Gary Boulanger

Gary Boulanger
Occupation	Jockey
Born	November 19, 1967 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Career wins	3,000+
Major racing wins
All-American Handicap (1992) California Derby (1992) Affirmed Stakes (1994, 1997) Calder Derby (1994, 1997) Desert Vixen Stakes (1994) Foolish Pleasure Stakes (1994, 2003) Fred W. Hooper Handicap (1994) Susan's Girl Stakes (1994, 2003) My Dear Girl Stakes (1995) Princess Rooney Handicap (1995) Tampa Bay Derby (1995) Cicada Stakes (1996) Fountain of Youth Stakes (1996) Eatontown Handicap (1996) What A Pleasure Stakes (1996) Chaposa Springs Handicap (1997) Needles Stakes (1997) Dr. Fager Stakes (1998) Flamingo Stakes (1998) Hollywood Wildcat Handicap (1998) Spend A Buck Handicap (1998) Cup and Saucer Stakes (2000) Niagara Handicap (2000) Maple Leaf Stakes (2000) Princess Elizabeth Stakes (2000) Seagram Cup Stakes (2000) Bessarabian Stakes (2001) Coronation Futurity Stakes (2001) Fury Stakes (2001) Glorious Song Stakes (2001) Ontario Colleen Stakes (2001) Victoriana Stakes (2001) Canadian Oaks (2001) Hallandale Handicap (2003) OBS Championship Stakes (2003) Unbridled Stakes (2004) Canadian Classic Race wins: Queen's Plate (2001)
Racing awards
Leading jockey at Longacres Racetrack (1989, 1990, 1991) Leading jockey at Calder Race Course (1994, 1995)
Significant horses
Cajun Beat, Dancethruthedawn

Gary Dale Boulanger (born November 19, 1967 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) is a jockey and trainer who competed in Canada and the United States and who is currently in Florida. He began his career in 1987 at Tampa Bay Downs then went to the Pacific Northwest where he was the leading jockey for three straight years from 1989 through 1991 at Longacres Racetrack in Washington state. In 1991 he won 247 races, breaking Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens record for most wins.^[1]

In 1992 Boulanger moved to race at tracks in California and in 1994 to southern Florida where he enjoyed considerable success. In 1998 he rode Chilito in the Kentucky Derby. From June 2000 and much of 2001, Boulanger worked primarily in Canada where he rode the most successful mount of his career. Aboard Sam Son Farm's filly Dancethruthedawn he won several top races in Canada including the 2001 Canadian Oaks and that country's most important race, the Queen's Plate.^[2]

While competing in Florida in the winter of 2005, Gary Boulanger suffered a life-threatening and career-ending injury in a racing accident at Gulfstream Park in the January 30 running of the Mac Diarmida Handicap.^[3] Called "one of South Florida's best riders the past several years" by the New York Times,^[4] Boulanger underwent surgery for a ruptured spleen, broken ribs, as well as a detached tendon in his left elbow. The accident caused a blood clot, that surgeons had to extract, which necessitated the removal of a section of his skullcap to avoid damage to the brain from pressure caused by swelling.^[5] Following a very lengthy recovery process, in April 2009 Boulanger embarked on a new career race conditioning Thoroughbreds.^[6] In September he earned his first win as a trainer at Calder Race Course.^[7] On February 17, 2013, Boulanger returned to the saddle at Tampa Bay Downs, finishing 9th aboard Spring a Latch, a horse in which he is also trainer.^[8]

References

1. Seattle Times, March 31, 1992
2. About.com. A part of The New York Times Company, June 24, 2001
3. USA Today, January 31, 2005
4. New York Times, February 1, 2005
5. Bloodhorse.com January 30, 2005
6. Bloodhorse.com April 26, 2009
7. Bloodhorse.com September 13, 2009
8. Paulick Report February 15, 2013

Additional reading

Jockey: The Rider's Life in American Thoroughbred Racing by Scott A. Gruender, 2006, ISBN 978-0-7864-2819-9

Year-end charts

Chart (2000–present)	Peak position
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2000	48
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2001	42
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2003	48
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2013	60
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2014	70