I Dedicate This Ride | Kentucky Studies

Kentucky poet Frank X. Walker illuminates the life of legendary 19th-century African-American jockey Isaac Murphy in I Dedicate This Ride, a poetry collection that was also adapted into a play. These videos include interviews with Walker, readings from some of the poems, and scenes from the play. The poems are written from the perspectives of Murphy himself, as well as his mother, father, wife, and horse trainer Eli Jordan. The poems and play explore the jockey’s respect and compassion for humans and horses alike, his fame during the time of segregation, and what Walker describes as the jockey’s “superhero skills” on the racetrack.