tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782644139927778760.post-60342132892402521462008-05-04T14:10:00.000-04:002008-05-04T14:10:00.000-04:002008-05-04T14:10:00.000-04:00killermonkeys,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for your comments. I have seen the training schedules of some top racehorses, and it does appear that they spent their non-training time in the stall. Obviously, I've only seen a few records, so my sample may not be representative, but I can see how a horse with top prospects wouldn't be permitted to run around.<BR/><BR/>I agree age is likely the biggest culprit, but most experts now agree the dirt tracks are also a factor. The few tracks that have switched to synthetic turf have seen a dramatic fall in deaths (I don't have the stats at hand, and have a sufficiently busy day as to deter tracking them down), but as of the time of Barbaro's death, I recall the decline was five fold, maybe even seven fold. That's huge. The deterrent (aside from the cost of re-doing tracks) is that it removes the track consistency as a performance factor. Apparently the synthetic turf is the more or less the same from a running perspective wet or dry. That of course may impact betting, since it reduces an element of uncertainty.<BR/><BR/>As for Lasix, I am still inclined to believe it could be a culprit, Even when the horse is rehydrated, it isn't clear how fast his electrolytes are back at the proper levels. And I wonder if the mass/speed tradeoff that Lasix produces (less horse mass, slightly higher running speed). Force = mass x acceleration. If the decrease in weigh allowed a horse to get a gain in acceleration (say when he/she is asked to go full out) out of proportion to the weight reduction, that would indeed lead to an increase in impact, which could indeed increase injuries.<BR/><BR/>One way to test this would be to look at the reverse phenomenon: injury rates, particularly bone breaks, in handicapped horses carrying heavier weights. If horses carrying higher imposts show lower injury rates compared to those carrying "normal" (126 lbs) to light imposts, that would provide some support.<BR/><BR/>Finally, the inbreeding, or more accurately, breeding for speed is an issue. Again around the time of Barbaro's death, I recall reading a piece by someone who had ridden European Thoroughbreds and was amazed at how they could handle rough terrain. He said something like "I never realized Thoroughbreds could be so sturdy."Yves Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03506020285476330865noreply@blogger.com