Re:Bling suspended

Over the Air wrote:

Bunnyhuggers all of you.

If there are no welts it equates to little more than the sound to encourage the horse. If you are so set on animal welfare then you should not be involved in racing in any shape or form seeing that animals spend 22/24 hours cooped up in a stable - is that cruel?

You seem like you suffering from a bout of ostrich syndrome!!!

Should we reintroduce spurs?


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Why can’t we train horses to race without jockeys?


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Why shouldn’t horses race flat out for the whole trip?


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Disqualification is to be introduced as the ultimate sanction for whip offences in Britain, it has been suggested.

A report in Thursday's Daily Mail, which has not been criticised by some of those in a position to know, claimed the sanction would be available in especially serious instances of the rules being breached in high-profile races.

The BHA's drawn-out whip review is expected to be published next week following an egregiously long process. The review was first mooted at the end of 2018 when the ruling body's then chief executive said "a new structure for penalties and deterrents for overuse of the whip" would soon be announced. The review was formally recommended by the Horse Welfare Board in 2020 and a consultation process began last summer.

According to Thursday's leak, disqualification will be considered where a jockey uses the whip 12 times in a jumps race or 11 times on the Flat. There will also be enhanced penalties for the offender, who will be at risk of a month-long suspension.

An exception can be made for a rider who can satisfy stewards the whip was being used to ensure the safety of race participants rather than to encourage their mount forwards. This seems likely to be a defence that will only succeed in the very rarest of circumstances.

An increased number of disqualifications would be highly unpopular with both bookmakers and punters. Such a sanction would inevitably become the only talking point if it were used to change the result of, say, the Grand National.

Noble Yeats may have been vulnerable to disqualification under the suggested new rule after his Aintree win in April when Sam Waley-Cohen was suspended for nine days for using his whip too many times and in the wrong place on the run-in.

Joy for Sam Waley-Cohen as he wins the Grand National on Noble Yeats back in April. The winning rider received a nine-day ban for overuse of the whip, however, and may have been disqualified under these new proposed rules
Joy for Sam Waley-Cohen as he wins the Grand National on Noble Yeats back in April. The winning rider received a nine-day ban for overuse of the whip, however, and may have been disqualified under these new proposed rules

However, the hope is evidently that the threat of disqualification will be a sufficient deterrent to ensure jockeys comply with existing rules. These specify a maximum number of uses, eight times in a jumps race or seven on the Flat, beyond which stewards may impose suspensions and/or fines.

Officials have long complained about what are seen as "win at all costs" rides in major races, when jockeys make more aggressive use of the whip than is their usual habit. In addition to concerns over how the horse is being treated in that situation, there are also regular complaints about the unfairness of allowing a victory to stand where the winning jockey has broken the whip rules and the narrowly beaten runner-up has not.

The BHA declined to respond to the details of Thursday's story, saying only: "The whip report is due for publication in the near future. We will not comment on speculation around its contents."

I have been told for years by Jockeys and Trainers that whips don't hurt horses...now I remember reading stipes reports years ago when horses would come back with whip weals. not seen that for years...The question then is "if whip strikes don't harm horses then why are they counted?" If they indeed do hurt horses then surely one strike is one too many? If the problem is just the visual aspect of spectators being offended by perceived cruelty then I would say there are far worse things done to horses that are unseen as they are done at training tracks... I would like to see a demonstration of a jockey being whipped on the back, shirtless and see if the skin marks or if he flinches... If whips hurt then have them ride with a crop that is only used as a guide without any physical strike... If they don't hurt ...stop counting

Mac wrote:

Why can’t we train horses to race without jockeys?


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If horses ran without jockeys racing would be over in a week...have you ever seen a horse drop its groom at the ring?.Horses have died running loose at track or have run into fences...how much money.are you going to pay the grooms who have to catch these riderless animals after the finish...have you seen the videos of horses jumping into stands and injuring people ... there would be more horses dead in a week than in a decade of track fatalities... I hope you were joking 🙃

Mac wrote:

Why can’t we train horses to race without jockeys?


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Brought to you by Neuralink. Coming to a racetrack near you...or Mars.

Just get rid of the whip. Spurs were got rid of.


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.....once upon a time I had a small interest in a little filly...she was very keen and just loved to run....early in her short career ....a greedy little shit sticks all and sundry into her....rides her all wrong and clearly cant get up to win ..... then out of sheer frustration gives her one almighty smack connecting her in the gut.....she stopped like a shot dog...and instantly dug her toes in ....turned sour and there after cowered in her box for almost nine weeks .. became totally whip shy.... it is not how many times you strike them....it is how you strike them....:ohmy: .

Recently, the Big T had one race without whips. Not sure if it was a trial or just a novelty.


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......was sort of a trial....as do they have them in UK too....and now many of our work rider races they are allowed to carry crops.....but not allowed to use them....the stick when used correctly is an important tool....just like we cannot have riderless horses either.....even seen local jocks hand their sticks to racing staff before they go to the start and collect them before they load....this is because some horses are very crop shy....maybe because they were once beaten into submission.....:blink: