Please forgive me this incredibly stupid question - but a co-worker of mine asked why standardbreds only pull sulkies. I assume it’s because there is no way a jockey could ride the movement of a pacer or trotter at top speed, but I was wondering if there was a historical reason as well. Thanks!
Can’t answer why bikes (not sulkies 
) over riding other than perhaps trot/pace, AFAIK is a much more sustainable pace over long distances so the harness/carriage horses worked primarily at a trot/pace and driven instead of ridden???
Already learned something new, thanks! I always thought they were sulkies!
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They do have U/S Standardbred racing. It’s gaining in popularity.
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The term bike came from when they started using bicycle style wheels - it was known as a bicycle wheeled sulky as opposed to the old wooden wheels. The reason for sulkies, which is the term one purchases them by, came from a time when it was illegal in the US to bet on ridden horses so trotting to cart/buggy/wagon races were invented to circumvent that law and a new sport was born.
Racing under saddle is quite common in Europe, complete with betting, and is slowly getting more popular here.
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Interesting, I didn’t know Standardbreds were being raced under saddle here either. If it’s happening near me, I’ll go watch. There was an interesting article how harness racing is a lot cleaner now than thoroughbred flat racing, and the TB people could learn from them.
I like Standardbreds a lot, they are some smart cookies. Read a couple of kids books about trotters/pacers when I was young, made me want to try it one day. One was Born to Trot, the other was about a boy and filly.
Thanks sk_pacer on the history of the term ‘bike’ that the STBs use to race in. I also didn’t realize that STBs were ever ridden in races… sometimes necessity is the mother of invention
The reason STB racing is “cleaner” is because it is a DIY sport. The same person can own, train, and drive their horse. Not really possible with TBs.
It is a blast to train them, and you don’t have to be a gazilionaire to participate, nor do you have to be particularly fit or young.
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Dangit! I remember Born To Trot and now I want to race my own Standie. Are there tracks in So LA?
There was Born to Trot and another book called The Horse Comes First. They both got me interested in racing. I spent a few years during the 90s grooming for a Big Barn and had a couple of my own. Best fun EVER!
I don’t know if any sanctioned racing in Louisiana, but if you
look on YouTube, you’ll find plenty of Bush League (illegal) racing.
Many, if not all, of the harness tracks have either live streaming of the races or replay. The two I use most often are free, and I’ve seen Yonkers has been live streaming their races on Facebook. On http://www.ustrotting.com/ you can see the entries and results for all US tracks, all US Fair tracks, and there links on there for Canadian tracks as well.
There aren’t any harness tracks in Louisiana, but there is one Fair track that is scheduled for six days of racing in Neshoba County, MS.
They always have been. “Bike” is a relatively recent, informal term. “Sulky” is still correct.
https://www.chevisulky.com/
There is an interesting article here about why racing changed from being under saddle to being mostly in harness. Another article I found says that they still race trotters under saddle in France.
Also, while not as common, there are also trotting races for ponies. They are called trottingbreds and are around 13H.
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RPM, that is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!
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These are links to an awesome documentary on Youtube about the great STB race mare Moni Maker setting the under saddle world record with jockey Julie Krone. Worth a watch!
Part 1: https://youtu.be/Dbn8RNrk9wU
Part 2: https://youtu.be/egIK-nA8DvE
And here’s a promotional video for racing under saddle in North America:
https://youtu.be/IalysUAa9OI
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Harness racing books I have loved:
Born to Trot by Marguerite Henry
The Good Luck Colt by Genevieve Torrey Eames
Red Horse Hill & Cedar’s Boy by Stephen Meader
The Blood Bay Colt & The Black Stallion’s Sulky Colt by Walter Farley
Those are all old but good reads. I need to find some newer ones to read.S
I remember classes for “roadsters” at the big annual horse show here when I was growing up. Everything from jumpers to saddle seat and fine harness to Paso Finos. I think the roadsters were driven to sulkies, with the drivers in silks. When I learned to drive a Saddlebred we used training carts and sulkies.
There are still roadster classes at Saddlebred shows - under saddle, roadster to bike, roadster to wagon! There classes are so much fun to watch! There are also roadster pony classes for the Hackney ponies, driving and under saddle. I love driving horses, and some horses are so much happier pulling a cart than under saddle.
Thanks for the list of books! I’d forgotten about the Black Stallion’s Sulky Colt.
