A memorable Triple Crown season is in the books with Arcangelo’s win in last Saturday’s Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets, and the horse racing calendar will soon shift to Breeders’ Cup prep season, with four “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series races lined up next week during the prestigious Royal Ascot meet
Month: June 2023
Multiple Tech Systems Being Tested To Help Prevent Racehorse Injury
With a spike in equine fatalities at Churchill Downs this spring, racehorse safety is once again in the spotlight. Dr. Michael Hardy, longtime regulatory veterinarian and executive director of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, recently outlined two systems that could use new technology to help prevent injuries.
Speaking at this week's Track Superintendent Field Day at Horseshoe Indianapolis, Hardy provided a short update on the use of StrideSafe at Churchill Downs. As we reported at the end of 2022, officials at Churchill had planned to conduct a study using the sensor system well before national media began monitoring a spate of breakdowns at the facility.
StrideSafe had its first significant test in New York, where it was placed on every runner starting in summer 2021. The sensor system is attached to a saddle towel and measures concussion and acceleration across all four of a horse's limbs. Its goal is to detect a departure in the horse's typical way of going which could signal an impending injury. The system provides each horse a green, yellow, or red rating for its performance, with green ratings indicating no problem, red indicating a serious departure from normal motion and yellow indicating a potential problem.
In New York, the system had been used observationally and retrospectively, meaning officials recorded each horse's rating and whether or not the horse suffered an injury in-race after the races had been run. Officials indicated the system was able to correctly identify 90 percent of fatal injuries that happened on the circuit in the time it was used, meaning that 90 percent of horses who suffered breakdowns got red ratings in that final race.
Churchill's goal for their study of StrideSafe was to test the system in action by providing trainers and veterinarians with information about their horses' yellow or red ratings after a race to allow them to do follow-up investigation to look for any physical issues. The project involves cooperation from Kentucky Horse Racing Commission veterinarians and will include data analysis from Dr. Warwick Bayly of Washington State University.
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If you appreciate our work, you can support us by subscribing to our Patreon stream. Learn more.While the research at Churchill is ongoing, Hardy said initial feedback from trainers and veterinarians has been positive. Trainer Dale Romans recently told The Blood-Horse about a horse in his barn whose StrideSafe data suggested a possible abnormality. The horse underwent a PET scan, which turned up bony changes that suggested a condylar fracture could have been imminent.
Hardy said Churchill officials plan to continue using StrideSafe on runners at Ellis Park, a track the company also owns.
Video analysis may also be part of the next generation of injury prevention. At Keeneland, Hardy said the track safety team has 17 cameras in various places around the racing surface. These allow veterinarians to pull up imagery of a horse they may have concerns about to get a history on how that horse has been moving in the mornings, even if those veterinarians weren't actively watching the horse in real time. This can also be useful in retrospective looks at a horse who may have suffered a serious injury in a race, to help veterinarians figure out what to look at for warning signs going forward.
Hardy also outlined another system in development by 1/ST Racing which uses video technology to identify abnormal motion from a horse. 1/ST recognized that given the national shortage of equine veterinarians, there may not be enough eyes watching horses for gait abnormalities, especially in the morning. The organization has installed a huge number of sensors and cameras around its Santa Anita facility to monitor both racing and training and the company is working on a series of models to collect data points from videos of moving horses. The developing system uses 15 models to collect and analyze 350,000 data points per race, studying the way at which different joints and limbs on the horse are interacting with the ground. The system can use AI to generate a 360-degree view of each horse as it moves across the track.
Hardy said the system has encountered its challenges – the size of a track can complicate cameras' ability to get views on all horses, lighting can be a challenge, and busy periods in the morning can also obstruct views of some horses as they move around each other. Also, existing modeling technology was evolved to study human movement, not necessarily to detect changes in equine motion.
Currently, 1/ST is working to input information from veterinary observation to the artificial intelligence system to help it “learn” what problematic motion looks like. The full system is in place at Santa Anita and Hardy said it will be coming to other 1/ST tracks soon.
