Clear the Track! With Murray State’s Centennial Homecoming just two weeks away, it is only fitting that we talk about one of the most fun, fast and fascinating traditions in all of collegiate athletics – Racer One. Joining us for Episode 8 are 2022-2023 Racer One Jockey Madison Kirby and Racer One Faculty/Staff Advisor Dr. Shea Porr.

Dr. Porr is heading into her tenth year on the faculty within Murray State’s Hutson School of Agriculture. She began as the Department Head for the Animal and Equine Science program in 2018, taking the “reigns” as Murray State’s Racer One Coordinator that same year.

Madison, an agriculture education major in her first season jockeying Racer One, is a junior from Fisherville, Kentucky, located in Jefferson County near Louisville. Born to race, Madison has been riding since she was just three years old and spent much of her childhood watching her father race and train horses under the twin spires of Churchill Downs, home of the famed Kentucky Derby.           

The current Racer One, whose given name is actually Vegas Impulse, holds a special distinction among his peers. He is the first Racer One since the inception of the tradition in 1976 actually born and raised on Murray State’s campus.

Learn more about the beginnings of this tradition on Murray State’s campus, how jockeys and horses are selected for this prestigious role, what type of training it takes to prepare our most recognizable mascot for his time in the spotlight and why Racer One has become as important to ag education as he is to school and community pride in this episode of the Racer Alumni Podcast.

Sponsored by the Murray State University Alumni Association and hosted by Murray State Director of Alumni Relations Carrie McGinnis and 2019 Murray State graduate Jordan Lowe, The Racer Alumni Podcast: Stories from the Finest Place We Know gives you the chance to connect with your alma mater and others within our global alumni family. Racers are 80,000-strong. New episodes drop on the 1st and 15th of each month. Subscribe today and spread the word! Not a member of the Alumni Association? Membership makes this podcast possible. Join today at murraystate.edu/alumni! 

This podcast was produced with the help of Jim Ray Consulting Services.  Jim is a 1992 Murray State graduate. He can help you with the concept development, implementation, production and distribution of your own podcast, just as he has done for the MSUAA.

The views and opinions expressed during the Racer Alumni Podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Murray State University, its administration or the faculty at large. The episodes are designed to be inspiring and entertaining.