09/10/2021
“Why can’t I ride a Thoroughbred straight off the racetrack to try it before purchase? This is unfair!”
We get comments along the lines of this every single year when we are helping to rehome retiring racehorses. So, it’s time for another conversation about this.
First and foremost, a track broke horse is broke w/t/c but they will be racing fit, meaning unless you’re riding 5* event horses, they’re likely fitter than anything you’ve sat on. They’re also trained to run into the bridle, ridden with a “cross” or a “bridge” in the reins whilst on the racetrack. This is different from how most riders ride and there is a reason why exercise riders and jockeys are some of the fittest riders. It’s not an easy job.
When we are selling them directly from the racetrack, they can only be jogged on the concrete outside of the barns to assess soundness. The only place to ride is the racetrack. You need have a license to ride as an exercise rider to ride on the racetrack. Allowing inexperienced riders who haven’t learned how to safely ride racehorses out onto a busy track with lots of other horses — some of which will be working past at fast speeds — dangerous. Unnecessary. Doesn’t give you any real clue of how the horse will be at their new job or once you start training. Want the best chance to trial ride OTTBs? Go work hard and get your gallop license.
Now, when they’re not at the racetrack but haven’t been restarted, the same still applies. You’re buying a green horse and getting a greatly reduced price because of it. If you want the bells and whistles of being able to try the horses and decide if it is suitable for you based on how it feels, then pay more and get something that has been restarted. It is not fair to the horse to have their first introduction to a new career to be several random riders, many of which will over sell their skill, getting on them and putting them through their paces, sometimes having unreasonable expectations. This is how you very quickly ruin and sour horses. It is also high risk to the owners because they could be letting people on their horses who will create new issues.
You can get a very good idea of soundness and overall health from watching the horse move and from a vet check. You can get an idea of how the horse goes through its paces by watching a qualified track rider or trainer ride it, if they’re willing to do this for you (I do this for the videos of a lot of mine). In fact, that will give you a better idea of what the horse is like than someone without the experience of knowing what a horse straight off the racetrack feels like getting on and trying to figure out what buttons the horse has.
It isn’t rude. It isn’t sneaky or hiding anything. It’s called making decisions for the well-being of the horse and overall safety of everyone involved. With started horses with more experience, we still have people lie about ability, come out and try the horse and create dangerous situations. With a race fit horse, this could be catastrophic. It also, bottom line, isn’t fair to any super green horse to make their intro to their new job by essentially making them a carousel and playing musical riders, with no real idea of experience level until the person is on the horse.
Just like I wouldn’t want to let people try unbroke horses or horses who’ve only had a handful of rides, I don’t want people ruining our race fit prospects and this is how many trainers feel. A gallop license is the only real tangible proof of showing you’re qualified to get on, unless you have mutual connections to vouch for you. If you do not have one, you have no right to try to complain or pressure people into letting you onto a horse that is being sold as a prospect.
Extend your budget and get something restarted (or offer over asking to give an incentive for the horse to be restarted so you can try it) or learn how to look at prospects from the ground and assess their suitability for your discipline. I’m of the mind that most people who are qualified, prepared and ready to take on the training of an OTTB should be able to assess from the ground. If this isn’t what you want, all the power to you but instead of having the expectation that you’re entitled to a trial ride when it is a risk to the horse and the owner, be considerate and realize that you have unusual expectations that very well may not be met.
This is a normal practice for ex racehorses. I’ve sat on HUNDREDS, if not over a thousand at this point, of thoroughbreds on and off of the track. I can count on one hand the number I’ve actually tried before buying and all of those except for one I only “tried” because I galloped while working at the track. The horse you meet at the track when they’re race fit, on high grain diets and have minimal or no turnout is not the one you’ll meet in the new lifestyle anyways, so basing your entire impression of them off of what they’re like as a racehorse isn’t overly accurate.
If you want to buy an OTTB that is not restarted, respect the practice of how they are sold, the risks involved for horse and owner and the lowered price point you get because of this. If it isn’t for you, that’s fine but the entitlement of some people really needs to stop.
Pictured: my mare who was difficult at the track, difficult to restart initially and a total lamb now. I never sat on her until after she had an entire winter off of racing. We assessed her initially off of watching her jog and she’s now one of my nicest horses.
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