- This topic has 100 replies, 44 voices, and was last updated 11 years, 7 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Nothing wrong with Gold cup winners running in the race ‘Homer’ but you need a horse who is a natural jumper of fences,even then they will be tested over Aintrees unique obstacles.I thought ‘Rough Quest’ Gold cup runner-up was a good thing for Aintree as he bounced over park fences,’Synchronised’ skewed his way over them and even then it looked like that was an effort,look at the way he jumped the first 5 today,almost sideways,anyone would think he was trying to straddle his fences like an old High jumper would at the Olympics!
It was not a common held view that Rough Quest was a natural jumper of fences, as his record of 4 falls in his previous 14 races would indicate. Declan Murphy also schooled Rough Quest for tv prior to the National and was far from impressed, said he didn’t bend his back and didn’t fancy him, thankfully I took no notice of the doubters.
Dodgy jumpers have succeeded a number of times in the past, Maori Venture & Red Marauder are two others that spring to mind.With Red Marauder’s race it seemed like luck was the key factor.
Well said Kingfisher..Synchronised was never a suitable Grand National contender and I was hoping he would be pulled from the race from the day they declared him.
Even today he jocked AP off and when remounted and trotted to look at the first fence he spooked again at the look of it.
I wish he’d run like the wind when he jocked AP off so he would have been withdrawn and now we have lost him and I’m not ashamed to say it’s the saddest I’ve felt in a long time, he just looked so beautiful today
Things turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out...Nothing wrong with Gold cup winners running in the race ‘Homer’ but you need a horse who is a natural jumper of fences,even then they will be tested over Aintrees unique obstacles.I thought ‘Rough Quest’ Gold cup runner-up was a good thing for Aintree as he bounced over park fences,’Synchronised’ skewed his way over them and even then it looked like that was an effort,look at the way he jumped the first 5 today,almost sideways,anyone would think he was trying to straddle his fences like an old High jumper would at the Olympics!
It was not a common held view that Rough Quest was a natural jumper of fences, as his record of 4 falls in his previous 14 races would indicate. Declan Murphy also schooled Rough Quest for tv prior to the National and was far from impressed, said he didn’t bend his back and didn’t fancy him, thankfully I took no notice of the doubters.
Dodgy jumpers have succeeded a number of times in the past, Maori Venture & Red Marauder are two others that spring to mind.With Red Marauder’s race it seemed like luck was the key factor.
The same as Synchronised’s Gold Cup which he won because the favoured horses didn’t perform anywhere near their real form and he beat a 50/1 shot into second, a poor Gold Cup really.
Up till the race before that he was just a good staying handicapper that was plotted at the minor national’s.
Synchronised was a VERY good horse – not sure why his forms being crabbed
Of course, now he won’t be able to prove any doubters wrong. That’s racing. Let the conjecture continue
Zip
Synchronised was a VERY good horse – not sure why his forms being crabbed
Of course, now he won’t be able to prove any doubters wrong. That’s racing. Let the conjecture continue
Zip
Au contraire Zip
Synchronised
proved his doubters well and truly wrong by winning 2 consecutive Grade 1’s in his inimitable way.His Gold cup victory will live long in my memory a truly remarkable performance from both horse and Jockey and anyone who knocks that is talkin Sh*te!
Headline on page 3 of the
Sunday Times
re. yesterday’s Grand National:-
Sea of Carnage
Hardly surprising I suppose at such hyperbole. What term I wonder would this organ have used for say, the charge of the Light Brigade if the accidental death of 2 horses is described as "carnage" ?
We seem to have an urban population that seems unable to come to terms with death; that in spite of their insistence that they are caring, compassionate animal lovers, have no sense of proportion. Happily munching bacon and chicken etc. whilst going into a self-righteous lather over the accidental death of horses during a race. Most of the animal-right/RSCPA anti-national/anti horse-racing hezbollah’s only knowledge of animal husbandry was deciding the alphabetical order of their
Care Bear
,
Babe
and
Charlotte’s Web
videos.
