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Apr 24th, 10
(Article Courtesy of THOROUGHBRED TIMES)
Long-time Thoroughbred industry leader James E. “Ted” Bassett
and two-time Eclipse Award-winning Turf writer Bill Mooney have been
awarded first prize in the fourth annual Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award, presented by
the Castleton Lyons farm and THOROUGHBRED TIMES, during a reception on Friday
evening at Castleton Lyons near Lexington.
The pair won for their collaborative effort on the 2009 autobiography Keeneland’s
Ted Bassett: My Life, published by The University Press of Kentucky.
Bassett has been a high-profile member of the racing community for more than
40 years, most of that time as president, board chairman, and trustee at fabled
Keeneland Race Course in
Renamed last year for the late founder of Castleton Lyons who created the prize
in 2006 to reward book-length literary excellence, the award is presented
annually for the best work published about an aspect of Thoroughbred racing.
Bassett and Mooney received a $10,000 prize as well as a trophy made of
custom-designed Irish crystal.
“This was a great adventure,” Bassett said. “It was a combination of fear
and exhilaration. Fear that you’re going to fail and that nobody would ever
open the book; exhilaration at the end that we actually finished it and had an
amazing response like this.”
“I have never worked on a professional project that I have devoted myself
more to and I have never worked on a professional project that I have wanted to
do more than this,” Mooney said.
“Anyone who loves horse racing would love this book,” said judge Kay Coyte,
a Washington Post editor and an Eclipse Award winner. “Because of Bassett’s
interesting early career, his love of people and horses, and his more recent
world travels, there’s more than enough adventure to hold the attention of even
the most casual reader. The addition of co-author Bill Mooney was like a fine
wine paired with a gourmet dinner.”
Other finalists for 2009 were Beyond the Homestretch—What I’ve Learned from
Saving Racehorses, by Lynn Reardon (Publisher: New World Library), and The
Kentucky Derby Vault: A History of the Run for the Roses, by Andrew
Plattner (Publisher: Whitman Publishing LLC). Each finalist received a check
for $1,000 and an Irish crystal trophy.
In addition to Coyte, the judges for the competition were Dr. Rudolph Alvarado
and
The inaugural Book Award winner was