Called the "Bad Boy" of the sport by Time magazine because of his numerous suspensions and fines, he is widely remembered as a result of his win on Brokers Tip in the 1933 Kentucky Derby.

Meade began riding ponies as a child and eventually horses at bush tracks and at county Fair races.

In the summer of 1929 he rode horses for the mayor of his hometown who contacted a friend, trainer Sam Orr, who agreed to take Meade on as an apprentice.

In July 1930, Meade got his first win aboard Queens Bessie at Lansdowne Park in Richmond, British Columbia.

A photo of the Fighting Finish taken by a photographer for the Louisville Courier-Journal is one of the most widely recognized in Thoroughbred racing.