Witnessing a horse change leads while racing at full speed is fascinating. Changing leads is the act of switching the leg that will reach farther forward in stride, but is this natural, and why do horses do this? Racehorses’ change leads to maintaining balance and negotiating a turn to the left or the right more …
I was excited to watch the races at the New Orleans Fairgrounds because it’s a day that Thoroughbreds and Quarter horses race, though not against each other. While watching these powerful animals compete, I wondered which breeds were the fastest. So, I decided to find out how different horse breeds compare speed-wise. The world’s fastest …
Going to the track is a fun outing, and while there, you’ll see horses of varying sizes and colors. But are all the racehorses Thoroughbreds or do other breeds also race? Horses don’t have to be a Thoroughbred to race. Many different horse breeds compete in sanctioned horse races, including Quarter horses, Arabians, Paints, and …
It’s fun to listen to the different accents of the Jockeys and try to determine where they’re from. Jockeys come from all over the world, but is there a dominant region that produces the best jockeys? The best jockeys come from Latin America, and it accounts for the highest percentage of top Jockeys in the …
Weights are added to most entries in a horse race. The amount of weight varies based on the weight assigned to each horse and the jockey’s size. But before we delve too far, let’s look at why horses carry added weight in a race. Racehorses carry extra weights to meet the minimum weight assigned to …
My grandson got up early and rode with me to the training center to watch some young horses work on the track. He was tired but excited to see some young racehorse prospects and asked why do horses train so early. Early morning workouts allow the trainers and jockeys time to tend to the horses …
People outside of the horse racing industry hear horror stories in the media about how racehorses are mistreated and abused. Horse racing proponents often refer to their horses as pampered royalty. What is the truth about how racehorses are treated? Some racehorses are abused, and some are pampered. In the horse racing world, horses are …
I have been going to horse racing tracks for a long time. But, recently, I was stumped by an old man who asked me, “why do the horses run counter-clockwise?” I had no idea, so I decided to research this question. Horses race counter-clockwise because American racehorse owners didn’t want to conform to Engish standards …
I’ve always been fascinated by how fast horses can run. So I decided to find out what makes some run faster than others, the physical traits that are most important when it comes to racing, and what are the top speeds horses can run. 55 MPH is the top speed of the world’s fastest horses. …
A friend’s horse qualified for a stakes race at Evangeline Downs, so we decided to go to the track to watch the race. Since many people may not understand the stakes race, I decided to write a helpful article. Stakes races are the highest classification in horse racing. For a horse to be eligible to …