• Racing My Father by Patrick Smithwick: Authentic Autographed Copy - Saratoga Saddlery & International Boutiques

Racing My Father by Patrick Smithwick: Authentic Autographed Copy

$ 24.95

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Racing My Father: Growing Up with a Riding Legend is not just another "horse" book. It is a fast-paced, compelling memoir ranking in the stakes race category with Russell Baker's Growing Up, Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes, Annie Dillard's An American Childhood, and Beryl Markham's West With the Night. In Racing My Father, Patrick Smithwick writes about growing up in the hell-bent-for-leather world of Thoroughbred racing as the son of Hall of Fame steeplechase jockey A.P. "Paddy" Smithwick. Paddy Smithwick was a natural. He was a charismatic figure. He was the greatest steeplechase rider in America in the 1950s and '60s, winning all the big races, leading the country in races won four times, dominating the sport with his style, ability, heart, and gentlemanly demeanor.Patrick Smithwick also is a natural - a gifted horseman and a gifted writer. Despite witnessing the pinnacle of the sport, the younger Smithwick started his own journey with a leg up. After his father was severely injured in a racing accident, young Patrick helped his father work his way back into racing, and the father-son, trainer-rider duo ended up in the winner's circle at Saratoga Race Course. Later, when Patrick had to continue without his father, he found refuge - and a new life - in writing.

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