We’ve made enough changes and modifications to the Grand National (which were probably merited), but it’s now time for those in racing to stand up to the anti-racing brigade. Of course, it’s much easier for the head of the RSPCA to sound-off against racing than it is for him to condemn the ritual slaughter of animals for Muslim and Jewish consumption. (Although it’s quite conceivable that such methods are more "humane" than non kosher/halal slaughter.) And our urban, Disneyfied, McDonald-munching masses applaud him. Oy Vey!Had the Charge of the Light Brigade or any of the needless offences of the Great War been beamed live into the homes of millions of people then I would hope that the public would have been suitably outraged. That the general public was largely ignorant of what was happening on foreign battlefields shows how far the human condition has advanced. Whilst not all aspects of the advancement of humanity are positive, the fact that the majority of the general public consider that needless deaths and suffering, whether they be human or equine, are to be neither admired, applauded or where preventable, accepted, is an improvement on your antiquated point of view.
It’s tragic and very sad when any horse dies in action on a racecourse but it’s a hard fact of life that it can and does happen, sometimes on big occasions.
Nobody wants to see it happen but that is the reality and racing has got to be careful not to over-react in the face of a tidal wave of criticism from members of the public and racing enthusiasts. The deaths have got to be kept in proportion and the racing authorities have got to make sure they are not panicked by those calling for the race to be abolished or seriously watered down so that it becomes a pale imitation of itself.
Tragedy can strike on a racecourse at any time and it could just have easily have happened on a bread-and-butter course or a point-to-point course. It’s an unpredictable, dangerous, all-action sport where split-second mistakes, misjudgements and pure bad luck can have catastrophic and disastrous consequences.
A series of measures has been taken to modify and improve the course but the elements of luck, freak happenings and knock-on causes and effects can change situations in seconds. You just can’t predict every eventuality in a furiously-run, vigorously-contested race in which literally anything can happen, some of it with tragic consequences. That’s the sad reality. You can never legislate for any race to be completely safe.
It’s statistically very bad luck that there have been high-profile deaths two years running but, even if no changes were made to next year’s race, the vagaries of fate might show that there were no fatalities at all for the next five years. Nobody can predict what will happen. That’s part of the fascination of the race but also, sadly, its Achilles heel and the scope for disaster and death is never more than a few seconds away.
To over-react and call for the race to be scrapped or seriously altered would be wrong. Many of those calling for the demise of the race understand little of the efforts that have been made to minimise safety risks, so far as it is possible to do so and to second-guess what chain of events may lead to disaster. Many of the critics do not realise that sport, especially horse racing, is dangerous by its very nature. The hand-wringing of the “something-must-be-done” brigade has to be kept in perspective.
The bleeding hearts and do-gooders are in danger of bouncing Aintree and racing into a headlong panic-driven flight in to taking “action” just to be seen to be doing something and taking the concerns seriously. Tragedy is potentially never far away from racing and this harsh reality cannot be escaped. Lots of people are keen to be seen as compassionate and caring and anybody who does not immediately join the this-is-so-terrible-it-can’t-go-on crew is demonised as callous, cold, heartless, unfeeling and cruel.
Sometimes you have to be realistic and accept that not all risks can be abolished. Positive steps to minimise them can be taken but there are no guarantees that something will not go wrong. This, sadly, is life. Death, whether human or equine, is potentially part of any live sport. It’s very sad when it happens in front of millions of TV viewers worldwide but that’s unfortunately part of the risk.
Alastair Down says in the Racing Post today that he fears that this year’s race will be the last of its type in its present form. I suspect most of the people on this forum and further afield will say that this would be the best thing that could happen. It’s amazing the number of people who are calling for the end of the Grand National. I just hope the authorities stand firm and, while continuing to do everything possible to minimise risk and maximise safety, they do not deal a death blow to the National or turn it into a feeble Grand National Lite non-event.
