Along The Rails

Since the tragic breakdown of Eight Belles at this year’s Kentucky Derby, the safety of the entire race has now come under fire– such as the size of the field, although the accident likely would have happened even if Eight Belles were running all by herself that day.

Anyone who watches two seconds of horse racing the rest of the year is usually wowed by the sight of the starting gate at the Derby:  It’s more of a pack, a herd, than a field.  It’s more than twenty horses, strung from the rail to the grandstand.  The average number of horses in other races is usually much less.  But the Derby, with its enormous cache, promise of big breeding bucks, and position as either a career launcher or capper is bursting at the seams.  There are so many runners that Churchill Downs brings in an auxiliary starting gate to hold them all.

With such a large field, the specter of a domino-effect accident involving a number of entrants is a nightmare scenario.   The problem is, there’s not necessarily evidence that a smaller field is a safer one.  Even two colts going head-to-head can make contact.

Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens correctly points out that in Europe, the fields can be as large as thirty horses, with even tighter turns than those at American tracks.

And speaking of jockeys, my question is:  With all this focus on the safety of the horses (which is, of course, entirely proper), why is no one advocating for health benefits and saner weight restrictions for them?  What does it say about us that we fear for the mounts, but not the men and women who drive them?  If the industry is going to reform itself… reform.  Don’t just follow where the press leads.

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