Australian jockey Shinn says he'll be back

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – At 29, Blake Shinn is an established Australian jockey. Australian, not American. Shinn finishes a five-week stint at Arlington on Saturday, and during his brief stay in America, he has worked on becoming an American kind of rider.

“I think the biggest difference for me is the style change that I’ve had to sort of adapt a little bit to,” Shinn said Thursday. “That’s something that I’ve had to work very hard with because the American trainers, I suppose, aren’t really that accepting to the European style of riding.”

Shinn worked on unlearning the fundaments of his craft and reconstructing the way he sits on a horse and moves his body during a race. And it’s worked. Shinn looks different in races now than he did when he first began riding at Arlington last month.

“It’s taken me a little bit,” Shinn said. “I’ve had some great people to help me with my technique.”

Shinn met trainer and former jockey Wesley Ward several years ago, and it was Ward who made Shinn’s foray into American racing happen.

Ward hooked Shinn up with agent Steve Leving, who represents Arlington leading rider Jose Valdivia. Shinn said Valdivia offered helpful guidance, and Leving’s strong relationship with trainer Wayne Catalano gave Shinn a real foothold at Arlington. Riding Catalano-trained horses, Shinn has gone 5-1-0 from nine mounts.

Arlington just started racing four-day weeks after previously having a three-day schedule. On dark days, Shinn said, he flew to Washington, D.C., then went to Laurel Park in Maryland and worked with trainer and former jockey Jose Corrales on his riding technique. It was Ward who set that up, too. “I knew nothing about Jose when I first went out there,” Shinn said. “He’s been a great mentor.”

With two cards left to ride at Arlington, Shinn has gone 10-9-5 from 66 starts (64 at Arlington, two at Belmont), a solid showing that looks even better considering that Shinn, who had his first Arlington mount June 9, won only two races from his first 42 runners.

Shinn will go straight back to work in Australia. His first day riding after flying home this weekend is Wednesday. But Americans probably haven’t seen the last of him.

“I want to keep coming back,” Shinn said. “Everyone made me feel like I belonged here. I have a five-year visa, and I look forward to coming back next year.”