Ed Bowen
Edward L. Bowen is an award-winning journalist. His career at The Blood-Horse magazine spanned 30 years, seventeen of those years as managing editor and five as editor-in-chief. Prior to his work at The Blood-Horse Bowen was editor at The Canadian Horse. He is the author of twenty-one books on Thoroughbred history, including works on breeding and racing. His most recent title, The Lucky Thirteen: The Winners of America’s Triple Crown of Horse Racing (published in 2019) offers a comprehensive history of every Triple Crown winner to date. His other titles explore the history of winning mares, standout trainers, and successful breeders; a complete bibliography of Bowen’s works is included below.
An unquestionable authority in the industry, Bowen has written the foreword for numerous equine works, including: Peter Winants’ The Sporting Art of Franklin B. Voss and Genevieve Baird Lacer’s Edward Troye: Painter Of Thoroughbred Stories.
For his writing and research, Bowen is the recipient of numerous awards, including: an Eclipse Award for magazine writing, Kentucky Thoroughbred Association’s Charles Engelhard Award, Pimlico Race Course’s Old Hilltop Award, National Turf Writers Association’s Walter Haight Award.
In addition to his writing career, Bowen served as full-time president of the Grayson-Jockey Club. Leading the organization from 1994-2018, Bowen worked to secure private funding for veterinary research that culminated in annual awards of $1,000,000, assisting in the annual funding of 15 - 18 university research projects.
Bowen, born in Welsh, West Virginia, grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and attended the University of Florida prior to transferring to the University of Kentucky. He was a 2nd lieutenant in the U. S. Army Reserves. A life member and past president of the Thoroughbred Club of America, Bowen is also a chairman of the Hall of Fame Nominating Committee for the National Museum of Racing. Bowen lives with his wife, Ruthie, in Versailles, Kentucky. He has three children and two grandchildren.
Bowen Bibliography
The Lucky Thirteen: The Winners of America's Triple Crown of Horse Racing, 2019
Entertaining With Bluegrass Winners: New Recipes and Menus from Kentucky's Legendary Horse Farms, 2008
Matriarchs, Volume II: More Great Mares of Modern Times, 2008
Masters of the Turf: Ten Trainers Who Dominated Horse Racing's Golden Age, 2007
Bold Ruler: Thoroughbred Legends, 2005
Belmont Park: A Century of Champions, 2005
Women of the Year, 2004
Legacies of the Turf: A Century of Great Thoroughbred Breeders, Vol. 2, 2004
At the Wire: Horse Racing's Greatest Moments, 2003
Legacies of the Turf: A Century of Great Thoroughbred Breeders, Vol. 1, 2003
Nashua, 2001
Matriarchs, Volume I: More Great Mares of Modern Times, 2000
Dynasties: Great Thoroughbred Stallions, 2000
Man o' War: Racehorse of the Century, 2000
The Jockey Club's Illustrated History of Thoroughbred Racing in America, 1994
From Foal to Champion, 1991
Legends: The Art of Richard Stone Reeves, 1989