'It's much safer' | A team keeps jockeys safe and healthy at Derby 150

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The run for the roses features two athletes: the horses and the jockeys.

While the horses take center stage, those wearing the silks are still at extreme risk of accidents and injuries.

That’s why Churchill Downs has a small team to help the jockeys stay at peak performance.

This is a rest day for jockey, Rey Gutierrez. But this time of year, it's never a day off.

“Really about keeping my fitness at the top level. It's important that I stepped up my game and prepared for anything,” Gutierrez said.

He loves the sport. He grew up around it and he loves to share it: the good and the bad.

“Falling off a horse, we only have (a helmet) and to go 35-40 miles per hour, the trauma of hitting the ground. The whiplash of your head and coming back up… All we know how to say as jockeys is, ‘I'm good. I'm good.’”

For all the jockeys racing and for all the injuries they may even potentially face, there is a small team here at Churchill downs to keep them healthy.

“We’ve been stocking up our stuff for patron care and jockeys,” Norton Health's Dr. Luke Beggs said.

He’s one of two medical directors whose sole focus is to keep the jockeys healthy.

“They get injured just like any other athlete and sometimes a lot worse. It’s pretty high stakes,” Beggs said. “Things like fractures, broken bones, and then all your strains and sprains. Head injuries, you know, concussion is a big one.”

Their work starts long before Derby week: gathering supplies, performing physicals on new jockeys, checking with the clerk of scales to document rider weights and tying up braces and loose ends.

Hopefully they won't need to transport a jockey frontside to their triage area but Beggs says they're ready regardless.

“That week especially, it's pretty intense. There's a lot of us on the track, some of the most elite jockeys," Beggs said. "They recognize when it's time to take a break from riding to get back to health and play the longer game than worry about the next race."

“With all the new things that have been implemented in horse racing routes, this country is much safer than it was," Gutierrez said.

And when the winner’s circle is at stake, peace of mind goes a long way.

Gutierrez doesn't have a Derby or Oaks mount just yet - but he's hoping for one.

More Kentucky Derby 150 coverage: