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 'This was a good day' Krone stays busy during final stint in the saddle
Posted: Monday April 19, 1999 11:53 AM
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (AP) -- Julie Krone was worried she wouldn't win a race on her retirement day. Instead, she showed why she is the winningest female jockey of all time by going out in style Sunday with three winners, a second, and a third in five races at Lone Star Park. Krone's three wins gave her 3,546 in 29,475 races over an 18-year career. Her last ride was aboard Desert Demon in the Lone Star Derby, and she finished second. In the biggest race of the day, the Texas Mile, her horse, Allen's Oop was third. "I'm very choked up about how the fans acted and how I was treated at Lone Star," Krone said. "This was a wonderful experience. I'm feeling a little nostalgic about it. I'm very relieved I had some winners today. The competitive side of me wanted to go out as a winner." The 35-year-old Krone had her biggest victory in the 1993 Belmont Stakes aboard Colonial Affair. She ranked 16th on the career earnings list with more than $81 million. Krone won the second race of the day aboard Dance to Fit in the "Julie Krone Classic," booted home Executive Girl in the third, and guided Paris Jet across the finish line first in the fifth. "I had it in my mind to retire for a while, and I wanted to go out on my own terms like Wayne Gretzky," she said. "I finished second in the first race of my career and the last race. In between, I had a lot of winners. This was a good day." Krone, who lives in Colts Neck, N.J., said she retired because she had nothing left to prove and "was tired of getting hurt." She's had numerous broken arms, hands, and ankles during on-track spills. Still, she put 17 percent of her mounts in the winner's circle. "She's not just a great woman jockey, she's a great jockey in general," said Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens. "She's always been an outstanding jockey, a very competitive rider. "She's going out maybe not right at the top of her game but at a very good time in her career. And she's doing it with dignity." Krone had 277 stakes victories during her career. She had her best year in 1991, when her mounts earned $9.1 million. Krone signed autographs for fans and fellow jockeys before her final day of racing began. Lone Star Park loaded her down with numerous gifts. She also was given a big cake by her fellow competitors and one of the jockeys pushed her face into the icing. "Even being put into the cake was special for me," Krone said. Asked what she would do with her time, Krone said she would ride jumper horses and 'sleep in for about two years.'
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