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Originally Posted by eajinabi
Is there some co-realtion to Breakdowns and the Big Days of racing?
Barbabro, GEorge Washington, Eight Belles and Chelokee. There was also a Ogden phipps horse that broke down in the distaff in the 2006 BC.
How many breakdowns do we see on regular days??
There are some but percenatge wise seems like it happens more on the big days. Not a very good image for horse racing especialy on the national stage.
Why do they need to sup up the track on the big days. Maybe someone should look at that.
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Interesting question. Tracks have been noted to "soup up" their track for some reason or another on big days. I've never understood it but we've seen evidence of it. Real handicappers know the unadjusted time is meaningless and I can't see non-racing fans getting all excited because a horse runs a 1:35 mile instead of maybe a 1:36 3/5 over a deeper track. But a harder track could contribute to more breakdowns.
The George Washington breakdown drew lots of criticism since many (myself included) felt that he had no business running in the BC Classic. Considering how EIght Belles ran, she certainly wasn't overmatched by the other 18 non Big Brown males. Have to also think that Grade 1 caliber performers might try a little harder and that riders may be putting forth as much effort as possible. Put it all together and I can see why there's more breakdowns in these scenarios.