Shane Sellers
Encyclopedia
Shane Jude Sellers is an American
Thoroughbred
horse racing
jockey
. At age eleven, he began working around horses and in 1983 rode his first winner at Evangeline Downs
.
Sellers won several national riding championships and was a leading rider at Arlington Park
. Over his career, he rode in the Kentucky Derby
14 consecutive times, with his best finish a third with Wild Gale in 1993. The two took third again that year in the Belmont Stakes
.
He rode 29 thoroughbred
s in the Breeders Cup races, with two wins in 1997 and 1998, however one of his most exciting wins had to be his ride of Skip Away
over the great Cigar
in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
in 1996.
During his career Shane Sellers won more than 4,000 races and earned purses worth more than $122 million.
, starting in 2004. They sued on First Amendment
grounds, to be allowed to wear ad patches during the race. The ruling was issued on April 21, 2004, by U.S. District Judge John Heyburn in Louisville
.
The patches, worth approximately $30,000 apiece, were legal in other Triple Crown
states of New York
and Maryland
, but were argued by The Kentucky Horse Racing Authority that they might lead to corruption and violated racing tradition.
The other jockeys included Jerry Bailey
, John Velazquez, Gary Stevens, and Jose Santos
.
being provided to jockeys. He returned to the track in 2002, racing until his retirement in late December, 2004.
. His first single for the label, "Matthew, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt," peaked at number 58 on the Billboard
Hot Country Singles & Tracks
chart in May 2001. He released an album, also titled Matthew, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt, on Lofton Creek Records
in 2003.
, was featured in the 2004 HBO documentary film
titled Jockey. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390144/ Directed by Kate Davis, it told the story of their problems resulting from racing injuries and the effects of constant crash diet
ing to maintain racing weight. In 2005, Shane Sellers also appeared on CNN
in a special with Paula Zahn to speak out about the serious health problems many jockeys experience as a result of the current weight limits.
He is currently out of retirement and back racing.
. He still lobbies racing authorities and others involved in the sport to raise jockey weight limits and improve the quality of horse racing for everyone involved in the industry.
Renowned jockey, Shane Sellers is set to make his return to racing on July 2, 2009 after a four and half year hiatus from the sport. He will be riding Ide Ball – trainer Mark Guidry – in the first race at Evangeline Downs Racetrack & Casino. The 42 year old Erath, LA native jockey retired from racing on December 15, 2004 after amassing 4,069 wins and riding earners of nearly $130 million. He is best known for his memorable ride of Skip Away over the great Cigar in the Jockey Club Gold Cup in 1996 and his Breeder’s cup wins aboard Buck’s Boy and Countess Diana along with his 14 year consecutive streak of having Kentucky Derby mounts. His best finish in that Classic was a third with Wild Gale in 1993. The two took third again that year in the Belmont Stakes.
Sellers was one of the first top jockeys to wear advertising on their silks and was an advocate for better pay, health insurance, and weight issues for riders. His intentions for coming out of retirement are signified by his return to the south Louisiana track. According to Mr. Sellers, “It’s no secret to why I’ve decided to come back and why I decided to come back to Evangeline. I rode my first winner here in 1983, and it’s time for me to get back to my roots and what I love. I still believe in what I was fighting for back then, but over time I realized that my method or message was not always delivered in a respectable way. If I offended anyone, I apologize and want everyone to know that I am through with all of those causes. With my renewed commitment to God and my family, I just want to continue to do what I know and love – that’s ride. I am so thankful for the open armed response that I have received on my comeback and look forward to rekindling old friendships and relationships.”
Sellers will be represented by agent, Anthony Martin, and plans on finishing the meet at Evangeline Downs before moving his tack to Louisiana Downs and the Fairgrounds. Sellers currently resides in Lafayette, LA with his wife Kelli and children Shali Rae, Saban and Steiner.
in which he discusses his fights for higher jockey weights, better health insurance, and endorsements, along with the aftermath of his retirement. Freedom's Rein is expected to be released in Spring 2008.
|-
!Chart (2000–present)
!Peak
position
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2000
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2003
| style="text-align:center;"|28
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2004
| style="text-align:center;"|27
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
. At age eleven, he began working around horses and in 1983 rode his first winner at Evangeline Downs
Evangeline Downs
Evangeline Downs is an American race track and casino located in St. Landry Parish, just east of Opelousas, Louisiana. With a seven furlong oval track, the facility provides close to 1,000 horse stalls for Thoroughbred flat racing and American Quarter Horse racing...
.
Sellers won several national riding championships and was a leading rider at Arlington Park
Arlington Park
Arlington Park is a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago region has been a popular sport since the early days of the city in the 1830s, and at one time Chicago had more horse racing tracks than any other major metropolitan area...
. Over his career, he rode in the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
14 consecutive times, with his best finish a third with Wild Gale in 1993. The two took third again that year in the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
.
He rode 29 thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
s in the Breeders Cup races, with two wins in 1997 and 1998, however one of his most exciting wins had to be his ride of Skip Away
Skip Away
Skip Away , a gray Thoroughbred race horse, was named America's Champion 3 Year Old Male in 1996 and twice named America's Champion Handicap Horse...
over the great Cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
Jockey Club Gold Cup
The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a prestigious thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It is typically the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the spring meeting and the Travers Stakes is of the...
in 1996.
During his career Shane Sellers won more than 4,000 races and earned purses worth more than $122 million.
Advertising controversy
Shane Sellers was also one of the first of five top jockeys to wear advertising patches in the Kentucky DerbyKentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
, starting in 2004. They sued on First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
grounds, to be allowed to wear ad patches during the race. The ruling was issued on April 21, 2004, by U.S. District Judge John Heyburn in Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
The patches, worth approximately $30,000 apiece, were legal in other Triple Crown
United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
In the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.While Daily Racing Form...
states of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, but were argued by The Kentucky Horse Racing Authority that they might lead to corruption and violated racing tradition.
