Former Eclipse winner had two Preakness mounts

Ryan Fogelsonger exploded onto the Maryland racing scene in 2002, when he posted 267 wins with over $4 million in earnings en route to an Eclipse Award for top apprentice rider.  He bettered those numbers in 2003 and in 2007 rode Talent Search to a third place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Spring (G1).

Fogelsonger, a local product who’d never been on a horse until after graduating high school, won 160 races or more five consecutive years until injuries began to catch up with him.  In his career, he won over 1300 races, and his mounts earned nearly $30 million.

Fogelsonger also rode in two runnings of the Preakness: Cherokee’s Boy in 2003 and Water Cannon in 2004.  We spoke with Ryan about what it’s like to experience the Preakness from a rider’s-eye view, and what it means for a local kid to ride Maryland’s biggest race.  It turns out that one of the things it entails is taking your infield-partying friends home after the races.