Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom
That is not what I said. I did say anything about speeding out it's comfort zone. I said NOT using its natural weapon - early speed.
And pace is not independent of other horses.
Horse can be used running slower than usual when pressed, or when inside of other horses. These are animals not machines.
You see it everyday - horses running early in very slow time get swallowed up when the last two furlongs go fast and the closers are right there at the top of the stretch.
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A horse is only being pressed if said pressure is causing the horse to go faster. It is a myth that just because 2 horses are running side by side they are dueling and experiencing a tiring effect above and beyond the effect of running at speed. Horses are pack animals and, if anything, are more comfortable when running in company. I know this incorrect notion of the effect of pressure is widely held, but it has no basis in biology or in equine psychology and is just one of many myths in horse racing.
Yes, horses that set slow paces can be caught in the stretch but I have already explained the possible causes for this and refer you back to that post.
Yes, horses are not machines but are still subject to the laws of Physics, Biology and Equine Psychology.
