He won more than 3,000 professional careers, but Ron Turcotte will be remembered forever by the three he registered aboard the legendary Secretariat 52 years ago.
Turcotte guided the secretariat to an emphatic triple crown of the Triple Corona in 1973. So dominant was that action that the Secretariat still has the records that established that year in the Derby of Kentucky, Preakness and Belmont.
Turcotte’s family said through its commercial partner Leonard Lusky that the rider died of natural causes at his home in Drummond, NB, on Friday. He was 84 years old.
The Secretariat limited the sweeping of the triple crown with a dramatic style, registering an emphatic 31 -year victory in Belmont. That performance, called by many as one of the most dominant in the history of sport, made Secretariat and Turcotte the first winners of the Triple American Crown in 25 years.
That race also produced the iconic photo of Turcotte, in a deep stretch, looking back to see the rest of the return field.
“I only looked back at the other horses in the post room and I could not see anything under my arm,” Turcotte told the Canadian press in 2023, the 50th anniversary of the historical victory. “The image you see from me looking was when I was looking at the (Trob of painting) because we ran the first mile and a faster than when we won the derby.”
SHIFT – NBRemembering Ron Turcotte
The famous and dear rider of NB Ron Turcotte died. Turcotte was better known for setting up the Secretariat of Horses, who won and broke records in the 1973 Kentucky derby. We talked about his life and legacy with the commercial partner and lifelong friend Leonard Lusky.
But Turcotte was not the lonely Canadian link with the majestic foal. The secretariat coach was the late Lucien Laurin, from Joliette, who. And the night before Belmont, Turcotte was full of trust.
“Lucien and I went to dinner at night after the last work of (Secretariat),” Turcotte said. “I said: ‘If they hit me in the Belmont, I will hang my tachuela’.
“That was sure and how much confidence I had because I had worked.”
The Secretariat ended in the money in 20 of 21 career beginnings (16 victories, three seconds, once third). The Secretariat was sacrificed in 1989 after developing laminitis, a painful disease for hooves.
“It was like losing a family member,” Turcotte said. “He was the type of horse that made you want to get up early from the bed, reach the barn and do your job with him γçª He kept you going.”
Turcotte was the regular rider of the secretariat and set up the horse in 18 of its 21 race openings (15 victories). The Secretariat ended its career in the races in Canada, winning the ’73 International Canadian for 6 1/2 length before 35,000 spectators on a cold wet October afternoon on the Woodbine racing track of Toronto with Eddie Maple on board while Turcotte was serving a suspension at that time.
“Ron Turcotte was a true Canadian icon whose impact on horse races is immeasurable,” said Jim Lawson, Woodbine Entertainment executive, in a statement. “From his incredible trip aboard the Secretariat until his commitment to life with sport, Ron took with humility, strength and dignity.”
However, after dismantling the secretariat for the last time, Turcotte kissed the horse on his nose.
“That was when he went to the farm,” Turcotte said. “But I also kissed her nose to the preakness.
“So many memories, I will never forget it. As I said, I was a kind and kind horse. A single guy.”
Turcotte was one of the 14 children, and among five brothers who finally became riders. At age 14, Turcotte went to work as a lumberjack with his father.
Four years later, Turcotte and his friend Reggie Pelletier left Drummond to Toronto, where Turcotte hoped to work as a roof. A strike at that time sank those plans and forced Turcotte and Pelletier to look for any jobs they could find, which included choosing worms to help arrive at the end of the month.
It was 1960 and the first Saturday of May, which is when the Kentucky derby is executed. The owner of the pension where Turcotte lived was looking at the derby and commented that, given Turcotte’s tiny stature, it should be a rider.
Turcotte not only did not know what a rider was, I had never heard of Kentucky’s derby. As fate would have, Turcotte found work at Woodbine Racetrack with EP Taylor’s Barn and shortly after he was Canada’s main pilot.
Turcotte finally obtained 3,032 victories in race races. That included Riva Ridge to the victory at the ’72 Kentucky Derby and Belmont, as well as the legendary dancer north of his first trip to the winning circle in 1963 in Fort Erie Racetrack.
“As much as I loved Riva Ridge, Northern Dancer is the second best horse I rode,” Turcotte said. “It was a great horse.
“I loved him the first time I rode it.”
Turcotte’s brothers were also successful riders. Rudy Turcotte registered 1,740 wins and $ 11.6 million in profits, while Yves Turcotte had 1,347 victories for $ 8.9 million. Roger Turcotte registered 1,187 wins for $ 6.5 million, while Noel Turcotte accumulated 945 wins for $ 3.43 million.
The Ron Turcotte riding race ended in 1978 when the injuries suffered in a fall in Belmont Park left him paraplegic. After that, Turcotte had become a tireless defender of the permanently disabled jockey background, which helps injured passengers.
In 1980, Turcotte was included in the Hall of Fame of the Sports of Canada. He is also a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame and New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame.
There is also a statue of the Turcotte Riding Secretariat in Grand Falls, NB, where I had lived in retirement.
