been thrown fifteen feet into the air, breaking her collar bone, she immediately got back up. “There was no way I was going to let anybody think I was a wuss. I had to be 20 times tougher than the guys to show I was out there to be a professional.” After seven years as a jockey, she retired, re-enrolled at California Polytechnic University, and received her bachelor's degree in physical education before going on to receive a masters and doctorate in exercise learning/motor behavior. In 2000, Sandy underwent cancer surgery. In an effort to help her old friend through a difficult time, jockey Penny Ann Early gave Schleiffers a present: Charlie, an old horse who revived in Sandy an old passion.
Sandy hadn’t been on a horse in nearly twelve years and suddenly she was popping up at horse shows. Sandy beat the cancer. “To be honest, being a jockey was the best part of my life and if I could do it again, I would.”
