Quote:
Originally Posted by Sightseek
I kind of understand what Buckpasser is saying here and while most of you are looking at this from a horseplaying perspective and you want your jockey giving his all - several people have asked me how I can be a "horse person" and watch them hit the horses so frequently - granted their whips are not like the whips we ride with.
There are people (and not PETA freaks) who think it looks cruel and I think what Buckpasser may have been getting at is that for a filly who could possibly be in the national spotlight and get people interested in watching or attending the races - Calvin going to the whip that many times may not be perceived positively.
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I pretty much agree with Sightseek here. You have Calvin saying after the race (as quoted in DRF),
"Hitting her is not going to make her run faster. I think when a horse is going to come up to her, that's when you'll see her run. She does what she has to do." Really? Then why did you hit her 19 times in the stretch?
Did Rachel show the "determination of a champion" yesterday? Did she not want to get beat, or was she just running like hell because Calvin was on autowhip?
There's a disconnect with how much we admire these horses and the amount of punishment we are willing to to see inflicted upon them.
--Dunbar