The other jockeys included Jerry Bailey
Jerry Bailey
Jerry D. Bailey is a retired American Hall of Fame jockey. He began his racing career in November 1974. His first mount was on a horse named Pegged Rate, who ran off the board. He notched his first career win the next day on his second career mount, Fetch, at New Mexico's Sunland Park, and has...
, John Velazquez, Gary Stevens, and Jose Santos
José Santos
Jose Abon Santos is a retired Chilean thoroughbred jockey who has been honored by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in the United States.-Career:...
.
Retirement
A serious knee injury in December 2000 kept Sellers out of racing for a year and a half. His experience led him to become an outspoken critic of the lack of proper health insuranceHealth insurance
Health insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...
being provided to jockeys. He returned to the track in 2002, racing until his retirement in late December, 2004.
Music career
In 2001, Sellers was signed to DreamWorks NashvilleDreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records was an American record label. Founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks SKG, the label operated until 2005 when it was shut down...
. His first single for the label, "Matthew, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt," peaked at number 58 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Hot Country Singles & Tracks
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart in May 2001. He released an album, also titled Matthew, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt, on Lofton Creek Records
Lofton Creek Records
Lofton Creek Records is an United States country music record label launched in 2002 by Harold and Vicky Shafer, along with Mike and Martha Borchetta. The label is based in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2003, they also distributed the Big Al label, which was founded by country singer J...
in 2003.
Jockey
Sellers, along with fellow jockey Randy RomeroRandy Romero
Randy Paul Romero is a Hall of Fame jockey in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing, Born into a family involved with horses, his father Lloyd J...
, was featured in the 2004 HBO documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
titled Jockey. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390144/ Directed by Kate Davis, it told the story of their problems resulting from racing injuries and the effects of constant crash diet
Crash diet
A crash diet is a diet which is extreme in its nutritional deprivations, typically severely restricting calorie intake. It is meant to achieve rapid weight loss and may differ from outright starvation only slightly. It is not meant to last for long periods of time, at most a few weeks. ...
ing to maintain racing weight. In 2005, Shane Sellers also appeared on CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
in a special with Paula Zahn to speak out about the serious health problems many jockeys experience as a result of the current weight limits.
He is currently out of retirement and back racing.
Sellers Today
Sellers currently owns and trains horses at his farm in Broussard, LouisianaBroussard, Louisiana
Broussard is a small city in Lafayette and St. Martin parishes in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The population was 6,754 from the 2005 Census Est.Broussard is part of the Lafayette Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. He still lobbies racing authorities and others involved in the sport to raise jockey weight limits and improve the quality of horse racing for everyone involved in the industry.
Renowned jockey, Shane Sellers is set to make his return to racing on July 2, 2009 after a four and half year hiatus from the sport. He will be riding Ide Ball – trainer Mark Guidry – in the first race at Evangeline Downs Racetrack & Casino. The 42 year old Erath, LA native jockey retired from racing on December 15, 2004 after amassing 4,069 wins and riding earners of nearly $130 million. He is best known for his memorable ride of Skip Away over the great Cigar in the Jockey Club Gold Cup in 1996 and his Breeder’s cup wins aboard Buck’s Boy and Countess Diana along with his 14 year consecutive streak of having Kentucky Derby mounts. His best finish in that Classic was a third with Wild Gale in 1993. The two took third again that year in the Belmont Stakes.
Sellers was one of the first top jockeys to wear advertising on their silks and was an advocate for better pay, health insurance, and weight issues for riders. His intentions for coming out of retirement are signified by his return to the south Louisiana track. According to Mr. Sellers, “It’s no secret to why I’ve decided to come back and why I decided to come back to Evangeline. I rode my first winner here in 1983, and it’s time for me to get back to my roots and what I love. I still believe in what I was fighting for back then, but over time I realized that my method or message was not always delivered in a respectable way. If I offended anyone, I apologize and want everyone to know that I am through with all of those causes. With my renewed commitment to God and my family, I just want to continue to do what I know and love – that’s ride. I am so thankful for the open armed response that I have received on my comeback and look forward to rekindling old friendships and relationships.”
Sellers will be represented by agent, Anthony Martin, and plans on finishing the meet at Evangeline Downs before moving his tack to Louisiana Downs and the Fairgrounds. Sellers currently resides in Lafayette, LA with his wife Kelli and children Shali Rae, Saban and Steiner.
Freedom's Rein
Sellers is currently co-writing an autobiography with Tricia PsarreasTricia Psarreas
Tricia Psarreas is an author and owner of a freelance writing company. Her first book, Freedom's Rein, was published in 2008.-Biography:...
in which he discusses his fights for higher jockey weights, better health insurance, and endorsements, along with the aftermath of his retirement. Freedom's Rein is expected to be released in Spring 2008.
Albums
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Matthew, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt |
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
|||
| 2001 | "Matthews, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt" | 58 | Matthews, Mark, Luke and Earnhardt |
| 2003 | "Back to Riding Rainbows" | — | |
| "There's a Song on the Jukebox" | — | ||
| 2004 | "You Can't Count Me Out Yet" | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
External links
- CNN interview December 23, 2005 with Shane Sellers
- Shane Sellers at the National Thoroughbred Racing Association
- Kate Davis and "Jockey" documentary for HBO
- USA Today Derby Jockeys Can Wear Ads
Year-end charts
{|class="wikitable sortable"|-
!Chart (2000–present)
!Peak
position
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2000
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2003
| style="text-align:center;"|28
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2004
| style="text-align:center;"|27