Jockey Cam Offers Fans Unique Breeders' Cup Experience

With COVID-19 leaving Keeneland fanless for this year’s Breeders’ Cup, fans are being given virtual ways to feel like they’re at the track—including live video from jockey helmet cameras that will let them feel like they’re on horseback.

It’s hard for the fan to relate to the jockey traveling at about 40 mph on a horse and the skill of each, said former steeplechase jockey and exercise rider Nathan Horrocks, now of Equine Productions and its Jockey Cam.

“If we can put the audience in that position, they’ll have a better understanding,” he said.

The Jockey Cam is part of Breeders’ Cup’s #MyBreedersCup, a combination of digital and social media offerings for fans. It will be used on up to two jockeys per race by NBC Sports for its broadcasts on NBC, NBCSN, and the network’s online platforms.

“The Jockey Cams will provide a unique in-person, on-the-track perspective,” Lindsay Schanzer, producer of NBC Sports’ Breeders’ Cup coverage, said in an emailed statement. “So, viewers will see what the jockey sees, get a feel for the speed of the race. … Basically, it’s as close as you can get just short of getting actual mud in your face.”

Besides Jockey Cam, another major component of #MyBreedersCup is Contender Cam, a camera dedicated to each horse in each race from the time they arrive in the paddock to the gate with feeds available on breederscup.com.

“We are thrilled to introduce new and exciting opportunities for them to engage with the upcoming world championships from the comfort of their homes," Breeders’ Cup President Drew Fleming said in a release.

With Jockey Cam, after his work in the horse industry, Horrocks said he and two partners founded Equine Productions, which makes commercials, documentaries, and features for networks and horse industry groups.

That led to Jockey Cam in 2015, following on other predecessors’ in-race cameras, to show the skill of the horse and rider and the split-second decisions that go into racing. “It looks a lot easier on the large screen,” Horrocks said.

The Equine Productions Jockey Cam has been used at races all over and first was used at the Breeders’ Cup in 2017 at Del Mar, he said.

This year, it will be available live on the Breeders’ Cup app and breederscup.com, in addition to use by NBC.

While Jockey Cam always was going to be offered this year, the no in-person fans decision led to the addition of having a camera on the jockey of a second horse, Horrocks said.

Of the dozens of cameras being used to give fans more views, Horrocks said, “They’re all storytellers and we’re just one.”

Jockey Cam has been safety-approved by the British Horseracing Authority, which Horrocks said has helped clear its use in other jurisdictions, and his firm has worked with The Jockeys’ Guild. “It was very important to us that this was safe to wear,” he said.

“To date, it hasn’t caused any issue, and we’re pretty confident that it won’t,” said Barbara Borden, the chief state steward for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. “It gives the public a different view that some of them seem to enjoy.”

She said the biggest concern from a steward's perspective was that the camera not be real time in case of an incident. Horrocks said the feed is operated on a delay to prevent that.

Horrocks said his company is working on a new version of the camera that could incorporate other data, like speed and stride length.

“Who knows where we can take this next,” he said.