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In which other “sport” do you have to induce pain on the main protagonist in order to make him grind out a higher effort?
If you want to watch a proper sportsman riding a horse then please watch Ryan Moore on Tenebrism in the 2022 Prix Jean Prat or on Vela Azul in the 2002 Japan Cup. Group I wins under hands and heels.
By far two of the best rides of the entire season.
The truth of the matter is that if horses really don’t want to do something (as we have seen when they flatly refuse to race or jump a fence or go into the stalls regardless of whether they get a smack with a whip or someone tries to lead them up or a number of big stalls handlers try to man handle them) they can’t be forced to do so. If they decide no then no it is.
Yes we know if the whip is used in the wrong place it can be painful and back in the day the old whips did leave weal marks even when used in the right place (a design of how the materials they were made back then with were) coupled with jockeys using them either too frequently or too hard. Fortunately common sense and better design/materials used has all but rendered that from happening now.
Horses like people come in all shapes and sizes and with all different kinds of mindsets/ idiosyncrasies/characters which can be an issue as to how they race (or don’t) and require a variety of tactics to get them to race be it with the whip to aid the jockey or not.
Horses like Vodkatini, Mad Moose & Dering Rose who would at various stages just simply take the mickey out of their riders when either refusing to race altogether or pull themselves up mid race only to decide to start racing again. The case of Drill Sergeant being a prime example, showing that even the great Tony McCoy can easily be made a fool of if the horse is of a mind to do so https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJqJEVE4xBs
Then you have horses that that need to be produced to hit the front as late as possible and/or seem to require kid glove treatment and don’t respond or run a yard faster for the whip (Sea Pigeon, Harchibald, Morley Street etc), then you have horses that might be a bit one paced or lack that brilliant finishing kick but will keep finding the more the jockeys asks of them and keep coming back for more (be it The Minstrel, Roberto, Persian Punch, Double Trigger, Bonaza Boy, Deano’s Beano, Hardy Eustace, Danoli, Brave Inca, Viking Flagship, Native River, Many Clouds, Paisley Park etc).
Many of those type of horses might just as well have not even bothered turning up if the whip is banned altogether (how much poorer would the sport be without those warriors leaving us indelible memories) and while nobody wants to see well beaten horses continue to be ridden like they were in with a chance or horses that are well clear still being given a smack because the jockey isn’t checking just how far clear he is there is a medium to be found.
But it is dependant on the BHA fighting its corner robustly rather than capitulating at the first signs of rumblings from that vocal minority that don’t care and/or are not interested in educating themselves to find out that racehorses aren’t being cruelly treated but are actually treated to all the best money can buy be it food and/or medicine and want for nothing and are some of the most cared for animals around…..I would hazzard a guess that some are probably more well cared for than some of those vocal minority people’s own pets are.
“You can throw as many facts at people as you want but actually getting them to come round to your way of thinking is difficult…”
Agreed Richard, but doing nothing and not having a structured response is not an option. The plan should be to first look at the issue from the ‘enemies’ point of view and then work back from there. That probably starts with social media, because if it’s on Twitter, then it must be correct.
Once you continue to yield you eventually end up back to the wall with nothing more to offer.Racing has already reached this point with the Grand National and I fear just one renewal with multiple deaths that happen on the day during the race ( as opposed to later complications from an injury incurred) will be the end of it. In one recent running a daft woman in the workplace on the Monday was vocally telling all who cared to listen that she was yelling at the screen after the race. “ Quick, quick, get some water on those horses ! “. Decades back it would have been,” My bet was winnning but the jockey fell off.”
With this whip hullabaloo I fear now that the BHB, under pressure from the negative publicity the issue is attracting, will call it a day and ban use altogether.They’ll try and justify the decision by pointing to the part time racing jurisdictions where this has happened.Of course as pointed out, this would be the end of those lovable animals we often refer to as being lazy but tough and willing when given the message.
Another point; we live in a world where change now happens fast – we already have many strange customs that are becoming the norm that would in past times have existed only in daft Monty Python or Two Ronnies sketches. It’s not a case of change happening gradually anymore, with those in favour just chipping away over a long period of time – we are now in an environment where it can occur in one fell swoop. That is frightening prospect and I really do fear that jump racing in the UK (the next target after whip use has been outlawed) will have had it’s day sooner than we could imagine.
Continued pleas here for ‘standing up for racing’, which, in this case means defending the whip against public perception. Seriously, what chance have they of doing that when we on this forum, with 1,000 collective years of experience in the sport cannot agree?
The BHA could hardly have timed it better, right before Cheltenham and Aintree.
Better to say and do nothing rather than constantly bringing it up for public scrutiny.
I think this is turning into a typical social media discussion where neither side persuades the other and we just go round and round the houses.
But I think the main reason the whip has become such a hot issue is because the BHA has made it so through commissioning an unnecessary review and implementing its findings on the eve of the biggest meeting of the year. Racing has an almost unrivalled ability to shoot itself in the foot.
