‘One Of A Kind’: Former Jockey ‘Cowboy’ Jones Dies At Age 79

A local celebrity every time he ventured out to Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., retired jockey Robert A. “Cowboy” Jones has succumbed to an esophageal tumor at the age of 79.

Jones rode his first winner in 1959, and was a perennial leading rider at both Ellis Park and the now-defunct Miles Park (located in Louisville, Ky.). The jockey won his final race at Ellis Park in 2004, completing a record of winning races during six different decades. He fell just short of becoming the first jockey to win a race across seven different decades when he finished second in a race at Fairmount Park in 2013.

Instead, Jones found the winner's circle at Ellis Park in 2019 as an owner; the filly Matt's Honey paid $21 to win a $5,000 claiming race.

Jones is an Ellis Park icon as much for being a character as his riding, and was immortalized with an Ellis Park bobblehead in 2003.

A book about Jones' life was published in 2014 by author Angie Karcher, titled: The Legendary R.A. Cowboy Jones: Over 50 Years as a Jockey. According to Amazon:

“This hardcover book tells the story of legendary horse jockey Robert A. Cowboy Jones. Born and raised in Herrin, Illinois, Cowboy knew what he wanted to do with his life at the age of 13 when he saw another child riding a pony. In the1950s he began jockeying at nearby county fairs. After more than 50 years, Cowboy has jockeyed at nearly every Midwest track, but is the hero at Ellis Park (Henderson, KY), where he began riding in 1959. Still today the sign Home of R.A. Cowboy Jones, still hangs in the jockeys quarters. Cowboy s career was not without its challenges, having broken over 80 bones in racing accidents, including all of his fingers. He was 5 foot 9 inches when he began riding, but now in his 70s, he is 5 foot 2 inches.”

“He was one of a kind,” longtime trainer Larry Jones (not related) told the Daily Racing Form, “and he might've been the toughest cowboy I've ever known.”