Jockeys' Safety Net Is Lost

But the Birzers -- Gary, 29, and his wife, Amy -- were told by the Jockeys' Guild that there was no catastrophic insurance, that the old policy hadn't been renewed.

Gary Birzer, who suffered a severed spinal cord and is paralyzed from the waist down, has already incurred medical expenses estimated at $500,000, with at least a year of rehab ahead of him.

In the aftermath, jockeys nationwide, many of them riding without medical insurance, are asking for a financial review of the guild. Petitions were recently circulated from Belmont Park to Santa Anita, asking for an external audit of the guild's books.

The guild, which says it represents more than 1,200 riders, has a history of internal bickering. There was a schism three years ago, when Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day resigned as president after Chris McCarron and a few other riders had ousted the popular John Giovanni as national manager. Now, Wayne Gertmenian, a Pepperdine economics professor who succeeded ex-jockey Giovanni, and Gertmenian's Matrix Capital Associates, a management-consulting firm, are under fire.

"It's the same now as it used to be under the old administration," said Ed King, a New Jersey jockey and, until this year, guild treasurer. "There's a lack of information. When things are done, you wonder just who is making all the decisions. We seem to have people there who aren't doing anything more than just drawing their paychecks. When you start to ask questions, they look at you like you're doing something wrong."

Gertmenian, who calls himself "Dr. G.," denied the contentions.

"We've had an independent audit, and we're satisfied with the results," he said. "There's a very small group of people trying to ruin what good work we've done, and they're the same people who caused trouble in the past. It's all nonsense. When I took over, there were 600 or so members. Now we have double that -- almost all the riders who ride on a regular basis -- and we added a rider like Corey Nakatani just last week. One-half of 1% of this organization might be unhappy."