Swaps: Thoroughbred Legends
Barry Irwin

Pub Date: Feb. 2002. The life of Swaps is the stuff of which Hollywood dreams are made. He was a handsome California boy who, in the mid-1950s, took on the East Coast racing establishment to win the Kentucky Derby and return triumphant to the West. By the time of his retirement, Swaps’ fame had reached almost mythical proportions. He had became wildly popular in his home state early on, but it was his rivalry with Eastern society stalwart William Woodward’s blueblood Nashua that catapulted Swaps to national icon status -- along with owner Rex Ellsworth and trainer Mesh Tenney, Mormon cowboys who flaunted racing traditions.

In Swaps, author Barry Irwin brings all these characters to life in a tale of East vs. West, establishment vs. outsider, sophisticate vs. common man, and above all, a horse whose breathtaking speed and power marked him a Legend for all time.

About the Author:
Barry Irwin is a former horse racing journalist and current president of Team Valor, which organizes Thoroughbred racing partnerships. He lives in Versailles, Ky., near Lexington.

Read a Q&A with Barry Irwin.

Hardcover
6 x 8
192 pages
16-page b/w photo well
Thoroughbred Legends #14
Product #B11-2014
List Price: $24.95
ISBN: 1-58150-071-8