Doping of Frankie Dettori

fat buddha wrote (see)

 

recreational drugs can also stem hunger pangs so it's also a way of keeping weight off which is very important for jockeys.

 

You're obviously doing different ones to the ones I used to!

neil jones 26 wrote (see)

 Apparently Piggot used to have a kitchen cupboard stuffed full of choclate which he would sometimes just stare at to test his will power.  

Pmsl! I think I might try that!

On the subject of horse riding as a sport it still aggravates me that that it's an Olympic sport and the riders get medals where as the poor horse doing 99.99999999999999999999999999999999999999% of the work (I mean really, how "strong" and fit does a 7 stone midget have to be to ride a horse? Obviously this is regarding horse racing as most of the show jumpers are fat) get some sugar lumps.

I think the point is that the horses couldn't do what they do without a skilled rider on their backs. Have you ever seen a horse jump a fence voluntarily, let alone several fences, taking twists and turns between each one, or start dancing as they do in dressage?

The horse is part of the rider's equipment as much as a bike or a javelin, it just happens to be a living, breathing thing with its own temperament. You have to know how to handle the horse in order to get the best out of it. You could, therefore, argue that the equestrian events actually require a greater degree of skill. 

Incidentally, winning horses at the Olympics get given a rosette - you could hardly give them a medal after all