Considerations As The Work Begins

Interesting post on "The Rail" yesterday noting- to the effect- a $2000 yearling purchase just won the Melborne Cup, this years Arc winners cost something like $12,000 as a yearling etc. showing once again questionable correlations price to success. How to get the cheap horse into the winner's circle, or the expensive one for that matter, is the current subject.

As to leads, a vid of Hamazing Destiny--link below--shows a lot. You may be impressed with the rider's excellent form and control, but there are several hints of questionable training in this short vid. Take a moment to watch and see if you can see them.

http://www.drf.com/events/breeders-cup-workouts

Notice failure both to change leads into the turn and more importantly complete obliviousness to it. The vid also gives a better view of the excessive cuppiness of the track that you see on certain mornings, and the large Q, what is a valuable BC horse doing out there in the worst of the track conditions. In one 20 sec. vids several hints we might want to avoid putting any money on this horse. The trainer appears to be, ooooops, D.W. Lukas.

For our own horse into the 2m gallop from the 5f pole the rider approaches having warmed up from the 3/16th pole approaches the 6f with the considerations outlined last post. Some of these will be automatic from custom and experience, some particular to this horse. Let's assume for sake of discussion the rider has a well trained push button type horse. Take a look at the bad actor a little later.

As the last post noted, everyone of these works is going to be a little nerve racking, certainly for the trainer, and should be for the rider. Why? There is so much at stake. As noted, training is moving bricks from point A to point B but under pressure and with an animal that may cooperate or may decline on this particular day. We need get certain things accomplished with this work and hence the nail biting quality of it. For the rider this mental pressure to get it right is there right at the 6f pole 1f before the work.

With the necessity to accurately complete his mission our rider hits the 6f pole and begins the speed up to :15s. Our trained animal has anticipated what's coming because it recognizes the same routine gone through with every track gallop, and hence may already be pulling the rider. The rider at this point likely has a full cross on the reins--which is simply a logical two hand hold with hands 7 or 8 inches apart and the excess rein lying between the hands.

Somewhere around the 6f the rider is going to tighten this cross a little so that there is change of bit pressure in the horse's mouth. For the race horse--as opposed to the dressage horse trained for months in one single intricate movement of the bit--any bit pressure is a call for response and speed up and generally the horse will react merely to feeling the rider's hands shift a little on the reins--this is the horse's flight response at work-- or perhaps there is a change of rein holding from full cross to half cross (the half cross removes some of the rein from the rider's hand, makes it easier to put excess rein to one side, and frees up the hand for whip use).

Non-riders often believe there is some magic in the feel and manipulation of the bit in the horse's mouth. And indeed some jocks will come off the track bragging about their "soft" hands giving the implication this jock somehow has some talent in the hands giving him special qualifications with the horse. For our work to come, is there special talent in the jock's hands, next post.
Training:
Tues. 11/1--riderless speed work.
Wed. 11/2--off. rain.