Biography
Donna Barton Brothers was born into horse racing. Her mother, Patti Barton, was one of the first half dozen women to be licensed as a jockey in the United States—that was in 1969. Throughout Patti Barton’s career (and until four years after her retirement) she was the leading female rider in the nation by number of wins. Patti retired from racing in 1984 with just over 1,200 wins.
Both Donna’s brother, Jerry, and sister, Leah, were jockeys, but by the time Donna started riding professionally in 1987, her mother, brother, and sister had all retired from riding. That’s when Donna’s racing career took off. She rode from 1987 to 1998 and retired in 1998 as the second leading female jockey in the United States by money earned. She holds that title still, with 1,130 wins and more than $18 million in purse earnings.
Donna’s Early Years (click to enlarge)
In 1999, she began dabbling in television commentary, and since 2000, she has been a sports analyst and commentator for NBC Sports, covering the Breeder’s Cup Championships, World Equestrian Games, PBR World Championships, Kentucky Land Rover (Rolex) Three Day Event, the Triple Crown races and more. To date, she has covered 23 consecutive Kentucky Derbies, including the historic victories that took place in 2015 when American Pharaoh won the Triple Crown for the first time in 37 years, followed three years later by Justify’s domination of the Triple Crown races in 2018!
“Brothers plies her trade not on the sidelines but on a saddle, as NBC’s on-track reporter for horse racing. Year after year, she does excellent work, interviewing jockeys before and after Triple Crown races, always with an eye toward providing information for viewers.”
(Excerpt from Sports Illustrated. For the full story click here.)
Brothers is also the author of Inside Track: Insider’s Guide to Horse Racing, published in 2011 and then updated in 2014 and again in 2020. The book is geared toward bridging the gap between novice horse racing fans and the sometimes complicated ins and outs of the sport of thoroughbred racing. The book is now in its third printing. In 2014, Donna was honored by Sports Illustrated Magazine when she was awarded Best Sideline Reporter of the Year for her on-track reporting.
She currently serves as New Client Liaison for Starlight and StarLadies Racing and remains an active ambassador for horse racing, the sport she has been involved with since her earliest memory.
Little known fact: Donna received her certification to teach Bikram Yoga in 2016 and has practiced yoga for 28 years. She started working out when she became a jockey as a way to be as strong and fit as her (mostly male) competitors, but she loved the feeling of feeling well! And so her workouts have continued: yoga, weight training, spinning, sculpting… you name it. As she says on her Healthy Living page, it’s not about “looking good.” It’s about “living well”!
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A big believer in giving back, she also takes an active role in the community in multiple roles, from advocating for thoroughbred aftercare to supporting backstretch resource services. Donna currently serves on the Executive Board of the Brain Injury Alliance of Kentucky and is a former Board member for the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation, and the Backside Learning Center. She continues to advocate for these organizations through her fundraising efforts. Brothers has also served as a Keynote Speaker at many events, talking about horse racing and/or inspiring people with the story of her own journey. To book Donna for a public speaking event, please reach out to her here.
When she’s not on location, or in meetings, she loves to spend time with her two dogs and her husband, Frank (not necessarily in that order!). She also skis, practices yoga, is always reading something, and loves to travel. In the past few years she’s been to Italy (three times), France, Spain, South Africa, Costa Rica (twice), Switzerland, Russia, Sweden, Finland, Amsterdam, Germany, Mexico, Canada, and many, many points around the United States, often while covering many of the nationally televised equestrian events.