I know people here will disagree with this and probably throw that favourite social media insult “whataboutery” at me. But in a time of economic crisis; a time when we are recovering from lockdown; and a time when there is a major war raging in Europe which could escalate, I find it very difficult to believe that millions of people in this country are hopping mad over the use of a whip in a sport they are not interested in.
If Richard Forrestal’s story is correct, the BHA’s justification for changing the whip rules and penalties is based on a survey of 130 people (whittled down to 10), the overwhelming majority of whom have never been racing. It refuses to publish the questions asked or the responses. Why should anyone have any confidence in it?
If you believe the whip causes pain, I really do not see how you can defend jumping fences. Does hitting a fence at 30mph not cause pain? Does falling and crashing onto turf not hurt either?
This is why I say you just have to draw a line in the sand at some point and say no further. I think we have reached that point now. We have accommodated changes to how the whip is used. But opponents of racing will chip away until there is no sport left at all.
One more point. The underlying assumption of the BHA’s review is lots more people would go racing if the whip was used less or not used at all. I find it very difficult to believe that is true. Most people who do not go racing simply do not like racing. The BHA’s own glossy advertising campaign failed to attract a new audience.
I think it is reasonable to ask: will the people chosen to participate in the BHA’s survey which has resulted in the whip rules being changed now attend race meetings and bet on it, contributing to the Levy? If not, why not? Why should they be allowed to change the rules of a sport they are not prepared to support?
It looks to me as if we are headed towards a watered down version of racing which does not satisfy its opponents (who want it to be banned) or its supporters (who realise it will be an inferior product to what there was before).
Would like to see them actual try and defend the sport because I have a feeling the results would be quite surprising in the fact that the public perception (that the BHA seem to fear above all else) is not quite as all powerful as they would lead us to believe.
As I have said there is a very vocal section for sure but we know the general apathy the vast majority of the non racing public have for the sport and as such I doubt they could be mobilised in enough numbers to care enough to actually get the sport banned especially when the main argument/thought from that section is that the whip automatically means those within racing are evil, cruel and abusing horses for entertainment can be countered with actual facts/figures and common sense arguments……..guess we will never know because the BHA simply don’t have the cojones to actually defend the sport against those that ultimately want the sport banned regardless of what the sport does or can show them that their view is misguided and way off the mark.
Horses are the be all end all of the sport and it is ultimately the love and care they are given that keeps the show (and the whole industry) on the road, it would defeat the whole purpose of the sport for horses to be mistreated and the fact that a lot of these vocal antagonists care not a jot about the actual truth of horse welfare in the sport (as it would render their whole argument null and void) is all the more maddening that the BHA are happy to bend over backwards to try to appease them whilst slowly killing the sport in the process.
I just hope there is a line somewhere that the BHA will finally stand firm at and defend and cry no mas to those seeking horse racing’s permanent banning……but I fear by the time they actual do that it might already be too late to stop the tide.
Interesting to note that French racing is changing it’s “whip” rules tomorrow. At one time they were allowed to use it 8 times. This has gradually been reduced down to 5 uses . As from tomorrow they are restricted to 4 uses , with none above the shoulder. The new rule applies to both flat and jump racing.
Great video Ex RubyLight.
It’s a tale as old as time. Rules change, people struggle to begin with, then adapt. Soon it becomes the new normal.
Great clarity of thought there, as usual, from Cunningham.
The key issue with the recent changes are not the changes, rather the poor implementation of them.
David (cormack15)
Apparently only 6 referrals over the 444 rides during the Cheltenanham festival.
Personally , I never noticed a single incident of danger to either horse , or rider , due to the amended rules.
Perhaps we can get the sport being absorbed into the 21st century now.
Nothing like the doomsday scenario predicted by many.I accept the whip rules worked well – far better than many people (including me) expected. The jockeys deserve a lot of credit, especially the Irish jockeys for adapting to a set of rules they had never ridden under.
Six infringements and only one on a winning ride was a good outcome. There was always going to be some jockeys transgressing, even under the old rules.
It will be interesting to know which rides broke the rules. I do not recall seeing anything obvious. In fact I was more annoyed at Aidan Colemsn yesterday at Fakenham striking a horse that was 20 lengths clear and showing no sign of stopping or being difficult.
The BHA now needs to draw a line in the sand and says these are the rules. The anti-racing lobby will inevitably try to get the rules amended further with a view to removing the whip entirely. The BHA needs to now show some leadership and backbone to defend its own rules.
Who’d have guessed? All these sleepless nights jockeys had worrying about how to adjust after years of doing the same thing, the reams of words written on it, the accusations on both sides … and it turns out that jockeys cannot only count, they can be highly efficient, arguably more so in many cases, remaining balanced, driving with rhythm, none of it upset by trying to use the whip on the correct stride in the right place, at the right time while counting down their ‘allowance’.
My worst Cheltenham for years as a punter, but my best as a viewer.
As a punter, I’m busy compiling lists of horses I now consider will find it very hard to win races, especially handicaps.
Horses which race lazily, maybe even run in snatches, but do respond “under” (not “for” – btw, when did that change and why?) pressure, a limit on the amount of pressure they can actually be put “under” is going to have a material impact on their chances of winning.
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