LOUISVILLE, Ky. — “I love live television and I love live sports, so that’s my jam,” Jessica Stith says emphatically of her behind-the-camera Utility work for TVG. She especially loves working at Keeneland, her home track, but as she says, “How can you pass up the chance to work at Derby?”

Churchill Downs offers workout shows for the two weeks leading up to the Derby, so Jessica is double-booked for the last of week of Keeneland leading into Derby Week. At Churchill Downs, most of the horses come out early in the morning to train, leading to long days of work. However, she says the hard work is worthwhile to be able to be around the world’s best three-year-old horses, the best trainers, and the best riders.

Jessica doesn’t generally get to watch the horses because she is behind the scenes spotting them to ensure they are on camera for viewers. “It’s rare for me to have the opportunity to actually see the horses moving, to see how they look and see how fluid they are,” Jessica says. “I don’t get to do that a lot, but this year, every time Messier galloped past me he caught my eye. He was a gorgeous mover.”

In hindsight, she wishes they had gotten more cameras on Derby winner Rich Strike. She had the chance to introduce herself to his groom Jerry, who was a pleasure for her to meet, but she opted to come back later for a stall shot – which didn’t happen, unfortunately.

Another unique perk of her job is getting to see firsthand how the trainers and owners react to the post positions they draw. She’s responsible for bringing them to the camera for their interviews. She has realized that her hard work is valued, as she has come to be trusted with post information before it’s made public, and she is thrilled to be part of the team getting that information out to the public.

She says that this year’s Derby is notable for the sense of comradery between everyone at Churchill Downs and the media who came in from other networks as well. “There was a sense of everyone working together this year, perhaps because of Covid’s impact the last couple of years,” says Jessica. “There was a real sense of community before, during, and after Derby.”

This was the first year that Jessica was working while Derby was running, and she was on the track as the horses flew by. Usually she watches from the backside barn area with her family, which she says is her favorite place to be, where they can hear the screaming fans as they wait in anticipation for the horses to come down the backstretch. “It’s a fun position to be in back there because we get to see the riders before they go into the final turn, making their final adjustments.” She also got to go to the Winner’s Circle for the first time this year and was fortunate to be there with her mom, who was shooting photos. Another highlight for Jessica was getting to interview a lot of celebrities, including locals like Louisville mayor Greg Fischer and Governor Andy Beshear, as well as big-name stars like Jack Harlow and Richie Sambora.

Jessica marvels that she is now getting to do things with television that she’d long been interested in. Her specialized knowledge of the racetrack and horse racing has allowed her to segue into television production work. “I’ve been able to climb up the ladder and do unique things, but I’ll always want to be involved in the horse racing aspect of television,” she says. “It’s fun to dabble in other sports, but I love that I get to be out there sharing the sport that I love and I’m most passionate about.”

Jessica thinks of herself and other industry insiders as “walking ambassadors for our disciplines in the horse community.” Her parents taught her when she was young that you must be willing to teach industry newbies. She remembers that her mom gently admonished her when she was a young girl for thinking that tourists at the track were asking silly questions, and it was a lesson she took to heart. “We have a responsibility,” she says. “If we want people to respect this industry, we have to teach them and be patient with them while they’re learning.”

There’s no doubt that Jessica has learned a ton about horses and racing along the way, and she realizes that she’ll never know everything – which makes continuing in her line of work all the more exciting.

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