Finally, a book that explains the nutritional implications of drinking alcohol! The gut/brain connection is real, and this book describes how food choices and your microbiome may be driving you to reach for a drink even when your brain says, “Not today.” It also breaks alcohol use into Four Categories: 1. Nonchalant Driker, 2. Social Drinker, 3. Stress Drinker, and 4. Habitual Drinker, and then goes on to address the biological response to alcohol for people in each category. If you’re “sober curious” or wish to cut back on alcohol consumption, you need to read this book. The Audible version comes with a PDF link—or you can just buy the book, which already includes everything you need ❤️
We had so much fun at Big Sky Ski Resort! First, I am always grateful to spend time with my brother (Jerry) and sister (Leah). Had a great time with everyone in the Louisville Ski Club. Yes, we rode the tram and skied Liberty Bowl, took a group photo at the Big Sky sign, (off of the Swift Current lift) and at the base so we could include the non-skiers. Had dinner at the Montana Yurt Dinner (yummy and fun—plus, we had a fox visit us!), and part of our group visited Yellowstone National Park (I declined—because… skiing 🤷🏼♀️). Fortunate to have a friend with a place at the Yellowstone Club, so my brother and I got to ski there one day, too. To wrap up my trip, I watched “Ski Bum” (the Warren Miller story) on the flight home. Highly recommend it if you love skiing and the Warren Miller films. 38 people on the trip, and we had loads of fun with no serious injuries. Mission accomplished!
Merry Christmas Everyone! I hope this Holiday Season has you feeling Merry & Bright🎄and that you can enjoy time spent with the ones you love ❤️.
We had a Ball! Thank you, everyone, for coming out to support the Brain Injury Alliance of Kentucky (BIAK) and their excellent work. Thank you to Pamela and Lauren from Splendid Events. We couldn’t do this event without you—and wouldn’t want to! Thank you, Tim & Lori Laird, Kevin Harned, and Michael Lattin. Your passion and planning make this event great! I am grateful to Mary Varga for inspiring us EVERY year and for choosing Officer Nick Wilt as your 2024 Mary Varga Award recipient. You and Officer Wilt are amazing. Thank you to Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day for attending and leading our dinner invocation. We all attended to support the brain injured in Kentucky, but after the dinner and Live Auction, we stayed for dancing!!! Thank you to my sweet husband, adorable Mother, and friends who joined me. Time to pick out a dress for the 2025 Brain Ball 🤩!
My secret to optimal health, vitality, and strong digestion? My twice annual cleanse. I do the @lifespa Colorado Cleanse every Spring and Fall. It’s an easy two week cleanse that involves 3 meals a day (you will not go hungry!!!), Ayurvedic herbs, and ideally, lymph-drained spa treatments. I felt SO blessed this year to discover @holistechlife right here in Louisville! I was able to add 4 days of body treatments to my Fall Cleanse and I felt SO MUCH better after. If you’re looking to get back on track, check out @holistechlife and @lifespa ❤️. You’ll be back to the optimum you you’re meant to be in no time!
To our Matriarch: Happy 80th Birthday 🎂!!! You’ll always be my hero, role model, mentor, and Wise One. I am eternally grateful for your guidance, support, and love. And I look forward to celebrating MANY more birthdays with you ❤️!!!
Great to have my brother Jerry here this week ❤️. Great racing, hiking, and drinking. No photos of the latter 😎.
What a summer of fun it’s been—and we’re not even done! From wedding dress shopping for @mackenziebeyerle at @kleinfeldbridal to the @belmontstakes at Saratoga (aka, Belatoga), Hootie & the Blowfish and Dave Matthews Band, hiking in the Adirondacks, the Horse Racing Women’s Summit (@racingwmnsummit), friends in town, the Fashion Show(s), @hamiltonmusical in NYC, the NYRTC Brunch… and we’re not even at Travers yet! A trip down Memory Lane felt necessary…
I had such a beautiful time visiting my New Mexico family ❤️. Anne French was the only mother I had from age 3 to 6, and Billy, Tommy, Jimmy, and David were my brothers. Clarence French was my dad. While my stay with them was temporary, my love for them endures. During this recent visit, I reveled in the stories and laughter, the beautiful sunrise meditations, and the plane ride with my brother Jim. We flew over the burned areas in Ruidoso 😔, the lava fields outside of Alamogordo, and could see the White Sands from above. I’ll miss you all! Until we convene again.
Kentucky Derby 150 was fun and memorable ❤️. It was fun to make the @gardenandgun feed in my red suit 🥰. So good to see my brother and catch up with friends @lifewithmybowie @shannonwavenews @annie_moves … and what a finish!!! Loving my new favorite line @generationloveclothing that I wore for both the @kentuckyderby and @preaknessstakes 😍. #livingthedream