Good horsemanship must be at the core of all policies and procedures on a raceday.
This was the gist of a plea made by a veteran dual champion trainer and former champion jockey after we witnessed yet another classic case of the good kids being penalised to the benefit of the naughty ones at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Wednesday.
Garth Puller
In a chat with the Sporting Post, Hollywoodbets-sponsored conditioner Garth Puller stressed that he wasn’t fighting with any sector or arguing from his pocket, when urging the powers-that-be to reconsider the way they handled certain aspects on racedays – the start being one.
Wednesday was a day of mixed fortunes for the reigning KZN champion trainer.
He was thrilled to see the public back on the course, and his Flying The Flag gelding Guy Fawkes won the fourth race going away – only to be disqualified after an objection from the Clerk of Scales.
After the running of the race, ‘winning’ jockey Gareth Wright weighed back in at more than 0,5kgs under the weight at which he was declared out.
The veteran was philosophical about the incident – to a degree.
“They are allowed 0,5kgs either way. Gareth weighed in 0,6kgs under. It was hot out there. These things happen. The horse won going away. I do understand that rules are rules and there is clearly no discretion. The rule book is black and white. And I’m not talking from my pocket. Guy Fawkes will get his turn. I can live with that – but the start of the eighth race – that’s another story.”
The man who rode the winners of most of our Gr1 races in a career in the saddle spanning over 40 years, and has trained and bred many winners, suggests that the processes at the start of sprint races in particular – in this case it was a 1400m race – needed reviewing.
“Well-behaved horses should not be standing in the stalls for five minutes and longer. What I am saying is that compliant horses simply shouldn’t be penalised and compromised while badly behaved horses are delaying matters and performing. Had the eighth been a 2400m race it’s a different story. But there were 6 or 7 of them standing quietly while the rest performed. They also took the favourite out and then battled to reload her.”
Puller explained that in these cases the well-behaved horses should have been removed from the stalls.
“What happens is that the naughty ones eventually come in, spend just seconds in the stalls and the gates are unleashed while they are on their toes. The others have fallen asleep. That’s an advantage – say what you like. How can one effectively penalise good behaviour?”
Puller said that if a horse is graded to load last and he goes in – then fine.
“But if he is graded to go in last, and he doesn’t go in – then he must be reschooled and not battled with at the expense of those waiting! It makes no sense at all,” he concluded.
The official Stipes report indicates that the eighth race took six and a half minutes to load.
It also tells a story:
Green Dream was difficult to load, reared over in the stalls, was removed and examined by the Veterinary Surgeon and withdrawn. Her starting certificate was withdrawn.
Cozy Dot Com, the eventual winner Unconditional Love, and second-placed Birdwatcher were all restless in the stalls, were also removed, examined by the Veterinary Surgeon and were declared fit to race.
Golden Archer was restless in the stalls and rushed the front gates.
Peanut Butter was also restless in the stalls.
