Raymond Workman

rdf:langString Raymond Workman

rdf:langString Raymond Workman

rdf:langString Raymond Workman

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rdf:langString Demoiselle Stakes American Classic Race wins:

rdf:langString Raymond "Sonny" Workman (May 24, 1909 – August 21, 1966) was an American National Champion and Hall of Fame jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. During his fifteen years as a professional rider from 1926 through 1940, he won an exceptional twenty percent of his starts. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, Raymond Workman's mother was a native of Washington, D.C. and after her husband's death she and the children returned to live there. Workman studied to be a member of the clergy before deciding to embark upon a career as a jockey. He began riding at age seventeen at racetracks in Ohio where he quickly demonstrated a natural riding ability combined with a strong desire to excel. Widely known by the nickname "Sonny," his competitiveness was such that the Chicago Tribune called him a "riding demon" and the New York Times called him a "bulldog in silks." His abilities quickly reached a level that in just his second year of racing he signed a contract to go to New York City to ride for one of the country's preeminent owners, Harry Payne Whitney. He was also the regular rider for Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney's stables and in 1932 and 1933 he and Whitney's handicap runner, Equipoise, were the idols of New York racing. In 1930, Sonny Workman was both the United States Champion Jockey by earnings and Champion by total wins while achieving it with a 27% rate of wins to mounts. In 1932 he was the earnings leader a second time. On January 21, 1930 he was married to Marion Elizabeth Burch of Washington, D.C.