Marlene Wagman-Geller

Sep 06, 2024 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

 

     Since the dawn of civilization, there has always existed a bond between man and horse: the ancient Greeks and the centaur, Emperor Caligula and Incitatus, the Confederate Generals and their steeds. A magical connection also exists between a woman and a horse as illustrated by the life of Diane Crump, the first female jockey to compete in the Kentucky Derby. 

       An iconoclastic photograph from 1968 captured the image of American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raising their fists in the Black Power salute at the Mexican Olympics.  The following year another sports photograph portrayed an act of feminine protest: an armed escort protecting a teenaged jockey from hundreds of hostile hecklers. 

      In any of today’s racetracks, a female astride a horse would not raise an eyebrow. Women have been triumphant in Triple Crown events, Breeders Cup races, and the Pacific Classic. However, if we were to turn back the hands of the clock to the 1960s, the track was a testosterone only zone. In the waning year of the decade, a young woman held her ground in the face of gender prejudice and paved a path for future female jockeys.  

    Diane Crump was born in 1948 in Connecticut on the Long Island Sound; her passion for ponies ignited at age four when her parents took her to a carnival, and she first sat in a saddle. She devoured books such as The Black Stallion, My Friend Flicka, and Black Beauty. While for other girls, horses serve as the period between toys and boys, the four-footed remained her passion. At age twelve, Diane moved to Oldsmar, Florida, where her father opened a marina. Yet, it was not the sound of the sea that provided Diane’s siren call; rather, it was the stables of nearby horse haven Tampa Bay Downs. A year later she took riding lessons, and her parents arranged for the arrival of horses Buckshot, Patches, and Lulu. She rode through orange groves, watermelon patches and into the bay. In her early teens, she helped out at Lake Magdalene Farm, caring for foals and conditioning yearlings to be comfortable with a person onboard. In 1964, she developed her galloping skills and worked at a stable at Gulfstream Park. She remarked of her job, “There’s nothing I didn’t do. It wasn’t like I was some pansyass.” The non-silver lining that hovered overhead was the realization a woman had as much chance of competing in thoroughbred racing as she did of fighting alongside men in the jungles of Vietnam.  

    The paradigm shifted in 1967 when a trio of women felt they had the right to infiltrate the band of brothers. The first of these was the United States Equestrian Team rider Kathy Kusner who applied for a Maryland jockey’s license only to have officials deny her request. A year later, a judge, citing the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ruled that the Maryland Racing Commission certify Kusner. A tumble from her horse that resulted in a broken tibia ended her aspiration. In the last months of 1968, Penny Ann Early was set to ride at Churchill Downs; however, male jockeys were so incensed they threatened to boycott if a woman were of their number. The “jockettes,” as they were patronizingly termed, endured stones thrown at their trailers; one returned home to a hatchet embedded in her door. Crump recalled of those not so glorious days, “People were saying we weren’t strong enough or smart enough to ride. They thought it would be dangerous for other people to ride against us because we wouldn’t know what to do under pressure.” Next was Barbara Jo Rubin’s turn, but the jockeys at Tropical Park in Florida also threated a walkout, and a male replaced her. Nick Jemas, director of the Jockey’s Guild, proved a vocal detractor. He conceded that Crump was “the best of the lot” but insisted she would be a distraction to the male jockeys. Vitriol streamed from the jockeys: “What’s next? Topless go-go riders?” “Boycott the Broads.” Breaking into the Race of Kings was no easy ride.

         A hope of leveling the track playing field occurred at Florida’s Hialeah Park when female trainer Mary Kleim named Crump as the candidate to ride a filly named Merr E. Indian. She told reporters, “Diane is cool and she’s smart and I think she’ll make as good a rider as any boy.” However, Merr E. Indian was not chosen to compete; Diane was forced to wait.

      At the same period, officials had grown weary over the furor of a woman’s participation. The Florida Racing Commission convened and stated it would stiffen penalties against jockeys who refused to ride. One supervisor issued the warning, “If the jockeys back out now, God help them.”

      Early in February, Crump learned that her first race would be on a 54-1 longshot named Bridle ‘N Bit, and in preparation, Ms. Crump borrowed a saddle from friend Tom Calumet. The horse’s trainer stated his wife Catherine, Bridle ‘N Bit’s owner, made her demand clear, “Put the girl on or I’ll get another trainer.” A newspaper article snidely asked if “the willowy blonde jockette would be able to keep her powder dry.” Diane responded that the only powder she wore was mud that clung to her face from the track.

      In 1969, man landed on the moon, and in the same year, a woman debuted as a professional jockey. When the big day arrived, some riders chose to drop out and were immediately replaced. Diane put on her red-and-white-silks in the Horseman’s Benevolent and Protective Association office, rather than the jockey’s room, for obvious reasons. In the paddock, those in Camp Crump applauded while her detractors booed, catcalled, shouted sexist slogans.

