When the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame came calling last week, Eddie Maple gladly picked up the phone. But even if he hadn't been welcomed into that select group of company the 61-year-old Carrollton, Ohio, native would've gone about the business to which he's attended for nearly a half century -- simply being around horses.
But Maple has done more than just hang out around horses. As a jockey he competed in more than 32,000 races, winning 4,398. He totaled winnings in excess of $105 million, claiming victories at the Belmont Stakes on Temperence Hill and Creme Fraiche. Oh, and he happened to be in the saddle when Secretariat won the 1973 Canadian International, the legendary horse's final race.
Maple retired from jockeying in 1998 and now runs the equestrian center at Rose Hill. The Island Packet/Beaufort Gazette recently chatted with him about what it's like to be a hall of famer and if he was able to walk away from racing in one piece-- while also trying to get a tip for next week's Kentucky Derby.
Q: It must be pretty special that people in horse racing remember you, right?
A: Yeah. It's been almost 11 years now since I retired. I'm still in the thick of things. I'm really in the thick of things now.
Q: I'd say you're not the retiring kind. Would that be correct?
A: No. No, I'm not.
Q: How did you get into horse racing?
A: I took a job as a young boy at 12 years old in Ohio, just helping out on a thoroughbred farm. I just kind of asked if the guy could possibly teach me how to ride. I went to school on his farm, and after spending a couple of years there I went to the racetrack in the summertime to work. And when I was 17 I entered my first professional race.
Q: How did that work out for you?
A: I finished fourth. It went well. But that was as good as we could muster.
Q: What race was that?
A: It was just a little small race. You have to remember this was November 1965 at a very small racetrack in Charlestown, W.Va. The fellow I was racing with, he had good horses for around that area, but nothing he could've come to New York or anywhere like that with.
Q: What's your most memorable moment?
A: I had a lot of them, and I've been asked that probably a million times. I rode Secretariat his last race, and I certainly won't forget it. That's probably it -- riding him in his last race in 1973. I went on to win 4,000 more races after that, and I had some great memories. But as a 24-year-old person, that's probably something you could live two lifetimes (and never do).
Q: You were 24, so were you able to grasp what was going on?
A: Yeah. You grow up fast on the racetrack. And when you're riding professionally at 17 and 18, 19, 20 you're certainly aware of what's going on. Probably no one could have imagined this course would still have the reputation. Coming to this part of the country where there are no racetracks and people don't know too much (about horse racing), everybody knows Secretariat. They don't know any other horses I rode and some are award winners. But that's the impression he left. Nobody probably knew he'd be a legend, but he certainly is.
Q: How was it that day you rode Secretariat?
A: It was good. It was a lot of pressure on everybody concerned, especially me, I guess. I was the only newcomer. Same trainer, same owner. It was a pretty cleanly run race. There was one incident when Secretariat was bumped a little bit during the race, but he kind of exploded underneath me and the race was pretty much over. He just took off and opened up 10 lengths.
Q: What's that like, to have one of the greatest racehorses in history take off like that? Had you experienced that before?
A: I have. I boils down to being on the best, the most explosive and a horse that's very talented and can give you that burst of speed whenever you want it. He was probably the second one in my abbreviated career that I experienced that with and was by far the most talented. I guess this is how you get into the hall of fame -- you've experienced that and the result is you win races on good horses and you know what it feels like.
Q: Do you have any regrets when it comes to your career?
A: Na. I don't have any regrets.
Q: Not too many movies have been made about horse racing, though there have been a few. Do you think Hollywood does a good job in general of depicting the sport?
A: Not bad. For the characters that are involved -- I mean it's not a team sport. You just can't take two different ends of the field and have them line up and run through each other in an indoor arena or something like that. There's gambling involved, so there's always the mystique of if there's some hanky panky going on. But I think basically with 'Seabiscuit' and the movies that have been made, they've done a pretty good job.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about being a jockey?
A: I don't think there are any. I don't think people know that much about them. I don't think they realize the dedication and sacrifice that goes into keeping your weight down, showing up day after day and just being dedicated to the point that everything else kind of goes on the back burner. But that happens in a lot of different areas of life with different jobs. The whole combination of things I think is just sort of explored. There haven't been a lot of books and national television exposure hasn't been there. You see football players going to summer camp, but you don't hear what jockeys do.
Q: There have been some problems during the past few years regarding the Jockeys' Guild, specifically insurance policies. How has the profession changed since you first started or even retired? Has the system improved?
A: Oh, yeah. It took a lot of hard work and a lot of years by some dedicated people to get what we've got now.
Q: How do you feel about the current state of horse racing?
A: They're not doing terribly bad. I think if they can ever figure the safe race track out and the overpopulation of horses, everything will be A-OK for me.
Q: Ever been seriously injured?
A: I've been injured bad enough. I've been knocked out for a couple of hours but have never been in a coma. I've had several broken bones, but I don't have any pins. I think I've got all my marbles. And I still get up in the morning and thank the Lord I can do that. But it doesn't take much. I've seen some really bad falls and nobody's gotten hurt, and I've seen some mediocre spills and people end up as a paraplegic.
Q: What would you have done if not a jockey?
A: After being exposed to horses, it would've been something with horses. Here I am today and the main reason I'm here is I love horses.
