Introducing…Canada’s Own
World Champion Female Jockey…
Joan Phipps
“Behind Every Legend Lies an Impossible Dream.”
Sometimes a dream picks you and you must simply follow where it leads. A remarkable story of love, courage, hope, tenacity and ultimately faith in a battle to survive. This is the story of Joan Phipps, a young prairie girl who struggled to rise above her upbringing and personal demons that haunted her every step of the way. You can run, gallop, even race through life, but you can’t hide.
Exhibition Park (1982)
Welcome to our Website where we’ll be documenting the making of…
“THE JOAN PHIPPS STORY”
-the book and film-
The Joan Phipps Story “Trailer” (Click below)
Joan Phipps blazed a trail for women jockeys the world over through her tenacity, spunk, drive, and pure talent. Her compassion for animals and all underdogs have made her, both in and out of the thoroughbred racing industry, a CANADIAN HERO.
Joan’s had an extraordinary life: from a youngster on the racetrack to the legendary race of her life in New Zealand that changed the world for women jockeys to her personal battles with demons that nearly crippled her. Joan is the Saskatchewan girl who had it all, gave it to others without reservation, lost it all and then found herself in the battle of her life to find her way home. The Joan Phipps Story will make you stand up and cheer for the underdogs and for the woman who made it her mission to give them a voice.
The 2017 Saskatchewan Hall of Fame Video…
We’re Making it Happen!
Exhibition Park, BC 1982 (Joan #8 in the yellow and black silks)
The Joan Phipps Project was actually started back in the 1980’s when Joan first started telling us stories about her incredible life and experiences.
At that time, we, who come from the theatre world, were doing a show together. In the midst of these rehearsals galloped Joan Phipps. She was a whirlwind of energy and she had a life story that was almost unbelievable. As anyone who knows Joan will tell you, she is a wild story-teller. She has a way of making you feel like you were there – like the story was happening to you. You can smell the track, feel the pulse of the horse, the rush of the wind against you.
In fact, it made our brains hurt.
It was hard to keep track of how much Joan did, how many places she went, how many barriers she broke in so short a time. How could one person have done all of that?
As the stories of Joan’s life came together we could see that she was a person whose journey was far beyond the scope of an average life. It was EXTRAORDINARY.
As the years went by, almost 30 now to be exact, we have remained life-long friends. The story-telling continues and there are so many of them with the threads of Joan’s life weaving together into a beautiful, colourful tapestry. But over the years a few have desperately unraveled at their seams too.
We heard heartbreaking chapters. We heard tragic chapters. We sometimes didn’t understand the chapters because it wasn’t the right time for Joan to tell us all the parts, so they didn’t make sense. Those parts were too hard for her to tell.
She moved. Isolated herself on the other side of the country in Salt Spring Island in BC. She lived there for sixteen years surrounded by the love of Bubba her miniature stallion…
and her calico cat, Patches…
along with Joan Duffy’s prized horses Shema and Sage Flower who she cared for and who are now sleeping peacefully under the large fir tree in the middle of her property.
Last but not least there was Moo, a short-term resident bull. Don’t ask.
Together they were family. And together they got through it.
Yes, there were desperate times, desperate phone calls and sometimes for long stretches, no phone calls at all because a lot of the time Joan had no phone. But during those years the stories were not lost. The stories were always there to ground us. And Joan emerged again. With even more unbelievable stories to add to her remarkable life.
She was strong now, but in a very different way.
It was during this time on Salt Spring that we re-introduced the idea of writing a book on her life and producing a film. Joan was receptive. It wasn’t like we were prepared to take no for an answer anyway, so it was pretty great that she got on this horse with us and was ready to ride.
We all realized, without a single doubt, that this was the time to tell her story to the world, a story that every person who hears it will be the better for. We know this because we are the better for knowing her.
It has CHANGED us.
Finally, in November of 2016, she made the difficult decision to leave the island and return to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to be closer to her family. After traveling the world over, she is finally home where it all began.
If you know us, then you can confirm that we are crazy driven women. We can’t let go of an idea if we believe in it.
Our Beliefs About This Project
- Joan’s story needs to be told to a larger audience than us.
- We need to document Joan’s life so the information is never lost.
- We need to publish her Life Story. (This is the scary one we’re now on )
- We need to produce a film about it. (Because we are artists, we really like this one!)
And lastly…We believe we have a fierce responsibility to tell the story honestly the way it was lived.
Fort Erie, Ontario.
Join Us On The INSIDE TRACK...
You can follow The Joan Phipps Story on this, her website, and her facebook page as we share the ups and downs of makin’ it happen. Please come back often.
For those of you who know Joan… A big thank you for your support, love and loyalty.
And for those meeting Joan for the first time – Welcome! Join us in our race to the finish!
Thanks to our growing family of supporters
Follow Joan on INSTAGRAM. Click the Instagram link in the “Social Links” section on the bottom of this page for INSTANT access. Or look her up at @thejoanphippsstory
About the Site
We hope you explore the site to learn more about Joan and follow the progress of the Book and Film chronicling her amazing life!
For those of you who are meeting Joan for the first time..
Get Ready for the Ride of Your Life.
(Trinidad, 1974)
January 25, 2018 at 3:17 pm
I look forward to this production. Best wishes Joan.
Wayne Smith
Cousin of Joans
September 9, 2018 at 6:49 pm
Thank you so much Wayne. We’re hoping to get some updates completed soon on her website and greatly appreciate your support and any help you can give us to spread the word. Come back and visit us often. All the best.
June 1, 2018 at 7:06 pm
As Pat Hosie’s sister, I am very interested in hearing about Joan’s journey.
September 9, 2018 at 6:45 pm
Hi Lynn… We passed on your message and email to Joan. She was absolutely thrilled to get your note and I’m sure you will be hearing from her. I know how important Pat was to Joan and how upset she was to learn of her death. It was because of Pat that Joan believed she could chase her dream. From what I recall, Joan and Karen hitched their hopes onto Pat’s coat tails as they headed down the TransCanada in “ol’ Greenie” for the big time in Assiniboia Downs! She was instrumental in Joan’s success. Joan would be the first to admit that! Great to see you on her website.
August 25, 2018 at 7:07 pm
I would be interested in knowing when Joan’s book will be released. My sister was a friend of Joan’s when they were both very young in the 1970’s. My sister, Glenna Miller, spoke of Joan often back in those early years. Glenna worked as a groom and exerciser at Woodbine and other race tracks. There were a circle of friends back then that worked in thoroughbred racing and the tracks across Canada. Glenna and Joan, I believed lost contact when their careers took different directions by the 1980’s. Glenna is now deceased, however, I would be interested in reading Joan’s book. Thank you.
September 9, 2018 at 5:14 pm
Hi Arlene… Just received notice of your post to The Joan Phipps Story website. I personally passed on your email to Joan, and she was thrilled to have a way to contact you. She will be in touch. She has been searching for a way to get in touch with you since she found out about your sister Glenna’s death. I am an administrator on her website, and fyi – am hoping to update her website this week. Please come back and visit us as we work toward getting her book published and a film done on her life.
January 26, 2019 at 1:12 am
I am so thrilled too here about about this and hope too be able too hear it all. As a young man in the seventies I always in Awh of Joan. Her brother was my best friend and like family. Joan was such a free spirit, with the wild side that made us all wanna be around her. She was a fireball with a smile that would make anyone forget about their problems and just want too hear whatever she had too say. I lost track of her when her and Glenna left on a mission too be the Legand she became. I miss them both and hope one day meet up with Joan again and tell how proud she made her OLD friends. Tks for telling the rest of the world about my friend. Scott Williams