“The idea is the system will automatically identify high-risk workouts,” said Hardy. “The relentless pursuit to do better is the concept here, and it certainly takes a collective effort.”
The company is also developing an app that will share sensor information with owners and trainers after collection to help them make strategic conditioning and veterinary decisions.
The post Multiple Tech Systems Being Tested To Help Prevent Racehorse Injury appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Hard Spun Colt Tops OBS June Sale’s Opening Session
Hip No. 130, a son of Hard Spun consigned by de Meric Sales, Agent, was sold to Frank Fletcher Racing Operations for $450,000 to top the first session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's 2023 June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age.
The chestnut colt, a half-brother to stakes winner Athens Queen out of stakes placed Mine All Mine, by Belong to Me, worked an eighth in :9 4/5, the co-fastest at the distance at Monday's Under Tack session.
– Frank Fletcher Racing Operations also went to $230,000 for Hip No. 356, a son of Malibu Moon consigned by Gene Recio, Agent. The bay colt, whose eighth in :9 4/5 was co-fastest at the distance on Tuesday, is out of Scion Power, by Wildcat Heir, a full-sister to graded stakes winner Derwin's Star.
– Hip No. 312, a daughter of Munnings consigned by Scanlon Training & Sales, Agent, was purchased by D. J. Stable LLC for $210,000. The gray or roan filly, who worked an eighth at Tuesday's Under Tack session in :10 flat, is out of Rhythm and Rhyme, by Unbridled's Song, a full-sister to Grade 1 winner Magnificent Song.
– Hip No. 116, a son of Malibu Moon consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent, went to Victory Racing Partners for $190,000. The bay colt, who turned in Under Tack eighth on Monday in :10 flat, is out of Meet and Greet, by Tribal Rule, a half-sister to graded stakes winner Bourbon Resolution.
– Hip No. 347, Esperon, a son of OBS graduate Chitu consigned by Silvestre Chavez Thoroughbreds, Agent, was sold to Champion Equine LLC for $165,000. The bay colt, who sped an Under Tack quarter on Tuesday in a track record-equaling :20 1/5, is out of stakes placed Satan's Mistress, by Songandaprayer, a daughter of stakes winner Sheza Nasty Lady.
– Hip No. 10, Park Avenue Betty, a daughter of Street Sense consigned by Thorostock LLC, Agent, was sold to John C. Kimmel, Agent, for $160,000. The dark bay or brown filly, who breezed an eighth on Monday in :10 flat, is a half-sister to graded stakes placed Prove Right out of Joe'sgoldenholiday, by Harlan's Holiday, a half-sister to multiple Grade 1-winning OBS June graduate Goldencents.
– Hip No. 39, Noble Madam, consigned by Tom McCrocklin, Agent, was sold to Brad Grady for $150,000. The chestnut filly, whose quarter in :20 3/5 was Monday's co-fastest at the distance, is by Noble Mission out of Lady Marjorie, by Curlin, a daughter of stakes winner Light Bringer.
– CNA, Co. paid $150,000 for Hip No. 204, a son of Blame consigned by Navas Equine, Agent. The dark bay or brown colt, who breezed an eighth in :10 1/5 on Tuesday, is out of Oleanda Avenue, by A.P. Indy, a daughter of Grade 1 winner Harmony Lodge.
For the session, 193 horses brought a total of $7,190,400 compared with 218 selling for a total of $7,506,000 at last year's opening session. The average price was $37,256, up 8% from $34,431 in 2022 while the median price was $20,000 compared with $22,000 a year ago. The buyback percentage 27.4 percent; it was 20.8 percent last year.
The June Sale continues Wednesday at 10 a.m. with Hip No.'s 361 – 720 offered for sale.
To view the full results, click here.
The post Hard Spun Colt Tops OBS June Sale’s Opening Session appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Robin Goodfellow’s racing tips: Best bets for Wednesday, June 14
Mail Sport's racing expert Robin Goodfellow delivers his tips for Wednesday's meetings at Haydock, Yarmouth, Newton Abbot, Kempton and Hamilton.
