All racing in Kentucky is now being subsidized. In addition to boosting total purse money, this unearned cash helps allow the tracks there to pay first through last. Here are some results from Oct 30 at Churchill Downs:
Seas of Normandy finished 20 lengths back; his exploiters banked $1,008.
Crooked Bullet finished 20+ lengths back; his exploiters banked $927.
We Hear You finished 23+ lengths back; her exploiters banked $662.
Huixtla finished 33+ lengths back; her exploiters banked $662.
Mary Loves Louie finished 38+ lengths back; her exploiters banked $661.
Rainbow Glow finished 27+ lengths back; her exploiters banked $1,426.
Love the Nest finished 25+ lengths back; his exploiters banked $780.
Worse still were these:
Barbanera finished 52+ lengths back; her exploiters banked $1,422.
Two Timer (who was “fractious in the starting gate”) finished 57 lengths back; her exploiters banked $661.
While Spurrier “only” finished 20 lengths back, we have now learned from the stewards that the 4-year-old “suffered a mild post-race heatstroke.”
But worst of all, in the final race of the day, Macho Villa finished 93 lengths back. But get this, through the Steward’s Report we now know that Macho was taken away by ambulance (the chart said nothing of this) – “returned lame.” So the jockey, Jane Elliott, drove this poor animal to the finish – again, 93 lengths back – with lameness almost assuredly having already set in. He crossed that line, however, and Macho’s exploiters – Elliott, trainer Wayne Lukas, and others – divvied up $787. It’s criminal, folks.
(One final note to wrap up the Keeneland meet: On Oct 25, say the stewards, Let My People Go “was injured in the starting gate and was scratched.”)
Wee Sherry, the racing commissioners positions are also being propped up with the subsidization of horseracing. They could say “no” to allowing obviously compromised horses from being entered into a race but that is completely the opposite of what the subsidies are for. That public funding is to keep a dying industry on “life support”. Yes, it is absolutely despicable! And justice regarding Animal Cruelty, Animal Welfare and the various other forms of corruption in racing has been miscarried continuously.
Where are the humane societies when these tortures are imposed on crippled horses????? 93 lengths behind the field and there are no felony criminal charges for these trainers/vets/jockeys who maliciously sent these horses to the excruciating experience of being mentally and physically tortured?
What will general society accept next? Crippled children being forced out of their wheelchairs to hold crutches and struggle in races with abled bodied children in school day contests?
Everyone involved in this viciousness should be subjected to mandatory blood and DNA tests to prove to the public that those involved in these atrocious races are actual humans and not demons. Whatever they are they deserve world condemnation and incarceration. These individuals are immeasurably criminal and contemptible and must be given appropriate sentencing for their despicable crimes and cruelties. And, all racetracks ordered in every state in the Union to cease and desist operations by judicial order.
Subsidizing race tracks is the worst thing that has ever happened to race horses. Run them unsound, sick, old; run them to death, and still walk away with a paycheck. Vile.
We once thought of relocating to Ky. many years ago due to our love of all horses. We thankfully decided not to & remained here in Oregon. We recently had a neighbors daughter & husband & year old son move back to Oregon due to the abysmal health care there & how the wife was treated during the difficult labor bearing her son. There are way too many subsidies for racing there in Ky. & not enough tax or casino $$ being used for proper health care of the people. The people of Idaho were & are smarter than those of Ky. All subsidies should be stopped for this ” Crooked , Crummy, Gamboling Game” For all those poor horses you listed I feel immense sorrow for their lives.
Jockey Gary Stevens spoke on behalf of subsidizing horseracing in the State of Idaho some years back and he mentioned Kentucky as an example of subsidizing horseracing.
As many people know, the subsidizing of horseracing didn’t fly in Idaho. I’m glad they ruled against it.
There would be a lot more horses killed in the state of Idaho by horseracing if it were subsidized (obviously). They still injure and kill horses at the county fair racetracks in the southern part of Idaho but not nearly as many as they would be otherwise.
I’m very glad that Idaho ruled against subsidization of this evil killing “sport” of so-called kings.