RACING Q & A

Question: How does the starter sense when to press the button and release the horses?

Answer: “My final check, just before pressing the button, is to see that the heads of the horses in the gate are all straight,” says veteran starter Charles Camac, who starts at Gulfstream Park and other tracks in the area. “As the horses are loaded into the gate, I check to see how they are standing. As a rule, if they are on all four legs after being loaded, they will be that way at the break.

“If their legs are spread apart upon loading, they will often be that way when you press the button, and they will stumble when the doors open. Some horses prance after being loaded. I would rather have them standing still but that isn’t always possible. Some horses prefer to brace their backs against the rear of the gate. This is preferable to a horse who wants to put his head against the front of the stall doors.”

Q: Can a trainer successfully change the natural style of a horse?

A: Some horses will change their own styles as they mature. Most do not, but trainers have changed their horses styles on occasion. Marcus Marsh, the noted trainer of Tulyar and other English horses, in his autobiography, “Racing With the Gods,” tells of an incident which occurred when Marsh was serving as an assistant to the great Fred Darling. Darling’s chief Derby prospect in 1926 was Coronach, who came from off the pace. When Coronach was defeated in the 2,000 Guineas by Lord Derby’s Colorado, Darling instructed his jockey, Joe Childs, to ride Coronach on the lead in the Derby.

Child’s was known as the Prince of Waiters and loved to come from behind with his mounts, but he followed orders, put Coronach on the lead, and Coronach opened a six-length advantage, then coasted home an easy winner. Childs, furious over the switch in tactics, stalked off the course with not a word to anyone. He was a sore winner.

Q: If a horse has moderate speed ratings and then one race with a high speed rating, should that be sufficient to sway your judgment in his favor? Is that one high speed rating significant?

A: “It is not enough for me,” says veteran trainer Jimmy Croll. “I feel consistency of speed ratings is a more valid criterion. Sometimes, for any one of a number of reasons, a horse will earn a high speed rating for a race, but he usually cannot duplicate that performance when he runs again.”

Q: How much should a horse warm up before a race?

A: “As a rule, I don’t warm horses up very much unless they appear to be choppy,” says recently retired Bill Shoemaker. “When a horse is a little stiff, I warm him up enough to loosen his muscles, enabling him to perform to the best of his ability. But if a horse is sound, I don’t want to overdo the warm-up and risk a chance of his leaving his race on the way to the post. Experience is the key ingredient as to how much warm-up is needed.”

Q: Is there a relationship between conformation (the proportionate shape or contour of an animal) and injury?

A: “Not as far as I have been able to determine,” says Dr. William O. Reed, prominent eastern veterinarian and breeder. “Pedigree, rather than conformation, is more significant with regard to injury. Some families of horses are simply not sound.”

Q: How much weight will a horse lose during the course of a race?

A: Most veterinarians tell us horses can lose from 15 to 25 pounds in a race, more under severe conditions. Weather and fitness are factors. It is reasonable to expect horses to lose more weight in warm weather than cold weather. Their bodies attempt to maintain an even temperature. As for fitness, a fit horse will lose less weight in a race than a horse who is not in condition.