It is with a lot interest that I read the two Op/Eds from Earl Mack and Bill Finley published this week about the dirt vs. synthetic surfaces, and, although the numbers speak for themselves, I think we should look at another factor.
A lot more sprints are being run on dirt than either turf or synthetic. The composition of the dirt surface makes speed the best asset for horses who compete and it is common to see fractions of sub-22 seconds for a first 1/4 of a mile, and over 24 or 25 seconds on the final portion of a race. Those fractions are even more polarized in dirt route races where lower-caliber horses would sometimes finish their last 1/4 of a mile in 27 or 28 seconds, merely faster than a two-minute pace.
On either turf or synthetic, Jockeys have (usually) enough common sense to rate their mounts early and save something for the end. The kindness of the courses makes it that horses can close late and still prevail if best.
Unfortunately, speed hurts horses, be during training or racing. This is the nature of the beast with dirt racing and I believe that one of the major factors that numbers of fatalities are so much higher on that surface, has a lot to do with the pace that races are run at. Horses finish tired, experience a lack of oxygen in their metabolism and that hypoxia generates injuries, and sometimes fatalities.
The table tells us that rate of fatalities is higher in sprints than two turn races, which could validate the argument that early speed more than distance is a vector to injuries.
Another interesting fact in The Jockey Club numbers is that, for both turf and synthetic surfaces, the rate of fatalities has been steadily decreasing by between 15 and 30% every year for the last four years, mostly due to increased veterinary oversight. But on dirt, the numbers seem to have reached a plateau since it has steadily stayed the same during the same period, despite all the scrutiny it has been under.
–Leonard Powell
Editor's Note:
Southern California trainer Leonard Powell is referring to statistics from the Equine Injury Database which show that since 2009, the fatal injury rate has been 1.93 per thousand starts on races under six furlongs, 1.66 in races from six to eight furlongs, and 1.54 in races over a mile.
The complete table may be seen here.
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