Thoughts On Banning Jumps Racing

(Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

The basic principle is to hold onto that potential for a full speed effort for as long as possible.  Then when the jockey decides it is the right moment, or simply becomes too fatigued to hold the horse back any longer, all that stored up potential is unleashed and if everything goes according to plan then the horse has enough stamina left to sustain that momentum all the way to the finish line.

All that arm flapping, cursing, shouting and whipping is not intended to make the horse run (because he already wants to do that), but to encourage him to run faster than the horse next to him which is also receiving the same treatment!

Having said that, I am not really a great fan of the whip, and I do not employ jockeys who seem tempted to use it inappropriately (at least on the field -- I don't care what they get up to in their bedrooms).

Another very obvious question is: "If horses are speed addicts as you say, then doesn't this statement contradict the fact that they are inherently lazy?"

Well, it may seem that way, but it is not really quite as simple as that.  You will rarely see an older horse running around for no reason.  They will do it, but usually when you're not around to witness it.  Younger horses, on the other hand, simply can't help themselves.

The young of all high-level mammals indulge in play behavior.  Play helps the animal to develop essential skills that it will need when it matures.  This is why kittens play by chasing things and pouncing, and puppies play by seizing things in their teeth and shaking them.  Human children throw things and fight each other, essential skills for our cave-dwelling ancestors.

For a horse, the most essential survival skill is to run.  Thus, running for the horse is a form of play, and of course play is something we do for fun, something enjoyable.  And that is why when you see a group of young horses or lambs in a field, you will often have the pleasure of seeing them race each other.

And so it is the case that just as human athletes get to "be a kid for a bit longer" by being allowed to play their sports as adults, so to is it the case for racehorses.  Their "job" is to do something that they would normally do for play.  The only difference is that they are doing this on somebody else's schedule rather than their own.

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