      Despite boycotts, hecklers, and a cynical public, Crump joined the pantheon of women trailblazers to become the first jockey to ride in an American pari-mutuel race at Hialeah. The petite teenager with curly brown hair was in the midst of a crowd of 5,000 vying for a look at the woman attempting to challenge the tradition of thoroughbred racing. She encountered a barrage of flashbulbs and mayhem and recalled of the event, “The hecklers were yelling, ‘Go back to the kitchen and cook dinner.’ That was the mentality at the time. They thought I was going to be the downfall of the whole sport, which is such a medieval thought. I was like, ‘Come on people, this is the 1960s!’”  

          News of Diane’s inclusion caused a flurry of protest. “A gal in the Derby? Next thing you know they’ll be playing second base for the Dodgers,” wrote one reporter. Jeff Lehman of Grand Rapids, Michigan, said her presence “took a lot of tradition out of the Derby.”  A further affront was hardly anybody placed a bet on Fathom, the horse Diane had ridden since he was a yearling, because a girl would be on the saddle. Willow Abraham of Louisville, walking away from an advance Derby window, groused, “I just won’t bet on her. It’s just not right.” In contrast, Crump had earned the grudging respect of her fellow jockeys. Diane also had support from her father and sister who had accompanied her as well as the long-distance well-wishes of her soldier brother, Bert. In Vietnam, he and his buddies were glued to the radio, cheering her on from Southeast Asia.

         Instead of the traditional “Boots and Saddles” call to post, the bugler played “Smile for Me, My Diane.” A bystander yelled to jockeys as the horses filed through the tunnel on the way to the track, “Remember, ladies first!” And then they were off.

     The contemporary centaurs flew by in a flash of silk and horseflesh with Diane in the rear. When they approached the final stretch, Bridle ‘N Bit and Crump thundered by the last two horses to finish 10^th of 12. She said of her groundbreaking ride, “I think I did okay for the first time. Beat two horses.” A photograph from the day she had her date with her destiny showed Crump’s elated, dirt-encrusted face. When Crump returned to the post, and the audience saw that the Florida sky had not fallen- in Chicken-Little fashion- the cheers outweighed the jeers. The walls of male exclusiveness-like those of Jericho-came tumbling down.

      The anthem of the decade was Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are a-Changin,” lyrics that proved prescient in 1970 in the Bluegrass State. Meriwether Lewis, Jr. (grandson of the famous explorer) established the classic in 1875 as an American counterpart to the British Epsom Downs. The Kentucky Derby evolved into the crown jewel of thoroughbred racing, celebrated with its signature drink of mint julep, outlandish hats and blanket of 400 roses The Derby also achieved notoriety when the 21-year-old Diane Crump became the first woman to ride in what is known as “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports.”  

       In the first Kentucky Derby, all the jockeys were African-American males with one lone white man; in 1970, all the jockeys were male with one lone female. Her fellow rider was Hall-of Fame big-wig Bill Shoemaker; in the crowd was journalist Hunter S. Thompson. In a nod to tradition, the bugler played the plaintiff notes of Stephen Foster’s “My Old Kentucky Home.”

     Millions watched on television and thousands from the stands as Diane Crump proved thoroughbred racing was also the Sport of Queens. Once again Diane beat two horses when Fathom finished 15 out of 17.

    Diane’s burgeoning career took her to competitions around the world, and Puerto Rico proved a singular experience. She was in the lead when the jockey behind her grabbed on to her saddle, granting him a free ride, something he could get away with before the scrutiny of sporting event cameras. Crump proved she was no “pansyass” when she whacked him with her stick. He ended up the winner; however, when he exited the track, the female spectators pelted him with tomatoes, eggs, and other various projectiles.

    Diane married her trainer, Don Divine; despite the perk of the alliterative name and its celestial connotation, the marriage did not make it to the finish line. However, it did produce a daughter and three grandchildren. She continued with her first love; tragically, a riding accident left her bedbound for months. Her horse had fallen backwards, and the incident resulted in a severely broken leg. Crump currently resides in Linden, Virginia, where she owns a horse sales company. Reflecting on her life, she stated, “I’ve never won the Derby. I never made much money. But I always lived my dream.”

     In the 144 years of the Kentucky Derby, a female jockey has yet to win the Tournament of the Roses, although three fillies proved victorious: Regret, Genuine Risk, and Winning Colors. What remains a source of pride for Diane is other female riders have followed in her tracks. Diane said of her contribution, “I like to think I was a little footprint on the path to equality.”

       

 

 

Prev Next