Quote:
Originally Posted by GMB@BP
Wait, they said it was a slow pace?
I think riders have a tough time discerning a slow pace from a controlled pace.
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People are used to seeing the fractions in 8.5F and 9F route races. They forget that as the distance stretches out "neutral" gets slower and slower. 10F races, despite being longer than those mid distance routes, often have a very long straightaway before the first turn. The 12F straightaway at Belmont is not that long.
That's what makes the pace figures valuable. They are controlling for distance, speed of track, and layout of race.