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Originally Posted by PatCummings
I don't have any experience training racehorses, and I don't mean to sound snarky, but based on what you said above, it sounds like I don't need much considering how much watching others and replicating their actions plays a role in training...and maybe some should question the long-term impact of Bobby Frankel's training methods and how that has potentially hurt US racing (I know there have been some stories about this in the past).
No one needs experience, either, to state the obvious - American horses don't come back and run in four days, or eight days, and do it with any success. Trainers can lie all they want about their rationale, that's also obvious many times (Guerrero and his cheeks as mentioned in another thread). What happens in some examples in the rest of the world is dramatically different than what happens here, same breed, very very different handling, durability, etc.
The UK racing season is year round now with the installation of several all-weather surfaces, same in France. It's not high quality racing, but neither are many of our year-round circuits. At the top levels, it's near impossible to ignore the fact that the majority of graded-caliber American older horses run about an eight-month season from April (Keeneland) to Breeders' Cup or so.
Maybe we will just agree to disagree - but for now, nothing is going to change my opinion that the rest of the world is, on average, able to get more out of a thoroughbred than those based in America.
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Pat
You just are comparing apples and oranges. You know as well as I do that if an American trainer ran a horse bck in 5 days and it didnt win and continue to win than everyone would point their fingers and say "that guy is killing his horses". For what? So people on a message board can say American horses are tough too?
The racing season in France and the UK is effectively over in November and doesnt start back till April. The Winter racing there is the equal to Hawthorne. I wouldn't call Hawthorne the epitome of American racing.
What you are doing is making a nebulous statement that cant really be proven or disproven. If you would base your opinion on some sort of hard evidence or even flimsy evidence perhaps we could discuss the topic with a little more depth. Do you seriously think that American trainers couldn't go to Europe or Australia or where ever and do well? LOL It is ridiculous. Because the style of racing and training vary so much it would take some time to get used to but n the end training is mostly about the ability of your horses and your owners ability to understand that. Regardless of surface, distance or rate of starting.