Rosier gets first stakes mount after long journey back from addiction
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Jockey Chris Rosier was as surprised as anybody to see himself named on a horse at the end of April at Evangeline Downs.
It had been more than three years since the 42-year-old native of San Diego, Calif., had ridden a race.
Rosier said a cycle of depression, drug use, and selfishness that ostracized others destroyed his career and contributed to the breakup of his family.
But, after eight months of diligently galloping horses, things changed this spring. Rosier got some big news as he was on his way into a support meeting for those recovering from addiction.
“They told me, ‘You’re named on a horse next week,’ and I said, ‘Get out of here,’ ” Rosier recalled. “So I go to my meeting, sitting, staring at entries, and I texted my son a screen shot and I said, ‘I don’t know how to feel about that.’ He said, ‘What do you mean? That’s who you are and you still have fans, dad.’ ”
Rosier’s biggest fan is his father, trainer Charlie Rosier. He named his son on the horse Sienna Breeze without telling him.
“My dad just put me on a horse, him kind of pushing me on my way,” Rosier said.
The mount was Rosier’s first since March 26, 2020, at Oaklawn Park. At that point, he took a sabbatical from racing. Rosier said no rulings sidelined him, but rather emotional distress, separation from his three children, and some time in jail for drug possession.
“Ultimately, I walked away from the sport,” he said. “I did the game wrong and I owe the game respect.”
Rosier said in time he came to a reckoning point, realizing only God could pull him out of the hole in which he’d found himself. The rider said he was spurred on by the encouragement of trainer Glenn Delahoussaye.
“He was put in my path from God, I believe,” Rosier said. “Not to get me back to so-called jockey status, but for me to just have a better way of life and to be of service to someone other than self.
“Glenn changed my life when he told me, ‘Hey, jock, I am proud of you,’ when I was walking into my first meeting. That was the turning point. Glenn was the one that taught me how to just show up, be present.”
Rosier, who now has an agent in former trainer Ron Faucheux, will have his first stakes mount since returning on Saturday night in the $60,000 John Henry. He rides leading contender Budro Talking in the 1 1/16-mile turf race, which is one of two stakes on the Evangeline Downs card. The $60,000 Opelousas for fillies and mares drew Gulfstream Park regular Gather as You Go.
Budro Talking is coming off a fast-closing second in the $100,000 Louisiana Legends Turf last month at Evangeline. The race was run over 1 1/16 miles, and the horse found himself a little farther off the pace than usual when some 12 lengths back in the early stages. On Saturday, Budro Talking could get a decent setup courtesy of such quick rivals as Fortuity and Machine Gun Man. Others set to start in the 12-horse race include Peacock Kitten, who won the John Henry in 2021, and Woods N Water, who won his third straight race at the meet in the Legends Turf.
Rosier, who headed into the race week with a record of two wins, seven seconds, and three thirds from 32 mounts, rides Budro Talking for trainer Sturges Ducoing. The horse will break from post 3.
Rosier’s first win back came June 8 at Evangeline Downs, aboard Forty Nine Model for Winalot Racing and trainer Justin Jeansonne.
“That was crazy emotional,” Rosier said. “My son was there with all his friends. My daughter happened to call me right before the race, told me she was proud of me and wished me luck.
“Now, with them starting to come back into my life, it’s a bigger reward than riding.”
Rosier, a winner of 960 races with $18 million in mount earnings since his career launch in 2001, is taking none of it for granted. He recently attended the high school graduation of his son, Colin. And, the rider who won the Super Derby in 2017 with Mr. Misunderstood hopes sharing his story will encourage fellow jockeys, as well as exercise riders, grooms, and hotwalkers.
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“I feel like it might help someone else that’s struggling,” he said, “because so many people struggle on the backside with addiction and they try to mask it like I did and eventually, it unravels.”
These days, Rosier also is riding with a new attitude.
“The first time going into the gates, I didn’t have all that emotional stuff from the outside,” he said. “I was content.
“I go to my meetings every day now. I go to church. I’ve learned accountability.
“It’s been a long journey. I walked away from racing and am coming back a better person.”
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