Viola Thomas (born 1939) was a 3-time Canadian

barrel racing Barrel racing is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to run a cloverleaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time. In collegiate and professional ranks, it is usually a women's event, though both sexes compete at amateur a ...

champion and one of the first women to be licensed as a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. She was the first licensed woman jockey to ride in both

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, third woman to ride as a licensed jockey in Canada, and 17th woman jockey in North America. She was inducted into the

Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame The Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame (CPRHF) was founded in 1979 to honour and distinguish outstanding contestants, builders, and animals in the Canadian rodeo arena. Inductees are qualified by the Canadian Rodeo Historical Association. The C ...

in 2014.

Early life

Viola Thomas was born in 1939 in

, Canada. She grew up in

Millarville Millarville is a hamlet (place), hamlet in Alberta, Canada within the Foothills County. It is located in the Rocky Mountain Foothills, foothills of the Canadian Rockies at an elevation of . The hamlet is located northwest of the intersection of ...

, near

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, on her parents' ranch. Her father was a

farrier A farrier is a specialist in equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses' hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves, if necessary. A farrier combines some blacksmith's skills (fabricating, adapting, and adjus ...

and staff sergeant with Lord Strathcona's Horse Regiment. By the time she was four years old, Thomas was riding horses and from age ten was competing with male riders on the class B race circuit. As a teenager, she competed in trail rides as well as steer decorating, an event which requires the rider to dismount and adorn a steer horn with a ribbon.

Career

Thomas continued to compete as an adult appearing in rodeo events in Canada, Arizona, California, and Texas. In 1958, she won the Canadian

Barrel Racing Barrel racing is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to run a cloverleaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time. In collegiate and professional ranks, it is usually a women's event, though both sexes compete at amateur a ...

Championship and repeated the feat in 1959 and 1961. In 1962, she suffered a broken collarbone and some ribs during an event in Millarville and as she could not ride, turned to breaking and training horses. She also worked as an "exercise boy" conditioning horses to prepared them for other riders and worked for a California sheriff's department breaking stallions. From 1964, Thomas began speaking out about the legal disparity for male and female riders. In 1968, she challenged a rule that did not admit women to the class A race circuit, requiring them to remain on the B circuit or compete in the bush leagues. That year, she also began taking veterinary courses at Loma Linda College in

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...

and also competed for Canada in the first International Powder Puff Derby, at South Park Oval near

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, bringing home the silver medal. When licensed in 1969, she became the first woman in Canada licensed as a

in Alberta and

and the second to be licensed in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, after Mary Cowan. In North America, she was the 17th woman allowed to be licensed and in Canada was the third woman to receive a jockey's license. After obtaining her license, she often had to convince owners, trainers, or other riders to allow her to race. Returning to training horses in the late 1970s, Thomas worked as a full-time trainer for a rancher in Millarville, winning several events through the early 1980s. She continued training until 1987, when she received a skull fracture in a training accident. Thomas was inducted into the

in 2014.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * and * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Viola 1939 births Living people Sportspeople from Alberta Canadian barrel racers Canadian female equestrians Canadian horse trainers Canadian female jockeys Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame inductees Canadian jockeys