After He Almost Hits the Ground, Jockey Finishes Second by a Neck

The Racing Form description “hanging on for second” was never more appropriate than in Friday’s first race at Golden Gate Fields, when apprentice jockey Nat Hubbard, who was almost thrown off his mount, grabbed the filly’s neck and hung from it for the final portion of the race.

Hubbard’s mount, Sweetwater Oak, clipped heels with eventual winner Current Lady at the sixteenth pole. Sweetwater Oak stumbled badly, and it appeared that Hubbard would go sailing over her neck.

However, Hubbard said he was able to “grab a handful of mane,” and dangling from Sweetwater Oak’s neck, he finished second on the 4-year-old filly.

“I just tried to hang on so I would not get run over,” said Hubbard, 19, a San Francisco native who has been riding for 18 months. “I saw those horses behind me, and I was not about to let go.”

“I’m just glad I ran third so I did not miss it,” said jockey Chris Hummel, aboard Priscilla Pie.

Shortly after crossing the finish line, Hubbard got some help from fellow rider Ron Warren, who planted his mount in the path of Sweetwater Oak.

“I just backed my horse into his,” said Warren. “I thought I had better help him because it looked like he was starting to lose (his grip).”

The unique finish produced an inquiry, but stewards ruled that since Sweetwater Oak carried the required 113 pounds across the finish line and Hubbard never touched the ground, the horse indeed finished second.