I remember as a lad watching showjumping on the BBC when one of the horses, Beau Supreme, was fatally injured on live television. The arena had to be dimmed but the audience and the TV viewers still had to endure the awful knowledge that the horse was being put down in front of them. The crack of the gun was even heard on TV. A freak, tragic accident but it could not reasonably have been foreseen.
There have been deaths in other sports. Nobody wants it but, again, life can be cruel and unpredictable. We have to grit our teeth and live with that. The unpalatable truth is that no amount of risk-averse shying-away from reality or trying never to put anyone or anything in danger can ever rule out the possibility that something horrible might happen.‘Insomniac’ is a Realist,I respect that,horses do die in the name of Horse racing all too often and most of us accept that as an occupational hazard unfortunately.Nobody gets attached to ‘their’ horses more than me and
Synchronised
was one of those. What sits uncomfortably for me is the fact that he was NEVER A GRAND NATIONAL HORSE,I could see it as could many others so why couldn’t connections,I’ve said it on numerous occassions his heart was bigger than his jumping ability but it was just that,that got him from one side of a fence to another and the will to win that saw him battle like a lion,I’m writing this with frustration,anger,sadness and a pride that I saw the talent in this fellow a long time ago! RIP Soldier!
According to Pete
was a freak death,as he fell I wrote in my notebook to back him for next years race,he was still a major contender so I was just as shocked he died too,Sad day but hey thats The Grand National,dont confuse it with day to day horse racing because its totally unique and addictive in a sad sort of way!
Bullshit Gord, No one on the planet could have known how Synchronised was going to take to the fences, least of all a would be punter who’s never jumped a fence in his life. Red Marauder shouldn’t have run either I suppose?
To say so after the fact or even before is like saying Jonjo AP and JP don’t give a fook or haven’t a clue what they were doing.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The truth is he had never fallen.not even come close and although an ugly jumper to watch he had as much chance of getting round as any.The thing is he jumped very well until Beechers, a fence that has seen even the best jumpers hit the deck.
It wasn’t even a bad fall it was a soft fall and it did not cause his death. He was unfortunately injured afterwards when running lose at worse you could say it led to him being put to sleep but it was not the national or the fences that killed him it was pure bad luck. He had already been a bit upset and when he fell in a strange place he lost the plot and the injury was self inflicted.
I understand your frustration but to say he wasn’t a Grand National horse is poppycock. Had he got over Beechers you may well have been celebrating instead of pointing fingers.
Both deaths were pure bad luck According To Pete 99 times out of 100 would have jumped that fence with nothing ahead of him. Going round the previous fence is what led to that happening.
They are not going to stop the national so we have no choice but move and and live with it.
Horses will die and most that do, do so because they need to do very little damage to themselves to be put down.
Tough old game.
Synchronised
was one of those. What sits uncomfortably for me is the fact that he was NEVER A GRAND NATIONAL HORSE,I could see it as could many others so why couldn’t connections,
Bullshit Gord, No one on the planet could have known how Synchronised was going to take to the fences, least of all a would be punter who’s never jumped a fence in his life. Red Marauder shouldn’t have run either I suppose?
‘Red Marauder’ was one of the flookiest winners ever so dont even go there!I’m not professing to know every horses idiosyncrasies (fav word at the moment) but I sure as hell knew
Synchronised
,my assessment of his Welsh National and Gold cup performances were word perfect,he caught me out in the Lexus but he did most.You watch the way he jumps the first 5 fences again,he’s all over the shop almost sideways at every one,he never jumps a fence big because he cant he generally flys at his fences and skews on landing so how the hell was he supposed to jump Aintree? I said ‘Junior’ would do exactly the same and I said ‘Calg’ would float over them,my judgement was spot on as is generally the case! And before you mention ‘Sprinter Sacre’!
He still scares me every time he takes off! When he comes a cropper and he will it will hurt! He’s too lairey bit like yourself Hurdy! 
