ALBANY, Calif. - Russell Baze is still chasing himself.

The Hall of Fame jockey went 2-for-6 Thursday to pull within one of 10,000 victories.

On a rainy and blustery day at Golden Gate Fields, where fog obliterated the view of the Golden Gate Bridge across San Francisco Bay, Baze finished sixth, first, second, seventh, third and first.

His three-length victory aboard Judged in the eighth was No. 9,999. He won by five lengths on Northland Glory in the fourth. Both horses were the wagering favorites, as are most of Baze’s mounts.

He came close in the fifth, losing a photo finish with Swishing Tiger, the 3-5 favorite.

“I got beat by a nose or I would’ve gotten it done,” he said.

He has six scheduled mounts Friday.

Baze already is North America’s winningest thoroughbred jockey, notching that title in December 2006, when he surpassed Laffit Pincay Jr.’s record of 9,530 at Bay Meadows.

Back then, Pincay waited at the track for five days to crown Baze as his successor. This time, Baze hopes he can reach the milestone quickly.

“I don’t want to string it out like I did passing Laffit,” he said, his silks soaked a darker purple by pouring rain.

But he has competition for the world’s winningest rider.

Brazilian jockey Jorge Ricardo won his 10,000th race on Jan. 9 in Argentina.

“I would’ve liked to have been the first,” Baze said. “He’s ridden a lot of horses to get past me. He’s got access to a lot more races down there.”

When Baze does hit five figures in victories, Golden Gate Fields and Bay Meadows will honor his milestone with a special presentation.

The two tracks will donate $10,000 in Baze’s name to two charities, the Racetrack Chaplaincy and the Winners Foundation. The chaplaincy tends to the spiritual needs of racetrack employees nationwide and the foundation provides help to those with substance abuse problems.

Surpassing Pincay was the biggest achievement of a 33-year career that Baze has spent mostly in the San Francisco suburbs, far from racing’s biggest stages in Southern California, New York, Kentucky and Florida.

He has never won a Triple Crown or Breeders’ Cup race.

Slideshow   The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos

The 49-year-old rider is the undisputed king of the Bay Area. His winning percentage is a gaudy 31 during the current meeting; Frank Alvarado is a distant second at 19 percent.

Much of Baze’s success is the result of staying healthy and not battling weight for much of a career that began in 1974 in Yakima, Wash., when he rode his first winner, a horse trained by his father, Joe.

“I have had a lot of injuries, but I’ve been really blessed that there were no career- or life-threatening injuries,” he said. “I’ve got a good strong body that heals itself well when it does get hurt.”

Unlike in 2006, Baze’s wife, three daughters and son aren’t on hand to root for him.

“The weather’s too nasty. They’re not coming out in the wind and the rain,” he said.

But he’s still got family around. He rides against son-in-law Kyle Kaenel and a couple of his cousins work at the starting gate.