Quote:
Originally Posted by Denny
Pandy,
I've wondered if the bikes were made to be Higher with bigger wheels, if that would help get the drivers closer to the horse? The drivers are so low, how do they even see around the horse?
Hope you don't mind a dumb question. But, could the wheel base be narrowed?
If the path a bike takes up were reduced, they wouldn't have to be so spread across, particularly on the turn for home. Horses wouldn't lose as much ground going wide on turns.
Maybe this isn't doable for a safety reason, just wondering.
Thanks
D e n
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Well, as the bikes have evolved from wood to steal and then to an off-centered (usually 10 inches) bike, but as this happened, the driver moved further and further away from the horse. The wheel base has also changed and is wider.
The bottom line is, if they used one of the old style wood bikes, like a Jerrold, it would correct all of this because the driver would be closer to the horse, the old bikes were narrower, and much slower. The slower times would allow the closers to get back into the sport, and you would also have those exciting three and four wide moves down the backstretch and at the three quarters, which have disappeared.
Hall of Fame trainer Brett Pelling recommended a return to a Jerrold bike, and he also said that the drivers shouldn't be allowed to lean back.
Cammie Haughton fixed one mistake when he removed the passing lane at Yonkers, and handle has gone up sharply. Now if he really wants to make some noise, he should fix the bigger mistake, which was the introduction and evolution of the modified sulky.
