A horse race is a contest of speed and endurance between a racehorse and other competitors. The winner is the one who covers a given distance in the shortest amount of time. It is a popular sport in which horses, usually ridden by jockeys, are bet against each other and the odds are set by bookmakers.
A thoroughbred’s ability to run is determined by the genes it receives from its parents and its environment. Its muscle mass, bone structure and weight are also important factors in its speed. A horse’s muscles are made up of slow-twitch fibers that rely on oxygen for fuel, and fast-twitch muscle fibers, which generate power and require less oxygen. A horse with more of the former is more likely to be able to cover greater distances in a short period of time, while those with more of the latter are better suited to quick bursts of energy.
Before a race, horses are conditioned by doing routine jogs and gallops in the mornings. Then, they are groomed and brushed to get ready to run.
Depending on the conditions, a race can be a grueling test of endurance for both horses and humans. During the pandemic, horse racing found new audiences among people locked in front of their TVs watching TVG, the all-racing channel included on many sports cable packages. The channel devoted a lot of airtime to races from around the world, and people started learning horse racing terminology, like “weanling,” “cup stacking” and “cherry pit spitting.”
The first organized horse race in North America was held on Long Island in 1664. Until the Civil War, these races were match events between two or three horses and were run in heats, with the winners being declared by judges who saw the entire race. By the mid-18th century, dash races were the rule and the emphasis switched from stamina to speed.
As the race neared its end, the crowd in the grandstands erupted into cheering and shrieking. War of Will was pulling away from the pack, with McKinzie and Mongolian Groom close behind. Then, at the top of the stretch, the field started to tighten. McKinzie, the leader, was slipping by on the inside. The runner-up, the chestnut colt Vino Rosso, was pressing hard on the outside.
As the horses rounded the final turn of the mile-long track, they began their sprint down the stretch. The jockeys on the leaders urged them forward, their whips flashing in the fading sunlight. As the leaders drew closer, the crowd roared as they tried to anticipate which jockey would strike first, who was going to be the one to grab the lead at the finish line. Then, as the horses accelerated through the final strides and the crowd went wild, the winner was declared. It was the first win of the season for McKinzie, and he became the fastest Thoroughbred ever to cover the distance of a mile. It was a race for the ages.