RACING Q & A

Question: “If there is only one real speed horse in a race and he draws an outside post, can he still win or is he at too much of a disadvantage in most cases?”

Answer: “A lot depends on the distance of the race,” says Bill Shoemaker, world’s winningest jockey with more than 8,800 winners to his credit. “If it is a distance race, the speed horse on the outside is at a disadvantage at the typical mile track because of the short run to the first turn. The rider has to make use of his horse’s speed early, to get a position. Otherwise he would probably lose too much ground. If a horse’s speed is used early, he may not have enough left in the stretch to hold off the come-from-behind runners.

“If the race in question is a sprint,” Shoemaker continues, “the speed horse on the outside has a better chance. Even in a six-furlong race, again on a one-mile track, typical of those in the U.S., there is a reasonable run to the first turn and the speed horse can ease over to the inside. If too much use has not been made of him in that effort, his speed should win the race for him.”

Q: “When was the switch made from steel shoes for horses to aluminum shoes?”

A: The first horse to wear aluminum shoes was Pierre Lorillard’s Wanda, a foal of 1882 and a brilliant filly who won 12 of 24 starts. She was also second eight times. Wanda had graceful action and trainer Matt Byrnes was encouraged to try lighter shoes on her. Lorillard had the plates crafted by Tiffany’s, the Fifth Avenue jewelers, and Wanda wore them in most of her races.

The big switch for the majority of horses, however, did not come until the mid-1930s. Horsemen thought aluminum shoes could not stand the wear and tear of hard racing. Nor did blacksmiths encourage the change. They made their own steel shoes during the winter months, when there was no or little racing, and they were concerned the new shoes would put them out of business.

Q: “I enjoy going to the paddock to examine the horses and try to learn something about them that may help me in my handicapping. It seems to me horses with well-developed chests, for example, have greater lung capacity and hence an ability to stay a distance of ground. Am I correct in this observation?”

A: “A well-developed chest represents muscle,” says Dr. Manuel Gilman, for many years chief examining veterinarian for the New York Racing Assn. and now The Jockey Club steward at the New York tracks. “A horse’s lungs are over his rib cage and not in his chest. The horse does his breathing from behind the saddle girth, a fact which seems to surprise many people. Instead of looking at a horse’s chest for the key to stamina, your reader should examine the shoulder. A horse with a deep shoulder, set at the proper angle, is likely to have plenty of breathing capacity. It is the sprinters who have massive chests. The stayers are usually longer, lighter, and leggier.”

Q: “What jockey rode the most winners at one track in a single day?”

A: On June 11, 1944, at the Agua Caliente track in Tijuana, Mexico, apprentice Hubert Jones, 18 and under contract to Charles S. Howard of Seabiscuit fame, rode eight winners. He accepted mounts in all 13 races on the Sunday program. Actually, Jones did not have a mount in the last race but a colleague, Frank Wilbourn, graciously agreed to turn over his mount, Dulas, to Jones and it was his eighth winner of the day. Jones is now a steward at the major Southern California race tracks.