Jockey rides to 1st call

[kenwoodallpromos]

Any experienced members who can tell me how most jockeys determine how to ride their mounts to 1st call- Elapsed time; pace, trip, some pure speed; or a combination? / Seems to me most ride for speed in sprints, and very carefully to check footing early on an off track. Thanks! // Do any jocks really check speed figures or Lifkins' comments like Bailey in the ads? I've heard some check PP's for running style of their horse and that's about all.

[Jeff P]

Most jockeys never make the decision. Mostly it's the trainer who gives the rider instructions as to the ride. Usually it's stuff like "There's no speed in here- go right to the front." or "There's a ton of speed in here- take back a little." Frustratingly enough, the latter is sometimes given to several speed horses in a race - and as bettors we are left scratching our heads when a horse we didn't expect gets an easy lead and wires the field while our selection tries to close into soft fractions and finishes well up the track. Every owner or trainer also has a story about the times their rider just completely disregarded instructions when the gate opened.


True story- I once stood in the paddock at Turf Paradise with an owner while he gave a bug boy rider emphatic instructions: "We're the only speed in here. When the gate opens JUST GO. Get the lead right from the gate and you'll win for fun." The rider smiled and nodded the whole time. The owner then made a large win bet. When the gate opened the rider took hold and the horse never got going. Furious, after the race, the owner then called up his trainer to fire the rider and found out that the jockey only spoke Spanish- not English.

[Brian Flewwelling]

Originally posted by Jeff P

True story- I once stood in the paddock at Turf Paradise with an owner while he gave a bug boy rider emphatic instructions: "We're the only speed in here. When the gate opens JUST GO. Get the lead right from the gate and you'll win for fun." The rider smiled and nodded the whole time. The owner then made a large win bet. When the gate opened the rider took hold and the horse never got going. Furious, after the race, the owner then called up his trainer to fire the rider and found out that the jockey only spoke Spanish- not English.

Ignorance can be costly, Stupidity deadly!

Fleww

[Buddha]

Yea, I would almost be willing to bet that most jocks don't pay much attentino to the pps, and just go by the trainers words. as for the trainers, i know that dale baird usually just tells the jock to send the horse.

Dana Whitney is one that I personally know actually "studys" the pps and has a good idea what is in the field that he is racing against. With that said, I would think that most jocks don't really know.

You can get an idea what the jocks are like by watching them for a couple of weeks, but part of what they are doing is the trainers doing too

[kenwoodallpromos]

Now I'm thinking maybe some good trainer-jockey combos result from similar styles. I guess jockeys can only hold a horse very much if the horse can close well?