and Patti Cooksey (2,137).

Rosemary had family support from the start. Her father, James, was a jockey who died when she was 12. "He won 500 races, and I have all of his win pictures," Homeister said. Her mother, Rosemary Sr., also was a jockey who now trains at Calder. Grandparents Frank and Phyllis Sangi, New Jersey residents, watch her races via simulcast at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford. "I love my grandparents," she said. "My grandfather is 91, and he's my biggest fan. I blow him a kiss to the camera every time I win."

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