Silly little question - how do you put on a race saddle?

[beaujolais]

Silly little question - how do you put on a race saddle?

Please remember I’m a h/j person & former sb groom.

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OK, so do you go get the saddle cloth, head number, jockey armband number from the colors room (?) numbers room (?) or does the trainer?

The saddle cloth is cotton? nylon? That is your saddle pad?

Then your race saddle and girth - but is the girth a cotton material? nylon? It’s a type of overgirth that goes over the saddle and just fastens with a buckle and keepers on one side? Does it have elastic on it like the h/j girths?

The groom does the saddle or the trainer?

I guess the girth goes up in increments and you also stretch out legs?

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Then, how is putting on an exercise saddle different? I think this has a regular type girth (meaning attaches to billets on both sides of the saddle)? Elastic insert or not? I forget - are there exercise saddle type saddle pads?

When I used to groom sb’s we always had a bunch of stuff in the paddock stall - at least two buckets filled with sponges, brushes, shampoo, wraps, etc. & harness bag. When I watch the tb races they have nothing in the paddock stall but people and horse (?)

Why?

We used to give them a bath in the paddock stall after the race but do you all do that?

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Thanks all. Please excuse my green-ness.

[Laurierace]

Who is the “you” that you are referring to? It sounds like you are asking most of the questions from a grooms point of view. If so, the answer is you don’t do anything but hold the horse. If you are asking about the trainer that is a different story.

[beaujolais]

Sorry, thanks. I was thinking grooms involvement. Really - nothing - o.k. - I had no idea ! SB grooms do all the tacking.

So, then, input from what the trainers have to do, if you would.

[Laurierace]

The trainer just has to tighten the girth on the left side of the horse. The jockey owns the saddle and lead weight pads, the saddle towel is just cloth and belongs to the track. The valet brings everything out for you and puts it on from the right. There are two girths one under that goes on like a regular girth and one that goes over the top of the saddle; both are just elastic, nothing else with one buckle.
No baths or anything in the paddock although you can spritz them with the hose if you want.

[Acertainsmile]

The groom or hotwalker will usually have a bag with a girth channel (either rubber or foam) which goes under the girth against the horse, a sponge, rag, etc. In the bag may be an extra tongue tie, blinkers…just depends. All barns are different. Many hotwalkers will also carry small buckets with sponges.

An excersise saddle is just a smaller version of an english saddle with two billets on both sides. We use foam pads, felt pads, fitted pads (but hardly ever sheepskin). A saddle towel goes underneath whatever saddle pad we use. Most of the girths are leather, with one side being elastic.

[beaujolais]

Thanks all.

I didn’t realize that you had two girths to race. Sounds like a good idea, for sure, though.

I’m not sure I’m loving the no baths in the paddock thing though. I guess if it’s hot, you can hose them off there, throw a cooler on and bath back at the barn.

Oh, do you all leg stretch after girthing?

So a tb paddock goes much quicker than a sb. With sbs they go out for two warm up trips before the race, you do your bath in the paddock & walk out in there. It’s a fairly long night.

Now, for a regular day at the barn, who tacks the horse - exercise rider or groom?

[Acertainsmile]

If it’s a bigger barn the grooms saddle the horses in the morning… although as a rider I usually adjust my saddle! And yes, as trainers we always give a good stretch after putting the girth on.

As far as bathing in the paddock, the saddles are taken off outside after the horses pull up…only if a horse is claimed do they go back into the paddock for unbridleing. Only exeption is if it’s pouring down rain or really, really cold. The races run back to back, so as the last race is walking home, the next race is already on it’s way over to the paddock.

[beaujolais]

Thanks, ACS.

Now, does a paddock only have stalls for one race’s worth of horses?

[Acertainsmile]

There are usually at least 12 stalls at most tracks, but depends. The outrider ponies are usually tied in there also. There can be a 4 horse race, and next a 12 horse race…and horses from one race to the next are never kept in the paddock at the same time.

[Slewdledo]

A few trainers will stretch legs. Not many, though, and not every horse.

All the paddocks I’ve seen have 12-18 or 20 stalls. only one race at a time, but schoolers are allowed in most races.

[beaujolais]

A few trainers will stretch legs. Not many, though, and not every horse.

Would that be because the horses can be a little too hot to do this or they just don’t feel the need? Just wondering.

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Wow, different !

The sb paddocks have stalls for most of the races. (Maybe the last race or two comes into the paddock to go into the Race One and Two row.) But, with the horses warming up two trips before racing, it’s a much longer paddock.

[Acertainsmile]

We always strectched legs, and so did most of the trainers I worked for over the years. I would say ignorance would lead one not too. Nothing like having one leap out of the stall because they are girthy!

[lily04]

I’ve done both SB and TB racing and paddocking is very different. With the Tb we go to the paddock right before our race not several races before like the SB. If I remember correctly from when I did SBs we went to the paddock early and went to the track for a warm up jog between earlier races and then came back to the paddock. Once back in the paddock we removed the harness,boots and other equipment and bathed the horse and then while waiting for our race all the equipment had to be cleaned.

