Jack Brooks

To win the All American Futurity is the goal of every trainer of American Quarter Horses. Since the inception of the race in 1959, only a select handful of trainers have managed to achieve that goal more than once. Among them, one man stands alone at the summit with an incredible eight victories in the All American Futurity. That man is Jack Brooks, a native of Blanchard, Oklahoma.

A horseman since childhood and a professional horse trainer since the earliest days of the hallowed race, Brooks was present and full of ambition when Galobar won the first of the Labor Day classics. Although he tried every year, it was not until 1978 when he qualified a horse to the finals. That horse was Moon Lark, who scored a narrow victory, thus starting a skein of triumphs which no one could have imagined–not even Brooks himself.

Across a span of four decades, Jack Brooks conditioned seven more All American Futurity winners, ending in 2000 with Eyesa Special. In doing so he smashed all previous records and established a mark which is among the most unapproachable in all of sports. Along the way, he won hundreds of other important races and trained more than a score of champions. Had he never won a single All American Futurity, his successes would have placed him among the greatest trainers of all time. But Brooks focused on the summit, each year selecting promising colts from the yearling auctions and helping his clients aim for the top prize in the sport. Each year he circled the first Monday in September on his calendar and his dedication to reaching that goal gave a new definition to Labor Day.

Jack Brooks began his career on the dusty bush tracks of Oklahoma and credits former employers W.W. Wilson and Jack Byers for sharpening his skills. Always one to credit his employees and the owners of his horses for his accomplishments, Brooks was a perennial leader at Remington Park, where the Leading Trainer trophy is named after him.

In 2007, at the height of his career, he shocked the Quarter Horse racing world by announcing his retirement. Since then he has enjoyed spending more time with his devoted wife Wynona, their son Tim and their four grandchildren. But the figure of Jack Brooks will forever stand tall at Remington Park in the form of a heroic bronze by artist Lisa Perry which overlooks the paddock where he saddled so many winners–a lasting tribute to a true Oklahoma Horse Racing Legend.