Stranglehold

[Wickel]

It is so annoying when you see a rider with a stranglehold on a horse who otherwise would be running freely and naturally. The general consensus among jocks, I'm sure, is saving the horse for the stretch run, but time after time after time the horse fades in the lane. In more cases than not, ithe jock robs drains his mount of his natural energy with the hammerlock until he can give no more. This happened in the fifth at Belmont today with Chingahgook and Ramon Dominguez. The horse easily moved to the front under excessive restraint and appeared like he was going to win by many, but petered out at the eighth pole. Now that's not to say that some overzealous jockeys are known to gun their mounts to the lead beyond their capabilities hoping to steal a race, only to croak in the lane. I've seen the excessive rating fail too much. I say just Let The Big Hoss Roll!! Just food for thought.

[PhantomOnTour]

A friend and I had a discussion about Ramon's ride in the 5th. I think the blinkers had a lot to do with the way he was pulling. Looked like he couldn't hold him as he went up 3 wide down the backstretch to get the lead. I agree that maybe he should have just let him go at that point. In retrospect the blinks weren't needed imo.

[PhantomOnTour]

More stranglin' in R6 on #3 Miss Tequila...she quit.

[Wickel]

Told you. It's the birth of a new factor for an explosive spot play. Last race: Horse was strangled, reached the lead then faded. Today's race: Rider change, runs freely and wins for fun!

[toussaud]

Originally Posted by PhantomOnTour

More stranglin' in R6 on #3 Miss Tequila...she quit.

i was just going to post this. pace is not as important as energy conservation. a horse can be running 22 flat and doing it easier than running 24 and fighting the jockey.

jose had her in a choke hold and ik new she was done in the back stretch. by the time they hit the turn she just said screw this.

i mean some horses you can hold but if they are going to fight with you, if they aren't push button esque, then you need to adjust your strategy in the race.

miss tequilla today wanted no part of rating.

[Wickel]

Originally Posted by toussaud

i was just going to post this. pace is not as important as energy conservation. a horse can be running 22 flat and doing it easier than running 24 and fighting the jockey.

jose had her in a choke hold and ik new she was done in the back stretch. by the time they hit the turn she just said screw this.

i mean some horses you can hold but if they are going to fight with you, if they aren't push button esque, then you need to adjust your strategy in the race.

miss tequilla today wanted no part of rating.

Good point. It doesn't really make sense on the jock's part to expend all that energy, then come up empty in the lane. In the case of Chingachgook in the fifth, it defeated the purpose of blinkers on as Phantom pointed out.

[thespaah]

COuld it be "trainer's instructions"?
I was working at a farm in central NJ and another trainer had fired his groom that day. He asked me if I'd want to paddock the horse that night at Meadowlands. Told him to ask my boss.
He asked my boss if I could paddock the horse for him that night.
I made the trip.
Here's the rub. Trainer tells the driver, " I don't care if the first quarter goes in 35 seconds, you don't leave with this horse"...
I understand that thoroughbred jocks do get instructions from the trainers as well.

[onefast99]

Originally Posted by thespaah

COuld it be "trainer's instructions"?
I was working at a farm in central NJ and another trainer had fired his groom that day. He asked me if I'd want to paddock the horse that night at Meadowlands. Told him to ask my boss.
He asked my boss if I could paddock the horse for him that night.
I made the trip.
Here's the rub. Trainer tells the driver, " I don't care if the first quarter goes in 35 seconds, you don't leave with this horse"...
I understand that thoroughbred jocks do get instructions from the trainers as well.

Maybe the real question here is do you trust what the trainer tells the jock or what the jock already knows?