The whip issue, which never seems to go away, was front and center last week as the California Horse Racing Board approved language that would severely limit the use of the whip. Under the new rules, horses can be hit on the shoulders and hindquarters, no more than two times in a row without waiting for a response and no more than six times total.
That led the Jockeys’ Guild to issue a stinging press release that expressed its displeasure with the new rules, calling the new rules “unsafe” and arguing that they “jeopardize the integrity of the sport.” The Guild also said the decision was typical of a sport that “has a long history of disrespect for jockeys, going back many, many decades.”
Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey no longer has a dog in this fight. Though a former president of the Jockeys’ Guild, he’s been retired since 2006. But his opinion should matter. Not only did he ride in over 30,000 races, but, as an analyst on NBC’s racing broadcasts, he has been able to take a step back and observe racing from something other than an insider’s view. Trying his best to understand all sides of the issue, he keeps landing in the same place. Bailey doesn’t agree with his former colleagues. He says racing would be better off if whips were not allowed.
“If I were still riding, I’d probably have a different attitude,” he said. “I was probably a jockey who used the whip more than I should have. I see it from a different perspective now. I see it from somebody on the other side of the fence.”
Bailey agrees with the current riders when they say the new padded whips don’t hurt the horses, but he says the issue is bigger than that. What Bailey sees now, but couldn’t when he was riding, is a sport that has a difficult time explaining to the public why whips are necessary.
“I have heard from many people outside the sport and they say that if those horses really love to run like you say they do, then why do you whip them?” Bailey said. “That’s what I hear. I am not talking about core fans, but many people, people who watch five or six races a year, tell me they find it offensive that horses are being whipped. Are they right or wrong? I don’t know. But that’s what they think and how they feel.”
Bailey said that racing is losing out on the opportunity to cultivate new fans because of the whip.
“If we can do away with the whip and that leads to drawing in fans who are now offended by it, that’s a small price to pay,” he said.
Whips have been part of racing since the beginning because it is assumed that their use can make the horse try harder and run faster. Bailey says that just isn’t the case.
“I have said for probably seven or eight years now, that I only had a very small percentage of horses run faster when hit,” he said. “It only works on a very few. Most horses give you all they have without hitting them. I don’t think the times of races would change much if you didn’t have whips. If everybody were on a level playing field, I don’t think a significant number of horses would be at a disadvantage. I think you would do fine without them.”
The Guild’s chief complaint with efforts to take the whip out of racing is the safety factor. Riders say the sport becomes more dangerous without the whip.
“We will continue to fight for the livelihoods and safety for our members and the betterment of our sport,” the Guild said in its statement.
Again, Bailey does not agree.
“I feel the reins are the best tool to keep your horse straight,” Bailey said. “Absolutely and without a doubt, the reins are your steering mechanism, not your whip. There are jockeys who feel you need the whip as a safety device. If a horse is out of control and is going to go over one fence or another or go over a pack of heels in a race the whip is not going to help you. You need to use the reins in that case. The reins are the tools to use and in my opinion, the whip is not going to do you much good.”
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