Former journeyman rider Larry Melancon dead at 65

Larry Melancon, a journeyman rider who retired in 2010 with more than 2,800 wins and abiding friendships in the sport, died on Thursday at his home in Louisville, Ky., according to friends of the rider. Melancon was 65.

Melancon suffered a major stroke while on vacation in North Carolina in 2017, an incident that required him to be put into an induced coma. His health never fully recovered after the stroke, though he still maintained contact with friends in the racing community, according to Al Stall, a trainer who was close to the rider.

“He was just a top-notch guy,” Stall said on Thursday. “He was straight as an arrow in life, just like he was on the track. You could always count on him.”

After his retirement, Melancon worked as an exercise rider for Stall and helped out around the barn. He also briefly worked as a jockey agent for a fellow Cajun rider, Calvin Borel.

“He just wanted to be around the racetrack,” Stall said. “He wanted to enjoy himself. To him, that was fun. We even went up to Saratoga. It was him just having a good time.”

A native of the Evangeline country of Louisiana, a nursery of young, brash riders, Melancon had said that he began riding at bush tracks at the age of 9, when he weighed 45 pounds. He took out his jockey’s license at the age of 16 and rode his first winner in 1971 at Jefferson Downs. In 1972, he led all apprentice jockeys by number of wins, with 182.

As his career matured, Melancon settled in Kentucky, where he became immensely popular and known as a tactical rider who got the most out of his mounts. He also regularly rode at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas and at tracks in his native state. In his career, he won 2,857 races and had total purses earnings of $60.6 million.

His biggest wins included the 2001 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs on Guided Tour; the 1998 New Orleans Handicap at Fair Grounds on Phantom On Tour; and the 1986 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on Bachelor Beau.

Stall said that Melancon remained in great physical shape even after retiring, and that he ate well and was a great Cajun cook.

“He just always looked like an athlete,” Stall said.

Melancon is survived by his wife, Denise; a daughter, Heather; and a son, Lance.