The Cobalt Conundrum
Catching cheaters is like playing Whac-A-Mole. Regulators smack one here, and another turns up there.
Let there be light - How the sun’s light affects racehorse performance and safety
Find out how elite trainers consider the impact of jet lag, light-dark cycles, and other factors associated with shipping across times zones on their horses’ performance?
The effects of morning exercise on muscle response
Timing is everything. Nowhere is this more relevant than when preparing an elite equine athlete for a race. Thoroughbred trainers are critically aware of the importance of fine-tuning the feeding and exercise regimes of their charges in the months, weeks and days before a big event. Timing is also critical for the smooth functioning of a horse’s musculoskeletal system for optimal performance.
Do horses sense fear?
Racehorses are athletes performing at the peak of their physical capabilities, with their strength and fitness carefully monitored and researched. However less consideration is given to the psychological factors that may affect their performance, with fear being a major influence.
Classic Mile - a thriving training facility
Nearly three decades after his plan to open a racetrack in Ocala, Florida failed to materialize, Domenic Martelli's Plan B is still flourishing. Martelli, a New Jersey real estate maven, thought legislation to approve a racetrack in Ocala was imminent in the mid '80's. He didn't wait for that approval, instead purchasing a 704-acre parcel on U.S. Highway 40 near the now late Fred Hooper's Farm, and building a one-mile racetrack with a seven-furlong turf course, a three-furlong training track and 26 barns with 776 stalls, each barn featuring several paddocks for turnouts.
He named his facility Classic Mile and planned to have a mixed-meet of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horses. He was sure racing would be approved. "It looked like a piece of cake," Martelli told Dave Goldman in his October 12, 2006 story in the Daily Racing Form. "Boy, was I wrong."
Photos by Sandra Madison
Stride analysis - the next step to predicting a horse's future
The stride of the thoroughbred has been a subject of fascination for horseman since the early days of its breeding.