Breeding vs Training
 

While it is generaly accepted that the industry is continuualy tring to breed speed into the horses, Why do the owners and trainers continually trying to develope classic horses from this speed genetics and early training practices.\?

Cause speed sells.

Because you can sometimes win million dollar (plus) routes with a horse that's more brilliant than professional. And if you can't, you might still make money in sprints and miles. it's probably a lot tougher to successfully shorten up a horse with stamina-oriented breeding.

I don't think anyone goes into it anymore with thoughts of breeding a horse that can win the SA Hcp or the Hollywood Gold Cup or the JCGC. Looking for a horse that's going to be a top older horse is a thing of the past. The chance to make your horse's career, on the track and for his future plans, are during his 3yo season. Take out the TC races and the Travers and what do you have? A bunch of races at 9f and under with really nice purses. The Arkansas Derby, Blue Grass, Wood, SA Derby, Florida Derby, Haskell, WV Derby, Penn Derby, Super Derby, Ohio Derby, Jim Dandy, Peter Pan, Dwyer.......well, you get the point. And that's not even going back to their 2yo seasons with races like the Champagne and the BC Juvenile. There is a ton of money to be made in races that are shorter than the classic distance. So you have to breed horses that are going to be able to excel in this area and then hope they can go longer. As Shadow Roll said, it's easier to get one to go longer if he's bred as a sprinter than it is to get a stamina oriented one to go shorter.

Another thing to remember is what your competition is going to be. It's one thing if you are sending a horse by Groovy in a 10f race against horses by AP Indy, Alydar, Unbridled, etc. It's another thing if he's in there against horses by Tale of the Cat, Elusive Quality, Gulch, Pulpit, etc. You wouldn't select Midnight Lute to beat Curlin, Bernardini, and Invasor in a 10f race. But if he's in a 10f race and the competition is Fabulous Strike, Idiot Proof, and Lost in the Fog, you'd give him a different chance. That's sort of what the Derby has become these days. It's becoming less and less which horses are best bred to run 10f. It's more and more about which of the 8-9f horses will be able to last the longest.

Europe is the only place they breed for 1 1/4 , 1 1/2 and longer.

With the trend of redoing the tracks to polli=poop, will we see more of the euros crossing over for the purses with the poly and turf compatability?Im not at all familar with the euros reason for comming over to the states but it seems now the biggest factors are Lasix and lesser compition on the turf .

Only the B type horses who can't run on the proper surface in Europe will make it to the US.

I don't think that's going to be the case at all. I'm betting that the BC Turf and the BC Mile are going to lose more contenders to the "dirt" races this year than ever before. With purses and opportunities the way they are over here compared to in Europe, I wouldn't be surprised to see more of them start coming over earlier to contest races like the Hollywood Gold Cup, Pacific Classic, and Spinster and not just wait till the BC.

I prefer breeding, but for my kids sake, I hope their behavior comes down to training :D

Only if they can't run over their. It's not intended for these to run on dirt tracks

I don't think that's true. Look at a case like Dylan Thomas or Giant's Causeway. Sakhee. Those weren't cases of horses that couldn't run over there. George Washington. These were all horses that could not only run over there but run at the highest levels. But they were still brought over here to try the dirt? Why? Sometimes, they are looking to see if their horses can establish themselves on the new surface because it would open up brand new doors in the shed. Same thing will apply with these synthetics, only it may be easier to accomplish given the way these surfaces tend to be really kind to grass horses.