The sport of horse racing is a multibillion-dollar industry that is plagued by injuries, drug abuse and gruesome breakdowns. Behind the romanticized facade, Thoroughbred horses are pushed to sprint on hard tracks, often containing sharp turns, at speeds that cause them to sustain injuries and even hemorrhage in their lungs. In a frantic effort to win races, many horses are also subjected to cocktails of legal and illegal drugs to mask injuries and artificially enhance performance. As a result, the average horse has a life expectancy of about two years.
The condition book is a schedule of races at a track for a period of weeks or a month. Trainers use the conditions book to develop training regimens for their horses. The race schedule is published in advance, and a bettors can plan their betting units accordingly.
A muddy track or one with a lot of debris can cause problems for a horse. They can become bogged down and lose their footing, and this could delay the start of the race or prevent a horse from finishing the race. A muddy track may also create an uneven surface that can cause horses to slip and fall, which is dangerous for both horse and rider.
Several injuries common in horse racing include fractures of the sesamoids, which are small bones located on either side of the ankle joint (fetlock). There are four types of sesamoid fractures: apical, abaxial and mid-body. The most common type of sesamoid injury is a chip fracture. Sesamoiditis is an inflammation of the sesamoids.
There are a number of different races a horse can run in. These include maiden special weight, conditioned claiming and starter allowance races. Generally, a horse must win a race to advance to the conditioned claiming ranks. After a horse wins a conditioned claiming race, it can then compete in a starter allowance race or an open claiming race.
In the wild, horses naturally synchronize their running in groups, but “racing” and winning are human constructs. The great Australian champion Phar Lap is a symbol of the enduring love of the sport in Australia, where he was adored by spectators. But a few months after his death, activists with the anti-racing group Nup to the Cup gathered in Melbourne to call for an end to horse racing.
A bet on a horse to win, place and show is known as an Across the Board bet. If a horse wins, the player collects three ways; if it finishes second or third, they collect two ways; and if a horse comes in fourth, they collect one way. The Across the Board bet is usually less expensive than a win, place and show bet. A horse that is a mutuel field horse is a horse that is entered in more than the number of positions on the tote board can accommodate. It is not uncommon to see a mutuel field horse on the first and last races of a card.
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