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Sport	Horse Racing
Name	Steve Cauthen
Subtitle	Kid on Horseback
Number	11-23
Info	No jockey has made so smashing an impact on racing and the general public as has Steve Cauthen. As a baby-faced 16-year-old apprentice, he arrived in New York to ride at Aqueduct Race Track during the winter of 1976-77. Soon he was bringing home two and three winners a day. In one 90-day period, he twice rode six winners in a single day. Bill Shoemaker, who has ridden more than 7,000 winners — more than anyone else — said of Cauthen, "He's very good and he can be even better than that. He thinks well, sits nicely, but there's something else, too. Horses simply seem to run better for some riders than others, and you can see this kid has that gift." Stevie Wonder, as the fans call him, stands 5' 2" and tips the scales at 95 lb. He started riding horses at his folks' 40-acre farm near Walton, Ky., and began his professional career at tracks in Ohio before moving to the Big Apple. He captured the big city's imagination immediately. During one week in January 1977, he booted home 23 winners at Aqueduct, an all-time re- cord in New York. He was an instant celebrity. All the TV networks, wire services, newspapers and magazines carried features on him. Soon fans in other parts of the country were clamoring to see him ride. Without abandoning his New York base, Cauthen often rode there six days a week then spent Sunday at places like Santa Anita and Golden Gate Fields in California or Woodbine near Toronto. Tracks had special "Steve Cauthen Days" and he rode at Hialeah in Florida, Penn National near Harrisburg, Pa., and Pimlico in Baltimore. He even returned home to Kentucky to be honored shortly before the running of the prestigious Kentucky Derby. Whether or not Cauthen goes on to become one of the all-time leading jockeys remains to be seen, but certainly no one has ever gotten a better start in that direction.
Photo Info	STEVE CAUTHEN Born May 1,1960, Walton, Ky. Steve Cauthen after winning another race
Copyright	© 1977, Editions Rencontre S.A., Lausanne Photo Focus on Sports - Dan Baliotti Printed in Italy 03 005 11-23