(Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
What this has to do with racing is that there is a similar "pressure and release" situation that the horse experiences during the running of a race. After having been restrained for so long by the jockey from doing what it is naturally inclined to do (gallop flat out), it suddenly finds itself being asked to do just that. This is the first phase of reward for the horse -- the release from the pressure of being restrained.
However intense the pleasure derived from this sudden freedom may be, it is fleeting. The horse is finally being allowed to run fast at a time when it is least inclined to do so. As fatigue begins to set in, the horse will think about slowing down.
When the jockey notices this subtle change come over the horse, this is the moment (if he is any good at his job) that he will begin to encourage the horse to go beyond what it naturally feels capable of doing.
The horse's body is saying "stop" but the rider is saying "go" with great urgency. So conditioned is the horse by nature and nurture to obey the commands of the dominant partner (since in the horse's mind survival is linked to this), that unless the horse is overwhelmingly exhausted it will respond by going beyond the limitations that the body is trying to impose, running with renewed energy or what we might call "second wind".
Throughout all of this, the horse's heart is beating at nearly 300bpm, or almost five times per second, circulating a huge volume of blood around the horse's body. Mixed into this blood is a potent chemical cocktail of cortisol, adrenalin, endorphins, and other substances.
When the volume of "feel bad" chemicals, such as cortisol and lactic acid, reaches a certain level (in excess of 4mmol per litre of blood, if you want me to be specific) then there is a certain mounting sensation of unpleasantness which can even be translated to pain. Once this reaches a critical threshold that unpleasantness is at its maximum, a phenomenon that human athletes call "hitting the wall".
In response to this, the body responds by pumping out significantly more "feel good" chemicals, since by this time the brain has finally become convinced that the animal is in survival mode. When the volume of happy juice in the blood stream exceeds the volume of the unpleasant stuff, the horse will experience the phenomenon that is known as a "runner's high".
This is the second phase of reward for the horse, a (temporary) release from the pressure of physical pain and exhaustion, combined with a pleasurable sensation that many human athletes have likened to the experience of orgasm (I can think of more pleasant ways to achieve this feeling than by running for ten miles, but "to each his own").
The effect is only temporary however, and as it wears off the horse is still aware of the vigorous urging of the rider on its back. This constant stream of communication also amounts to a form of pressure, much in the same way as if your boss keeps coming up to you every five minutes to ask if the Dobson Report is ready yet.
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