1983 KD post parade

[Pedigree Ann]

Originally Posted by sumitas

the * means the horse is tail male to either Northern Dancer or Raise A Native. I believe almost the whole field in this year's KD was tail male to Raise A Native or Northern Dancer which might give a clue that durability is taking a hit. It also shows that the crosses and inbreeding of Raise A Native/ and Northern Dancer are bred more today. So, as usual, the dam does have her 50% influence.

Yet horses with the same sort of pedigrees have long careers at lower levels. Don't give me that ' they aren't running as hard' jive, either; slower horses run as hard as they can in their races, too. And it's hard to see how the Y-chromosome (the only gene a colt is guaranteed to receive from the tail-male ancestor) could have such an effect on soundness. You are trying to find a simple explanation to a complex situation.

I blame trainers as much as breeders; young horses don't get as much 'flat' work as they used to - miles of trotting and galloping frequently if not daily. The trainers give them speed works, a turn around the track, and then back to the barn. Not the way to increase bone density and muscle tone. The distance horses from this type of trainer are doing it on their genes, not their training.