Listen up, y’all, lemme tell ya ’bout this fella, this jockey Junior Alvarado. Now, I ain’t no fancy horse racin’ expert, but I know a thing or two ’bout hard work and makin’ a livin’, and this Junior, he seems to know it too.
First off, they call ’em jockeys, these fellas who ride them horses. They ain’t just sittin’ up there pretty, no sir. They gotta be strong, gotta be smart, and gotta know how to handle a horse that’s movin’ faster than a scared rabbit. Junior, he’s one of them. He rides them horses in them races, you know, the ones where they go ’round and ’round real fast.
Now, I hear tell ya gotta be at least 16 to start learnin’ to be a jockey. Seems kinda young to me, but I guess them young’uns are tougher than they look these days. Most of ’em start trainin’ when they’re ’bout 16 to 22. And get this, there ain’t no age limit on how long ya can ride, but most of ’em stop when they’re ’bout 40 or 50. Guess their bones start creakin’ or somethin’. Then they go on to teachin’ other young’uns or helpin’ ’em out.
- So, this Junior, he’s been ridin’ for a good while now. I hear he’s been a regular in New York since 2010. That’s a long time to be doin’ anything, let alone wranglin’ horses.
- He’s won some big races too, they say. Like in 2023, he won this Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies thing with a horse called Just F Y I. Sounds like a fancy name for a horse, if you ask me.
- And he rode another horse, Mohaymen, in somethin’ called the Kentucky Derby back in 2016. Didn’t win that one, came in fourth, but still, that’s a big deal, I reckon. He also rode another horse named Enticed in 2018 at the Kentucky Derby, but only got twelfth.
But the biggest win, the one that got him the most money, was with a horse named Seor Buscador. They won some big race, a Group 1 they called it, and Junior got paid real good. I tell ya, that’s the kinda work I like, the kind that pays good! Now, some folks call this horse racing a “sport,” and some call it a good day at the track. To me, seems like a whole lot of fuss over some animals runnin’ in a circle, but hey, if they are willin’ to pay that kind of money, these jockeys are earnin’ it, I’d say.
Now, this Junior fella, his real name was supposed to be Rafael Alvarado, Jr., after his daddy. But somewhere along the line, folks started callin’ him Junior, and it just stuck. Happens like that sometimes. Names ain’t nothin’ but words, after all. It’s the work ya do that matters.
I ain’t never seen Junior Alvarado in person, but I heard he’s a good rider. He knows how to handle them horses, how to get ’em to run fast and win races. And that’s what it’s all about, ain’t it? Workin’ hard, doin’ your best, and maybe makin’ a little somethin’ for yourself along the way.
And that is what I know about this jockey Junior Alvarado, which really ain’t a whole lot. But from what I hear and can tell, he sounds like one of the good ones. He ain’t afraid of hard work, and he’s good at what he does. That’s more than some folks got to hang their hat on, am I right? You need to have grit and determination to ride those horses at those speeds, the same you need to get up and work the fields every day. You got to be tough to get anywhere in this life, no matter what you’re doin.
Jockey Junior Alvarado sounds like he’s got that toughness. He’s a winner, and that’s somethin’ to be proud of. Whether he’s ridin’ horses or plantin’ crops, it takes the same kind of spirit. The spirit to keep goin’, even when things get tough. And that, my friends, is somethin’ worth respectin’.
Now, I gotta get back to my business. But you remember what I told ya ’bout this Junior Alvarado. He’s a hard worker, that’s for sure. He’s a winner. He ain’t afraid of nothin’ and that’s somethin’ that everyone can look up to. And no matter who you are, those are good things, real good things.
And don’t you forget it!