Only if meat eating goes with it.
How many expressing outrage at racing deaths will tuck into their joint of moo-cow or baa-lamb for their Sunday lunch?
Rob
Totally agree
Yes, we’ll never know if horses want to race or not as they are just animals trained to do so and cannot tell us but they undoubtedly have a better life and generally a better end than the millions of wildstock we consume.
From the highly limited responses on TRF it seems that if the wishes of 25% were enforced and jumps racing was done away with the issue would be much more invisible.
Can we concentrate on the classics now?
I can’t watch Sprinter Sacre jump a fence; I sometimes fear that he’s going to sprout wings and fly away. Just looking at photos of Synchronised jumping the last at Cheltenham put the fear of God into me and, although he’d jumped a lot of fences and ran a lot of miles, he was still quite inexperienced for a National horse [9 chases]. But, then again when it came to jumping Sunnyhillboy wasn’t the best, and look where he came. I agree that Red Marauders National was a complete one off.
CRUSTY PATCH: Well said. Common sense in every sentence.
EclipseFirst:
…consider that needless deaths and suffering, whether they be human or equine, are to be neither admired, applauded or where preventable, accepted, is an improvement on your antiquated point of view.
When did I ever say that needless death and suffering were to be admired, applauded or accepted?
What I don’t accept is some peoples’ inability to accept that accidents will happen and the craven response of many in racing who believe they have to jump on the "we’re oh so compassionate too" bandwagon and overreact. CrustyPatch’s comment sums this up well.
Watching the video today of the BBC television coverage, the deaths of According To Pete and Synchronised are particularly poignant.
Both horses were singled out for extensive pre-race coverage, including an interesting and moving feature by Clare Balding on the Yorkshire team behind According To Pete. The love and affection for the horse were very plain to see. It was heartwarming but deeply ironic as I was watching it for the first time, knowing what later happened.
It’s a real tragedy that the horse’s death should have happened to such a small and enthusiastic team, with such a caring and positive attitude. Clare Balding also spoke to the team in the pre-parade area just before the race. Again, with what I now know about what was to happen just a short time later, it was very poignant.
JP McManus, owner of Synchronised, was also very positive when interviewed before the race. It’s very sad that both horses later died.
Could the chains of events that led to their untimely deaths have been prevented by greater attention to safety measures? I doubt it.
Nobody can predict what will happen in the cut and thrust of a rough-and-tumble race. All the safety precautions in the world could not have prevented events what were random, split-second, unplanned, spontaneous, frighteningly quick and ultimately uncontrollable.‘Red Marauder’ was one of the flookiest winners ever so dont even go there!I’m not professing to know every horses idiosyncrasies (fav word at the moment) but I sure as hell knew
Synchronised
,my assessment of his Welsh National and Gold cup performances were word perfect,he caught me out in the Lexus but he did most.You watch the way he jumps the first 5 fences again,he’s all over the shop almost sideways at every one,he never jumps a fence big because he cant he generally flys at his fences and skews on landing so how the hell was he supposed to jump Aintree? I said ‘Junior’ would do exactly the same and I said ‘Calg’ would float over them,my judgement was spot on as is generally the case! And before you mention ‘Sprinter Sacre’!
He still scares me every time he takes off! When he comes a cropper and he will it will hurt! He’s too lairey bit like yourself Hurdy! Sprinter Sacre fall? geez there’s more chance of Ginger betting 1 horse in 1 race
It’s human nature to admire great things. Among the great things I have seen in racing is Arkle, Persian War, Night Nurse, Sea Pigeon, Red Rum, Desert Orchid, Kauto Star, Crisp, Istabraq, Dunkitk, then all those great jockeys and now I got maybe the greatest horse of all Sprinter Sacre to admire and you would rob me and the thousands and thousands of other NH fans, of that?……..Being as diplomatic as possible…… go take a hike you silly person
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.