Horse racing is divided into two main categories: trotting and gallop racing.
As a reminder, we have already distinguished the different paces in our previous article: Why is understanding the gait of horses important?
Gallop races represent 40% of all the horse races playable on the ANJ network. The objective of this article is to focus on the gallop races only, after having seen the trotting races in the last article.
Gallop races can be flat races or obstacle races. We will analyze the differences between these two disciplines.
Table of Contents
- Flat races: simple to understand but complicated to decipher
- What's so impressive about obstacle courses?
- Conclusion on gallop races
Flat races: simple to understand but complicated to decipher
Flat races are the most important races in gallop racing, accounting for 85% of all races.
On the plate, the jockey (name given to the rider) is mounted on a saddle, placed on the back of the horse and the goal is to run as fast as possible to get the best ranking.
One of the particularities of the flat is the distance to be covered, which is very heterogeneous. In fact, the distance can vary from 800 meters to 4,000 meters.
Among these distances we distinguish 4 categories that classify horses according to their physical and genetic properties.
- From 800 meters to 1400 meters, the races correspond to horses called sprinters
- From 1600 meters (which is equivalent to one mile, the English unit of measurement) to 1800 meters, the races correspond to horses called milers
- From 2000 meters to 2600 meters, we are on intermediate races, knowing that 2400 meters is the distance classic
- Beyond 2800 meters, the races correspond to horses called stayers.
The vast majority of the departures are made in boxes called starting stalls. When all the horses are back in the stalles, these open up and the horses take off.
The description of the flat races is quite simple to understand, but the finishes are rather difficult to decipher because in some races there is a person named handicapper which puts extra weight on the best horses in order to have a fair chance at the start.
Thus, in theory, all horses have the same chance of winning the race and that is why we very regularly find surprise finishes in flat races.
On the flat, the race of the year is the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe which takes place on the last Sunday of September at the racecourse of ParisLongchamp.
What's so impressive about obstacle courses?
Jumping races therefore represent the remaining 15% of horse racing.
Among the obstacle races we distinguish 3 categories:
- hurdle races
- the races of steeple
- the races of cross-country
For all obstacle races, as its name indicates, the horse must jump obstacles, either unique for hurdle races, or various and varied (bush, wall, large puddle, ...) for steeplechase and cross-country races.
Obstacle races are run over long distances ranging from 2,800 meters to 7,300 meters.
These are demanding races for the horses, which makes the show impressive by its difficulty but also by the beauty of the jumps.
In obstacle races, about 30% of horses do not finish, either because of a fall or because the horse is too far behind the others or too exhausted to finish.
Falls are generally not serious for the horse and the jockey, but it happens in rare cases that the horse breaks a leg and that we are obliged to euthanize it, because a horse does not recover from a fracture despite all the medical advances. Indeed, because of the weight of the animal (a horse can weigh up to a ton), a broken leg is far from being benign. To treat a fracture, veterinarians use the same equipment as for humans. There are no larger plates or screws.
In obstacle, the race of the year is the Grand Steeple Chase of Paris which takes place in mid-May at the Auteuil racecourse.
Conclusion on gallop races
Through this article and the previous one on trotting races, we can see that finally horse racing has several disciplines, and as in sports betting, the more you specialize in the disciplines, the more you become an expert in the field and the more you have the chance to win money.
It is important to know that a galloping horse will not do a trot and vice versa. Each horse has its own specialty in the gaits. However, he can do several disciplines in the same gait (for example flat and jumping or mounted trot and harness trot).
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