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Melancon calls it a career Larry Melancon began riding Quarter Horses when he was nine years old and got his jockey's license to ride Thoroughbreds at age 16 in 1971. On Sunday, five weeks shy of his 55th birthday, Melancon will saddle up one last time riding War Clan (War Front) for longtime client Bill Mott in the 6TH race at Churchill Downs. "I had no idea that this would last this long," Melancon said Friday morning. "I got to ride some good horses and those were the ones that kept you going and getting up in the mornings." Melancon first came to Churchill Downs in 1974 and has won at least one race every meet since except for the three he did not ride -- Fall 1974, Spring 1979 and Fall 1993 -- when he was sidelined by fractured ribs. In all, Melancon has ridden 941 winners at Churchill Downs, third all time behind only Pat Day (2,482) and Calvin Borel (1,019). His 46 stakes wins at Churchill Downs rank fourth all time. For his career, Melancon has 2,857 victories with more than $60.6 million in purses. Melancon, who has three winners at the current meet, rode in the Kentucky Derby (G1) four times, the first in 1976. "I was on Amano, and he was third at the head of the stretch," Melancon said of the James Padgett-trained runner who finished fourth in the field of eight. "The horse that ran third, Elocutionist, I told them they ought to go on to the Preakness S. (G1) because LeRoy (Jolley) was going to send Honest Pleasure after Bold Forbes and that's what he did and Elocutionist ran by both of them." That was Melancon's best Kentucky Derby finish as he wound up 14th on Bachelor Beau in 1986, 10th on Smilin Singin Sam in 1994 and 16th on Keats in 2001. Melancon considers his biggest Churchill Downs victory the 2001 Stephen Foster H. (G2) on Guided Tour. "He beat Captain Steve that day," Melancon said. "It is kind of hard to pick one top horse that I rode here. I rode a horse named Rapid Gray and I also rode Weekend Surprise (dam of 1992 Horse of the Year A.P. Indy)." Despite those races and victories here, the first race Melancon said he would pop into a DVD player for his grandson was one at the Fair Grounds in 1999. "I won a stake for my mom with a Louisiana-bred named Kazliv," Melancon said. "It was the Gentilly H. I've got a few other tapes, but that would be the first one." Melancon, who has only had 15 mounts this meet, plans on staying in the racing business somewhere down the road. As for his immediate future, Melancon said, "I don't know yet. I'm going to take a little time off and visit my grandson."
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