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Racing Time: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Liberation
Racing Time is a book of searing intensity shining a healing light into the wounds of loss. Most of all, it is a celebration of life-long friendships with three men--each outspoken, authentic, and a lover of the out-of-doors. In a period of nine months, Smithwick delivers the eulogies of these three who have been his nexus to the world of steeplechasing and Thoroughbred racing. Written to stand on its own, Racing Time is the third of a trilogy, following the memoirs Racing My Father and Flying Change. It continues with the vivid prose and sensory descriptions of the first two books, then takes a different path, delving deeply into the psyche of men, showing one man's love and respect for another, sometimes his anger and disappointment, and always his sense of loyalty and wonder. Smithwick takes the reader through the joy and excitement of shared youthful experiences, into the camaraderie of adulthood, and ends with the clap of a thundercloud calling on us all to live life to the fullest.
496 pages, hardcover
Published July 1, 2019
3 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Smithwick
6 books34 followersPatrick Smithwick's FLYING CHANGE won the $10,000 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award on April 10, 2013 and accepted it at Castleton Lyons farm in Lexington, KY. A Washington Post editor was the judge. Submissions came from all over the globe.
Smithwick has been working with horses all of his life. At a very young age he began working with his father, the legendary steeplechase jockey, A.P. Smithwick, who became a trainer after retiring from riding. Smithwick then worked his way through school and college by exercising Thoroughbreds at major East Coast racetracks and riding steeplechase races at such venues as Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course, and hunt meets such as the Maryland Hunt Club and the Grand National.
Smithwick received a Bachelor or Arts from Johns Hopkins University in 1973 followed by a Master of Arts in creative writing from Hollins College in 1975. After working in the newspaper business for several years, Smithwick began teaching English, philosophy, photography, and journalism at both the high school and collegiate levels. In 1988, he received a master of liberal arts from Johns Hopkins University and in 2000 he received his degree in education for ministry from University of the South. During this time, Smithwick taught as well as held the position of director of publications and public relations at two different schools.
He has now turned his two biggest passions into two business - writing and training. Thoroughbred steeplechase horse and riding. He also gives talks, teaches part-time, and does freelance writing.
In addition to Racing My Father, Smithwick has written The Art of Healing: Union Memorial Hospital and Gilman Voices, 1897-1997. He has also written for many publications including Mid-Atlantic Country, The Maryland Horse, Horsemen's Journal, and The Chronicle of the Horse.
Smithwick resides on the horse farm where he was raised in Monkton, Maryland, with his wife Ansley. They have three children: Paddy, Andrew and Eliza.
Smithwick has been working with horses all of his life. At a very young age he began working with his father, the legendary steeplechase jockey, A.P. Smithwick, who became a trainer after retiring from riding. Smithwick then worked his way through school and college by exercising Thoroughbreds at major East Coast racetracks and riding steeplechase races at such venues as Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course, and hunt meets such as the Maryland Hunt Club and the Grand National.
Smithwick received a Bachelor or Arts from Johns Hopkins University in 1973 followed by a Master of Arts in creative writing from Hollins College in 1975. After working in the newspaper business for several years, Smithwick began teaching English, philosophy, photography, and journalism at both the high school and collegiate levels. In 1988, he received a master of liberal arts from Johns Hopkins University and in 2000 he received his degree in education for ministry from University of the South. During this time, Smithwick taught as well as held the position of director of publications and public relations at two different schools.
He has now turned his two biggest passions into two business - writing and training. Thoroughbred steeplechase horse and riding. He also gives talks, teaches part-time, and does freelance writing.
In addition to Racing My Father, Smithwick has written The Art of Healing: Union Memorial Hospital and Gilman Voices, 1897-1997. He has also written for many publications including Mid-Atlantic Country, The Maryland Horse, Horsemen's Journal, and The Chronicle of the Horse.
Smithwick resides on the horse farm where he was raised in Monkton, Maryland, with his wife Ansley. They have three children: Paddy, Andrew and Eliza.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 9, 2019
This is a fine memoir, but what I have enjoyed most about Patrick Smithwick's works is that they provide a window into the world of the Maryland horse industry. Smithwick's stories read like fiction, yet the fact that they are real, about real people, real events, makes them that much more engaging, gripping, and entertaining. I hope there will be more as this master of horses and prose continues his journey.
April 29, 2021
Grief is the price we pay for love
Mr. Southwick captures the intensity of lifelong friendships and how loss can change and even elevate the lives of those left behind. Beautifully written.I particularly loved the descriptions of farm life, horse training and racing. It left me somewhat nostalgic for a milieu that is diminishing. I admit to a degree of bias as I know the setting quite well. In fact, my own horse lives at Uncle Mikey's former farm.
My one slight criticism is that perhaps more attention should have been given to editing.There is a tendency to what I call "verbal flabbiness" in some sections. I know how hard it is to leave paragraphs you sweat blood over out, but sometimes it serves the end product well.
Mr. Southwick captures the intensity of lifelong friendships and how loss can change and even elevate the lives of those left behind. Beautifully written.I particularly loved the descriptions of farm life, horse training and racing. It left me somewhat nostalgic for a milieu that is diminishing. I admit to a degree of bias as I know the setting quite well. In fact, my own horse lives at Uncle Mikey's former farm.
My one slight criticism is that perhaps more attention should have been given to editing.There is a tendency to what I call "verbal flabbiness" in some sections. I know how hard it is to leave paragraphs you sweat blood over out, but sometimes it serves the end product well.
April 20, 2020
Probably my favorite of his 3 books but be prepared for the painful loss of 3 friends. These segments were probably very cathartic for him and,because by now you think of him as a friend,you grieve with him. Not all gloom,I enjoyed his description of life as a teacher.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews