Different Types of Horse Races
Friday, February 12th, 2010Although the public probably thinks of events like the Kentucky Derby or the Preakness when they think of horse races, those belong just to one type of race. But when you consider that human beings have been racing horses for as long as humans and horses have had any relationship, it isn’t surprising that people have developed many different ways of racing, and many different breeds of horses as well. While the Kentucky Derby and other such events belong to a category known as thoroughbred racing, there are many other equally organized and popular types of races.
Racing with thoroughbreds is a subset of a type of race known as flat racing. This is where, as the name suggests, the horse races are run on a flat surface, usually made either of dirt or turf, and in turn the turf can either be natural or is sometimes synthetic. The flatness of the tracks, though, doesn’t mean that they are automatically straight as well. Most are in fact designed to be oval in shape, and have no banking on the corners.
Harness racing is the second of the three main types of races, run on an oval track that is banked along the curves, instead of on a flat track. While thoroughbred or quarter horse races feature the horses running with only a jockey on their backs, the harness race seems to have developed from early wagon or carriage races. So as well as differing from the flat races because of the sort of track used, it also differs in that the horses pull a cart and driver rather than having a jockey.
The third of the three main types of horse races is the steeplechase, which is most popular in Britain. In this race, the horses must jump over several obstacles, like hedges, pools of water, or fences. These races occur occasionally in the United States too, but this country gives much more attention to the flat race or the harness race. However, the owners of Arabian horses have begun to promote their own breed, and Arabian racing is gradually gaining in popularity as well. So the variety of races that American fans can enjoy is slowly and steadily expanding.
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