Douglas Allan Dodson was a National Champion jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.
14 Facts About Douglas Dodson
1.
2.
Douglas Dodson was born in Pickardville, Alberta, Canada, the son of James Floyd and Emma Dodson.
3.
Douglas Dodson's family moved to a ranch in Elk River, Idaho when he was still a child and as a small boy he learned to ride horses and rope steers.
4.
Douglas Dodson's parents moved to Burns, Oregon where at age fifteen, he was working as a shoeshine boy when trainer Harry Walters told the diminutive boy shining his shoes about racing Thoroughbreds.
5.
In 1940, the then nineteen-year-old Douglas Dodson was signed by Warren Wright, Sr.
6.
Between 1945 and 1961, Douglas Dodson made twelve appearances in the Kentucky Derby without winning.
7.
Douglas Dodson finished third in the Derby on three other occasions.
8.
Douglas Dodson had much better luck in the second leg of the US Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes.
9.
Douglas Dodson made his fourth and last Preakness start in 1956, earning third place aboard No Regrets.
10.
In 1951, Douglas Dodson became the first jockey to win three editions of the then richest race in Florida, the Widener Handicap at Hialeah Park.
11.
Douglas Dodson had his greatest success in 1946 and 1947 with the Calumet colt, Armed.
12.
For Douglas Dodson, he won a National riding title in 1947 when he led all American jockeys in total purses won.
13.
Douglas Dodson retired from riding at the beginning of the 1960s but remained in the horse racing industry as a trainer.
14.
Douglas Dodson was living in Hollywood, Florida at the time of his death in 1982.