Delgado returns home, thanks to California Chrome

When told that California Chrome was going to run in the Pennsylvania Derby, Willie Delgado grew very excited because it meant another chance to visit family and friends on the East Coast.

Delgado, the exercise rider for California Chrome, was a jockey who used to ride at Parx – known then as Philadelphia Park – and his 7-year-old daughter, Savannah, lives relatively close by in Maryland, where Delgado also used to ride and train. Delgado got to spend some time with his daughter when he accompanied California Chrome to the Preakness and planned to visit her again after training hours Thursday.

On Tuesday night, Delgado had dinner with a family friend, Carmin, who is the grandmother of Delgado’s godson, Carlos, with whom he also visited.

“I lived here 10 years,” Delgado said. “When Kent Desormeaux went to Maryland, I had to branch out. My sister used to live in New Jersey, so I rode between Garden State and here.”

Before climbing aboard California Chrome on Wednesday morning, Delgado visited with former jockeys and exercise riders based at Parx.

Delgado spent the summer at Los Alamitos and was apart from California Chrome for a month when he was on the farm for a vacation.

“The first couple of days there was a little separation anxiety,” Delgado said. “It was not like he’s gone and he isn’t coming back. But I was excited when I found out he was coming back, and so was he. He came back with a vengeance.”