"Spaced" Races And "Fresh" Horses Are Killing The Sport

[prudery]

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

Looking at the performances of the horses in the thirties, forties, and fifties, I must say that I believe the biggest culprit of unsoundness in the breed are the track surfaces themselves. For example, Man O' War ran two to three seconds slower than the horses do today, and still broke world records at the time.

Re-read what you just wrote and consider why this is not a creditible argument . Man O' War is NOT an example of horses of the thirties, forties and fifties ... Actual times from the past can be scientifically adjusted to allow for walkup starts, track bias, and perhaps, iron shoes . Some studies indicate that the horses of the past---and even further back than you mention, were actually faster than their recorded times indicate . As far as today's trainers vs those of yesterday, there were good and bad then and now, but today's training does focus on the big event, and major marketing influences where and when a good horse will race . Totally agree with BB and Phalaris ...