Race horses.

Merry Crisis

Merry Crisis

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I have looked at all the posts on here about racing and I am astounded at the negagtive posts about racing. For me my pulse races when I watch a race, even talking about racing I am enthralled. The most wonderful equines that will be sires of our next generation of thoroughbreds. Am I alone in this facination of the racehorse?
 
No but i guess it's like all sports, you have people who enjoy it and those that don't.
It just depends who lurks on here reading (i'm a bit guilty of that) and who voices their opinions more :)
 
You're clearly not alone, racing has a huge following. I don't think it's just the money/gambling aspect either, many people adore the spectacle and find it beautiful and exciting. My OH does.

It doesn't do it for me. I'm not a competitive sort and I find the speed and pace disconcerting. I grew up near Aintree where the Grand National is a huge local event, but I find it hard to watch as I'm worried about the safety of the horses.

It seems to be a very emotive topic here though, doesn't it? I'm on the fence on this one. Not my cup of tea, but I'm not "against" it either. I'll just plod around the lanes on my Mollie and leave the excitement, speed and spectacle to others to enjoy.
 
I find the sheer beauty of the thoroughbred in action can move me to tears. Race horses are so fabulously fit and healthy too, for the most part.

I have been to the races, once or twice at Aintree and can understand the passion.
 
I think race horses as a breed are fantastic.

But there is no doubt its not the "friendliest" of sports. and animal welfare isnt exaclty paramount from what my jockey friends tell me :(

But it is good to watch and the horses are beautiful! Just always have that niggling thought at the back of my head...

I think most people are ok with racing but hate the grand national??? Or something like that?
 
Samantha008 said:
I think race horses as a breed are fantastic.

But there is no doubt its not the "friendliest" of sports. and animal welfare isnt exaclty paramount from what my jockey friends tell me :(

But it is good to watch and the horses are beautiful! Just always have that niggling thought at the back of my head...

I think most people are ok with racing but hate the grand national??? Or something like that?
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I sort of understand what you are saying. As for welfare I think in training its fine. I think the welfare issue is a problem when they come out of training.
 
I love NH racing and watch it avidly on tv. The flat I can take or leave it but I do try to catch the big races. There is nothing as so breath taking beautiful as a thoroughbred. I hate it when horses fall and injure themselves or worse but know accidents can happen in all walks of life.

If I won the lottery I would be on the phone to Paul Nicholls to find me a couple of young horses also I would chose a smaller trainer like Evan Williams.

My favourite jockeys are Graham Lee, Ruby Walsh & Barry Geraghty and my favourite horses are surprisingly enough all trained by PN.

I rarely bet but occasionly get a tip from friends with Racehorses but its not very much.
 
For some racing is in their blood. It hits you with a boom and you are stuck with a life long love. I left school and got a job in a racing yard to avoid going to college. I didn't plan on going into racing and it was only supposed to be a gap year. 6 years on I am still there and still loving almost every minute of it. I work in a National Hunt yard and have met some truly fantastic people, gained some rather fabulous horses and have generally had a ball. Nothing beats the thrill of watching a horse you have worked so hard with at home going out onto the track and strutting it's stuff.

Whilst I am a National Hunt girl through and through I do love watching the big Group 1 Flat races. That's where our next sires and dams are coming fro and it's good to see what we will be working with in the near future.

Yes there alot of aspects to racing that people won't agree with but I think it's more to do with lack of understanding than anything else. There also seems to be a lot of assumptions about racing, such as - if it happens there then it obviously has to happen at every other yard, every other track or by every other person in racing. This is not the case. People like JHJ give racing an undeserved bad name because they are too stuck up their own backsides and believe themselves invincible. See, even us that work in the industry get peeved at morons like this, it's not just the general public.

Alot of horses leave training every year and the old course of action was one of 2 things - the sales to let them take their chances or the kennels. Nowadays trainers are much more aware of the retraining centres that have been developed and they are very concious of their reputation when it comes to rehoming horses. A trainer with a bad rep won't rehome their horses as easily.

I think the one downfall of racing and the general public is that it is a complete open book. Compared to other sports racing is laid bare for anyone to inspect at any time they choose and this is why so many people disagree with it. WHat if you fully opened up eventing, show jumping, dressage, showing etc. what you saw there would shock many many more people.
 
I am also a lover of the thoroughbred and of racing. I know the feeling of watching and hearing the horses race. I took my tb to the Newmarket ride yesterday, went on the gallops and the feeling was amazing! The aspects I don't like is that the horses are in training so young, resulting in things like kissing spines, another one of my tbs has this and was in training at 2 1/2-3. I also don't like the amount of tbs that are bred and then looking for new homes or sent to slaughter when they don't make the grade.. I don't agree that the horses don't enjoy it, my horses loved the gallops yesterday! The tb iS the most stunning breed in mho.
 
We've got 2 ex racers at my yard Louie and Viking Spirit (Unsure if Louie had a racing name) and untill he died years ago, there was Dancer too.
It's amazing how much they vary!
Dancer was like an old plod when kids were on him, he never galloped off when he wasn't meant to or did anything wrong, I rode him when I was 9.
Louie is mad. He's got a craaazy bouncy canter and gallops off when given half a chance.
Viking is a funny mix of the two! He gallops when jumping (He finds it exciting, he was a flat racer) but is lovely out hacking.

Like all equine persuites, there's things I agree with and things that I really don't.
 
i don't think you can beat the thrill of watching a fit thoroughbred fly round a track, the movement, the muscles, the sheer beauty of it !!
it's funny though regarding the safety thing, i know someone who worked at racing yards in her younger years, she doesn't like hunting though, thinks that jumping horses over hedges and suchlike when you have no idea what the landing is like, fields that could be full of rabbit holes and just the general unknown terrain is too dangerous in her eyes! So there's a question, which is more dangerous for the horses, racing or hunting??
 
Ibblebibble said:
i don't think you can beat the thrill of watching a fit thoroughbred fly round a track, the movement, the muscles, the sheer beauty of it !!
it's funny though regarding the safety thing, i know someone who worked at racing yards in her younger years, she doesn't like hunting though, thinks that jumping horses over hedges and suchlike when you have no idea what the landing is like, fields that could be full of rabbit holes and just the general unknown terrain is too dangerous in her eyes! So there's a question, which is more dangerous for the horses, racing or hunting??
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Lol, true. I know a trainer who says eventing wrecks horses legs!
 
Samantha008 said:
I think race horses as a breed are fantastic.

But there is no doubt its not the "friendliest" of sports. and animal welfare isnt exaclty paramount from what my jockey friends tell me :(

But it is good to watch and the horses are beautiful! Just always have that niggling thought at the back of my head...

I think most people are ok with racing but hate the grand national??? Or something like that?
Click to expand...

What a load of rubbish!!! The sport is very friendly and I would say more so than some of the other equestrian disciplines. The animal welfare is very much paramount and if it wasn't there wouldn't be any racing! The horses are there to do a job hence they are well looked after, trained well etc etc. Like anything in this world there will always be the odd one or two which discredit the sport. I also wouldn't say that most people hate the Grand National. It's the most watched horse race in the world and would have a betting revenue which would I guess also out strip any other horse race in the world. Yes there was some tragedy this year but as per the BHA, Aintree etc they are implementing further changes so that the race can continue for many more years to come.
By the way - I love racing (Flat more than NH).
 
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