Eight Belles was not “injured” as the TV people say. She was murdered by the racing industry which insists on running TBs too young on too hard surfaces too fast. Barbaro and Eight Belles and Ruffian and Go For Wand, wasn’t she the one who broke a leg in the Breeder’s Cub Distaff along with 2 other horses dying in Breeder’s Cup races that day? And every day in training horses break their legs at tracks all over the country. But it is not convenient financially to wait till horses are 4 or 5, and train them on turf and run them on turf. So the racing industry will continue to kill and kill, and the unknowing public will be told about “missteps” and “injuries” and continue to rmanticize horse racing. My mare survived 3 yrs on the track, and amazingly was sound. Go watch horse racing for a few days at any track, and watch the horses “break down”. Let’s see, what if we bred horses with gasp, bigger bones, and not those llittle spindly legs, and if we waited till their bones developed and matured??? nahhh, racing cannot be bothered with that. :eek:
Racing Kills the Filly
Eight Belles was not “injured” as the TV people say. She was murdered by the racing industry which insists on running TBs too young on too hard surfaces too fast. Barbaro and Eight Belles and Ruffian and Go For Wand, wasn’t she the one who broke a leg in the Breeder’s Cub Distaff along with 2 other horses dying in Breeder’s Cup races that day? And every day in training horses break their legs at tracks all over the country. But it is not convenient financially to wait till horses are 4 or 5, and train them on turf and run them on turf. So the racing industry will continue to kill and kill, and the unknowing public will be told about “missteps” and “injuries” and continue to romanticize horse racing. My mare survived 3 yrs on the track, and amazingly was sound. Go watch horse racing for a few days at any track, and watch the horses “break down”. Let’s see, what if we bred horses with gasp, bigger bones, and not those llittle spindly legs, and if we waited till their bones developed and matured??? nahhh, racing cannot be bothered with that. :eek:
Take it somewhere else.
You know, I don’t say this lightly, but Shut. [edit] Up. Now is not the time for your [edit] agenda.
Yes, please do.
Horses die in other sports, they die giving birth, they die in the paddock, they die all kinds of ways. The filly seemed to be doing fine, even slightly after the wire. No one murdered her…murder implies something intentional.
While I don’t share the OP’s, um, passionate thought patterns, I do hate the argument “horses die all the time doing other stuff” as a justification for horses breaking down under saddle.
Take your moronic psycho babble elsewhere please and save it for a better time.
Eight Belles
I’m feeling completely black about her loss too; it’s horrendous, and my heart breaks for her. It was just sickening seeing her go down, and I’m wholly through hearing all the justifications racing proponents put forth for running youngsters. I’m done with even watching racing again, let alone supporting it in any way. To my mind, it’s not defensible a moment longer, especially for anyone who claims to love horses.
Eight Belles’ death isn’t going to bode well for the sport–this was the most public of breakdowns, no matter how the mouthpieces try to euphemize it–and she’s simply the latest innocent victim surrendered to the teeth of a remorseless industry.
Go away!! I’m busy.
What a horrible person. Go play somewhere else.
[QUOTE=BLBGP;3186724]
While I don’t share the OP’s, um, passionate thought patterns, I do hate the argument “horses die all the time doing other stuff” as a justification for horses breaking down under saddle.[/QUOTE]
I absolutely agree with you 100%! I hate that arguement too! I do somewhat agree with the OP too though.
It is so sad that poor filly ran her heart out and this happened to her.
I have to admit my first words when they showed the filly lying on the track was “I hate racing!”
I used to have racehorses until I got tired of seeing them breakdown (ours didn’t but to many others did).:no:
Also…
I should add as a usual forum lurker here that I’m 43, have been involved with horses all my life, and rode extensively as a Jr/A/O, mostly on much-loved OOT horses. It’s them I’m thinking of tonight.
While I wouldn’t put it so forcefully, I do feel saddened. Eight Belles was nearly l7 h and only just had her third birthday. It is a lot to ask for a long race, and I do think that raw talent is exploited by the racing industry. Although at this moment I can only offer my sympathy to her connections at such a tragedy. Those mares have so much heart.
Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out. Take the Op with you please.
You know, I’m usually a lurker on this forum but I have to say from the heart that I am completely appalled at some of the replies on this thread, and at 43 I’m pretty hard to shock. I think these responses speak for themselves. Whether you agree with the original poster or not, whatever happened to manners and at least respecting another person’s opinion? I feel truly, truly sad for the future of our sport tonight.
My opinion of the OP based on that post is not high. I’m being polite.
Nobody JUSTIFIES horses breaking down. Everybody hates it. The industry does what it can, but accidents are still going to happen.
For those who say they are done with racing- are you done with driving cars, too? Because, despite continual safety improvements over the years, lots of people die in cars every day.
Ah, yes, you’ll say, well, that’s our choice, the ‘poor race horse’ has no choice. To which I respond, LOOK AT THE HORSES! Do they look unhappy to you? Not to me! Certainly not Eight Belles in the piece earlier today where her trainer was moseying around the track, into the paddock, etc with her.
I am done with racing also. My only support will be buying OTTBs.
I am questioning a return to eventing (not that I would be doing any thing over prelim).
But racing… I will not watch, I will discourage all I know from supporting horse racing in the US. This includes how I will vote in elections in CA, there are often many gambling inactivates that effect horse racing (voting for indian gaming often hurts the tracks). I will be doing what I can with my dollar and my vote to bring an end to racing.
Posting this once was more than enough, doncha think??
AMEN!
Anyone who can defend the racing industry after this is no horseman or horse lover. “It happens” is NO EXCUSE!
You mean that same respect shown for racing and the filly who died? NOBODY is defending what happened. But making claims that Eight Belles was “murdered” is inflammatory and is meant to be incititatory. I’m sure my response is what prompted yours, and normally, I’d probably agree. But this time, I don’t much care about “manners”. I’ve had it with crap like this–it’s not productive, offers no solution, and only serves to stir things up.
