8th Race 29 February at Charlestown-only one finisher

Bast · Postby **Bast** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 11:15 am

http://www.equibase.com/static/chart/pdf/CT022912USA.html

I've never seen a chart like this one.

Does anyone know anything about the fallen riders and horses?

JimP · Postby **JimP** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:23 pm

A horse broke down in the race right before that tragic race. Also earlier
on the card a horse was eased and vanned off. Not very good odds for
just one day of racing with 9 horses DNF.

Bast · Postby **Bast** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:28 pm

More:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9T9hJdm28aY

The clown who posted this describes "horrifying deaths", but they're just WRONG:

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/racing-news/2012/03/01/breakdown-causes-massive-spill-at-charles-town-races.aspx

I've never seen anything like this.

bdw0617 · Postby **bdw0617** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:32 pm

he was scratched but they tried to run I want revenge in a 30k claimer there a few nights ago

ratherrapid · Postby **ratherrapid** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:44 pm

amazing vid. how fast it goes. some riders had zero reaction time, some about 1/2 second. Watch the last rider in the green. he has just enough time to get off and then look what happens to his horse. always worry about someone getting caught in the stirrups at these speeds. there is something to be said for cancelling live racing with these kind of surfaces. Nothing good every happens for the horse even when they make it through the race.

Bast · Postby **Bast** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:46 pm

The horse in the #1 post nearly goes down just out of the gate.

bdw0617 · Postby **bdw0617** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:52 pm

ratherrapid wrote:amazing vid. how fast it goes. some riders had zero reaction time, some about 1/2 second. Watch the last rider in the green. he has just enough time to get off and then look what happens to his horse. always worry about someone getting caught in the stirrups at these speeds. there is something to be said for cancelling live racing with these kind of surfaces. Nothing good every happens for the horse even when they make it through the race.

i play harles town all the time. some times the track is so wet and slick that you cannot even see the horses when they pan out.

they might not be the best but those jocks there are some tough SOB's. and those turns to boot. it's like a roller skating ring

AscotStud · Postby **AscotStud** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 2:13 pm

Mike told me all horses but the one that broke down walked off and seemed ok. 3 Jocks sent to hospital with minor injuries, one had either a broken rib or collarbone, the others were ok from what he heard in MD this morning[/list]

wilf · Postby **wilf** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 2:14 pm

That's a bad "Perfect Storm" of events to cause breakdowns in the last two races on the card at CT. Both horses Sharp Beauty and Disclosure have spent time racing in Ontario where bute is a 48 hr threshold so many horses are cortisoned regularly instead. They end up running in the winter at CT instead of having a well earned rest like most Ontario TB's, they run on a sloppy surface around the tight turns of a bull-ring in West Virginia which has the most permissive medications policy that I am aware of. It's a bad situation that did not end well and of course several other horses were made victims on the night. The irony is that the only horse left standing in the last race was trained by Scooter Davis,who would have thought that?

ratherrapid · Postby **ratherrapid** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 3:24 pm

and was the favorite in the race. 5f tracks r likely easier on horses because they stay on the same lead for less time. I think there's something to be said about avoiding 4.5f races at those speeds on that kind of track. guessing inj. rates for jocks and horses r geometrically higher in those track conditions.

AscotStud · Postby **AscotStud** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 3:31 pm

I agree with you Wilf, many running up at CT dont feel a thing race day. Mike has always done well shipping there, but we have run 2nd many times to horses who dont run again. I cant speak for the ones that went down last night though. And that track gets very dangerous when lots of rain hits it. Both spills happened in the same spot so it could have been a track problem. Laurel had a similar spill about 2 Weeks ago where a front runner went down taking 3 behind her as well.

IcouldbeU · Postby **IcouldbeU** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 5:45 pm

bdw0617 wrote:he was scratched but they tried to run I want revenge in a 30k claimer there a few nights ago

No, he was entered on the 28th in a 35,000 Handicap not a claiming race.

AscotStud · Postby **AscotStud** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 6:31 pm

wilf · Postby **wilf** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 6:54 pm

Ratherapid I think that 5 furlong racetracks are an abomination, how can you think that staying on the leads for a shorter period is a good thing? Horses that are allowed to get themselves sorted out and balanced on larger tracks will stay sound and run better. If they want to switch leads in a race then they will when they feel comfortable howver being gunned into a tight turn with a short run up cannot possibly be a good thing. On those beautiful galloping tracks of Europe breakdowns are very infrequent ,it goes without saying that I detest the killing fields of tracks like CT and would never run a horse there especially in atrocious winter conditions. I do agree with your feeling about cancelling a card after events like the one under discussion but the final twist is that the breakdowns occurred in the last two races.