Curious about day to day life at the track

[Laurierace]

[QUOTE=Palm Beach;8797874]
Nope not at all. Which is why I am at 40%. Why run a horse if it can’t win???

Go ahead. What is your win %?

My horses get legs iced and massage and chiro as needed.[/QUOTE]

I would really like to see this 40% win percentage you keep boasting about. Is that 40% in a day, a month, a year, a lifetime? The saying is 20% will put you in the Hall of Fame, I guess you are getting in twice huh? Not to mention even if it is true what happened to the other 60% of the time? I thought you only ran if you could win. Can you even see us down here from up on your high horse?

[Palm_Beach]

[QUOTE=Laurierace;8798873]
I would really like to see this 40% win percentage you keep boasting about. Is that 40% in a day, a month, a year, a lifetime? The saying is 20% will put you in the Hall of Fame, I guess you are getting in twice huh? Not to mention even if it is true what happened to the other 60% of the time? I thought you only ran if you could win. Can you even see us down here from up on your high horse?[/QUOTE]

I guess I am getting in the hall of fame if that indeed is what they say. And I lied. My win % this year is 43%. Last year it was 40%. Lifetime I am at 32% wins. But I’m willing to try to improve those numbers if you have any additional wisdom to offer.

[Texarkana]

[QUOTE=Palm Beach;8798164]
Wrong again. My priority is having the horse come back to the barn safe and sound. Running a horse over its head (which means running it where it cannot win) is not fair to the horse. How can running a horse over it’s head be “good for its career?” Other than the times when a horse needs a race to get back into top shape after time off. If you’ve ever watched a hard running horse walk out of the stall the next day, you’d understand how much a race might take out of a horse. I make the drive at 5 AM to watch them come out of the stall the next morning with the trainer and vet and groom and usually the barn foreman. And because we are so careful about picking spots, the horse usually comes out of the race looking and feeling great.

Or maybe you are making fun of me because I don’t have enough money to buy or breed stallion/broodmare prospects? I understand that the very wealthy are more interested in getting black type than winning races. You can look down your nose all you want in your perfect world mindset, but have you ever managed a horse’s racing career? Oh, and guess what - all but 1 horse has left my possession sound and healthy, with over 50% of them being retired and placed in a good home.

So yes, abosolutely my win % is very important to me because that is how I can afford to give them great care and retire them when they need to be retired instead of dropping them down in class and hoping someone takes them. Some people can afford to operate in the red, I cannot.

It’s funny how people who are not as successful think that anyone who is more successful is not ethical. I’ve never ever put money before the health and welfare of any horse and shame shame shame on you for insinuating that.[/QUOTE]

Shame on me for insinuating what?? And holy heck on putting words in other peoples’ mouths. How on earth would you get ANY of the topics of your rant out of my two sentences asking you to be respectful?

In case you forgot, you started this whole win percentage conversation, pointing out the shortcomings in the percentages of some, sharing your own, and asking to know that of others.

Geez Louise. Talk about derailing a thread.

[Palm_Beach]

[QUOTE=Palm Beach;8796996]
Same exact thing.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Texarkana;8797012]My words are failing me in my communication, because my point was completely lost.

Yes, all trainers need to have the ability to pick a spot. Most trainers are picking the best spot for the horse to win. Period. End of sentence.

In Motion’s barn, they pick the best spot for the horse… and yeah, the goal is still to win, but they’re also willing to sacrifice a win if it’s for the greater good of the horse’s career… if that makes any sense at all.[/QUOTE]

@Texarkana;8797891

PB, you’ve made it crystal clear in previous posts that your win % is your utmost priority as an owner. I can respect that, just realize that not everyone feels the same as you.

[QUOTE=Texarkana;8799789]Shame on me for insinuating what?? And holy heck on putting words in other peoples’ mouths. How on earth would you get ANY of the topics of your rant out of my two sentences asking you to be respectful?

In case you forgot, you started this whole win percentage conversation, pointing out the shortcomings in the percentages of some, sharing your own, and asking to know that of others.[/QUOTE]

Really? Is that what happened?

I pointed out the difference in win % of a trainer based at Fair Hill with access to all those treatment modalities and one who trains at a traditional track with little access to high tech equipment like hyperbaric chambers. YOU are the one who then focused the conversation on me and insulted me. It’s easy to talk about what should and should not be done with a race horse when you don’t own or train one.

It’s difficult to run your barn the way you really want to or keep your horse the way you really want to when the money just is not there. All those treatments at Fair Hill cost money, and to get the conversation back on track, are those treatments translating to improved performance? Or as a horse owner, is it more cost effective to keep your horses in a traditional setting where they still get great care, but may not have access to a hyperbaric chamber.

[Texarkana]

[QUOTE=Palm Beach;8799907]
Really? Is that what happened?

I pointed out the difference in win % of a trainer based at Fair Hill with access to all those treatment modalities and one who trains at a traditional track with little access to high tech equipment like hyperbaric chambers. YOU are the one who then focused the conversation on me and insulted me. It’s easy to talk about what should and should not be done with a race horse when you don’t own or train one. I speak from real experience. And there are others on this board who own/train and I’m sure they will agree that it’s difficult to run your barn the way you really want to or keep your horse the way you really want to when the money just is not there.[/QUOTE]

I think someone is a wee bit oversensitive here. How on earth have I insulted you, other than stating your win percentage is important to you. It must be if you bring it up twice in a single conversation. I never once insulted you, all I did was provide some first hand experience on the win percentage of a barn I previously worked for.

By the way, I own two runners in partnership in addition to my experience working for a number of different mid-Atlantic trainers, but thanks for making assumptions.

Sorry folks for the ridiculous derailment.

[BLBSTBLS]

General daily routine of a harness horse:
5:00am grain fed
5:45am Turn out or walking on the wheel while stall is done, water buckets and feed tubs washed. Water tubs refilled with clean water, one bucket gets molasses and electrolytes.
6:45am First horse for each groom gets groomed, curry, brushed, fly spray, mane and tail combed. Harnessed, and heads onto track around 7am

Horse either jogs 4-5 miles or trains a mile ( depending on the time and training schedule the horse might train twice.)

Once the horse comes in from exercising gets unharnessed, a drink of water and straight to the bath stall. horse gets a soap bath, feet picked out. horse gets towel dried, hoof dressing applied to the hooves, and cream applied to the pasterns to keep them moisturized.

Once the horse is put back into its stall, he gets a bucket of alfalfa cubes. Then a flake of hay.
Stalls get cleaned again, horses get “put away” groomed, and any liniments and poultices, wraps, fly spray etc.

Horses get fed lunch grain and another flake of hay.

Horses get fed dinner between 5:00- 5:30 pm
water refilled

night check around 11, flake of hay thrown and water buckets checked.

Of course this is not how every barn does things, just how my daily routine goes