So said Bob Dylan, “The times, they are a-changin’!” While the poet supreme’s words were penned during incredibly troubled times in the world, some would suggest that they hold even today, some fifty years later after Dylan wrote those lines. And like many other facets of human life, the words seem to ring true for the world of horse racing as well.

Despite the thrilling and sometimes nail-biting nature of horse racing, the sport is still mostly confined within a domain that could be perceived as ‘posh.’  However, one jockey has entered the chat in a bid to change all that.

In an article by Paulick Report from May 19, Ramon Moya‘s efforts to make horse racing more accessible to the newer generations have been shared. Moya’s morning workout videos, with his four-legged equine friends and shot at the track at Parx in Bensalem, PA, are creating quite the ripple on social media platforms.

“Especially on social media, I feel like there’s content about every sport other than horse racing, and there’s so much that goes into racing and the behind the scenes and training,” Moya noted how horse racing has a lot of things to teach the fans, along with just the races themselves. “I just really wanted to show people that type of point of view. I feel like there’s not a lot of content out there about riding horses,” he went on further.

The 2024 Pinot Grigio Handicap winner also highlighted how he puts incredible effort into making his content. From buying the right equipment after extensive trial and error to finding the best possible point of view to shoot his videos from, Moya has had to undergo a lot to become the successful social media personality he is today. “It takes a lot of dedication because I film almost every day… Especially now that it’s monetizing on TikTok, it is like a second job, or at least that’s the way I treat it,” admitted the jockey who made his formal debut in 2009.

Moya’s IG feed is filled with videos from training sessions and races that aim to make horse racing cool again. Winning the 1-mile 70-yard race at Parx Racing in March was just one step in the right direction. While the race had a few hiccups, Ramon kept his head in the game and crossed the finishing line with oomph. “I didn’t see nothing in front of me and I just continued riding,” beamed the horse racing star after the win.

However, the need for Moya to walk such extensive miles might not stem only from his desires. Instead, it could actually be his attempt to cling to horse racing as a way of leading a fulfilling life.

Moya resorted to horse racing as his way of returning to mainstream society

In September last year, Moya won the Pinot Grigio Handicap at Monmouth Park. With that, he brought an end to the 10-year-long drought the jockey went through between stakes wins. The Charles Hesse III Handicap win in 2014 was the last major highlight in the horse racing celebrity’s resume, and the emotion could hardly be kept a lid on when Ramon finally returned to the winners’ circle in 2024.

“It was very emotional…it’s hard to put into words what it meant. You’re just overcome with emotion,” Moya said after the race. During the long gap between the stakes wins, Moya has undergone several ups and downs in his life, and he was evidently over the moon after being able to successfully put things in the rearview mirror. “Unless you’ve been through it, it’s hard to explain what it was like,” he said with a grim smile.

For most jockeys, horse racing is much more than just winning a race. It’s about understanding your four-legged partner, caring for them, and silencing the naysayers together. With that, we hope Moya also finds his recluse in the sport that he adores and is able to share his joy with more fans to witness.