[jengersnap]

[QUOTE=sonomacounty;6067666]

The sb paddocks have stalls for most of the races. (Maybe the last race or two comes into the paddock to go into the Race One and Two row.) But, with the horses warming up two trips before racing, it’s a much longer paddock.[/QUOTE]

TBs do not have retention barns like SBs. Once they did, though. My husband is old enough to remember retention barns at Philly (Parx). It was more unsettling for many horses to be in a strange barn hours before they would race though. With TBs, aside from vet check and some prerace work, most are much happier having stayed in their own stalls until they go over to the paddock. Most of them do not ship in for a race, or if they do (in the case of classier horses usually) they do it days ahead, not the day of the race. They just aren’t use to that much change going on in such a short time. Many of ours on a good weather day we can just run a rub rag over and throw the bridle and halter on them, and lead them over at the ten minutes to post (for the prior race) call. Hubby said before standardbreds were tempting because he could have driven his own, but too much work so he stayed with the TBs :lol:

I’ve been in the SB retention barns at Woodbine and Mohawk a few times with my friend, and it is SO different to see all these horses kept warmed up. They would go out, do their laps between races, and come back in and put in cross ties. In my mind, they were hot and steamy and should be walking to cool out, but instead they had coolers thrown over them. Firmed up my belief SBs are hardy critters.

Looking at the questions left, ours do not have head numbers anymore, just the saddle towel numbers and the jockey armbands. The armbands are laid out with the colors in the jock’s room.

[gumtree]

Two people are involved;

Everything is put on in a “stacked” order. The “stack” consists of, bottom to top

Slip pad, made of rubber, short, or full backed, depending on weight assigned, thick or thin.

Weight pad

Numbered cloth, sometimes synthetic

Race saddle, one billet on both sides

2 girths, an “under“ girth, as with a normal saddle, single billet, and an “over” girth which goes over the saddle and under the horse on top of the under girth, both are made of synthetic elastic material

Person on the right side attaches the “under” girth about 2 or 3 notches from the top and lets it drop to the side of the horse. And then holds the saddle in place.

In jump races breast plates are usually used and attached at this time.

Person on the left, usually the trainer grabs the under girth firmly and pulls, this is very important, straight down stretching it out at the same time places the “girth channel” a foam or rubber “band” that both girths sit on top of so as to spread the tension evenly and not pinch the horse, keeping tension on the girth as it is pulled around the belly and up to the saddle and run up the billet several notches from the top. Depending on how the girth “feels” the person on the right may have to go up a notch or two then the same on the left.
All of this is choreographed to go quickly and smoothly. Especially on a “factious” horse!

Then comes the over girth. Placed over the middle of the saddle the buckle is on the right and will hang higher on the horse‘s right side. Some jocks like to have the stirrup leather ends tucked under the girth some don’t. The trainer on the left will squat down and hold his end and the person on the right will pull down on the girth so the trainer can slip their end through the buckle and pull tight. The over girth may have to be “spun” a bit in either direction so that the buckle is centered around the middle of the belly.
We always stretch the front legs.

[beaujolais]

You all are AWESOME. Can’t thank you enough. Really.

My husband is old enough to remember retention barns at Philly (Parx). It was more unsettling for many horses to be in a strange barn hours before they would race though.

Thanks, Jenger.

Now, I know, down here, lots ship from Belmont to Aqueduct and vice versa to race. Does Belmont & Aqueduct have ship-in (retention) barns, I wonder, or how do they do it?

[Laurierace]

New York does have barns for all horses on race day, even the ones stabled at that track normally. That is the only state that I know of that does that. Every track has a receiving barn where the horses that ship for a race are housed. Many tracks have a little nicer receiving barn that they use just for stakes horses that is called the stakes barn.
When lasix first started they had a detention barn at most/all tracks where the horses had to go to be monitored for their lasix administration. It was generally called the lasix barn. No track that I am aware of has that anymore.

[lily04]

[QUOTE=Laurierace;6068809]
New York does have barns for all horses on race day, even the ones stabled at that track normally. That is the only state that I know of that does that. Every track has a receiving barn where the horses that ship for a race are housed. Many tracks have a little nicer receiving barn that they use just for stakes horses that is called the stakes barn.
When lasix first started they had a detention barn at most/all tracks where the horses had to go to be monitored for their lasix administration. It was generally called the lasix barn. No track that I am aware of has that anymore.[/QUOTE]

New York did away with the detention barn earlier this year. Trainers felt it was a burden to have to send a groom to stay with the horse until racetime while they had others back at the barn to look after. I kind of liked the dentention barn, it made for a more level playing field for shippers.

[jengersnap]

To clarify my earlier, yes there are day of race ship ins, but in most races they would be the minority of the field save “stakes” types who ship in early and settle in to the track before their big races. Some of mine have been good shippers for races, some, not so much. It can really be a disadvantage for some, as lily points out about the level playing field for shippers.