October
JulyLet them race
Retirement. It’s something I look forward to. Only 9855 days left until I cast off the shackles of employment. However, not everyone shares my enthusiasm for the sweet respite of retired life.
Whilst I’m not personal friends with Wells, nor am I besties with Bashboy, I think I can safely say that Wells isn’t looking forward to being forced into retirement in 12 months and neither was Bashboy prior to being thanked for his service and having a gold watch slipped over his fetlock.
Racing needs horses that people can get behind — horses that capture the imagination of the public or even just the racing public.
Occasionally champions like Black Caviar and Winx come along, put bums on seats and are clearly good for racing for a plethora of reasons.
Then there are horses of far less note that people love for all sorts of reasons.
They might be horses that are owned or trained by battlers, they might be horses that have had more than 100 starts, they might be jumpers.
These last two categories are my favourites. I loved watching Jungle Ruler (115: 20-12-12) grow an extra leg on bottomless 10s and I still have a soft spot for Crafty Cruiser (148: 13-21-16), who late last year as an 11-year-old ran second in the Jericho Cup. Old Crafty has won more than $1 million and I’ll be sad when he’s forced into retirement in 12 months, too.
These are just two examples of horse that contribute to the compelling narrative of racing. I find them infinitely more interesting than the three-year-old blueblood who has eight or nine starts and then heads off to stud.
Jumps racing is my passion and I find it incredibly disappointing that we send sound horses into retirement at a seemingly arbitrary age regardless of their condition.
Seeing Wells win the Mosstrooper again was brilliant. He is a champion of the sport and I’ve enjoyed watching him race all over Victoria.
His connections seem pretty adamant that the horse is sound enough to continue his career and if this is still the case in 12 months’ time, why shouldn’t he?
Surely, Kathryn Durden and a vet are in a better position to determine Wells’s ability to continue racing than a number on a page.
Some argue that it would be bad for optics if we didn’t cap the age to which horses could race and they were to break down on the track. I’d suggest this wouldn’t look any worse than a young horse breaking down.
In my mind it’s simple: if a horse is fit to race, it should be allowed to race. If it can pass a vet test, let it race.
A couple of weeks ago at Roscommon in Ireland, See Double You won a hurdle at the age of 16 — only three years the junior of his jockey! What a great story.
Racing needs heroes, so I don’t understand why we are so keen to pension them off. I’m keen on retirement but I’m a school teacher, not a racehorse.
Camberwell (Vic)