By Joe Takach

12---PRE-RACE WARM-UPS and WARM-DOWNS

With over 40 years of daily on track attendance, my career-long belief in the importance of the pre-race warm-up remains unshaken and if anything, further strengthened.

Every horse should slowly canter at least 4 furlongs (half mile) before strenuous exercise of any kind to include a race and here’s why.

1---First off, a half mile of pre-race exercise stimulates the cardiovascular system by

      releasing dormant red blood cells from the horse’s spleen.  These red blood cells put

      more oxygen into his cardiovascular system.  This would be something like you

      filling up your car with gas before you went on a long trip.

2---The pre-race warm-up sharpens the horse’s mental attitude as it slowly stretches his

      muscles to their maximum elasticity before he’s asked for everything.

3---The pre-race warm-up offers the jockey the ultimate “failsafe” before he puts life and

      limb at risk.  Should his mount be sore or feel “off” any way when slowing cantering,

      he’ll go right to the veterinarian at the starting gate to get him scratched.

4---Quite obviously, every athlete should “loosen up” before all-out exercise of any kind,

      with the horse being no different.  His minimum 4 furlong canter greatly reduces the

      possibility of serious injury during the running of the race, while offering him every

      opportunity to win.  

That said, you would think that every horse would get 4 to 6 furlongs of pre-race exercise before any race! 

Looking over those 4 above reasons, it’s a “win-win-win-win situation”!

However, this simply doesn’t happen in every race. 

All participants that actually do go into a canter, continue for various distances.

Horses that are walked or merely slow trotted to the gate while never breaking into a canter fall into the 3 categories below.

1---The barn is “not going” today for any number of reasons.

2---The horse is infirm and “up for sale” in a claiming race.  The current trainer is

      looking to get rid of his “damaged goods” and doesn’t want to risk him getting

      scratched before the starting gate opens by cantering in the pre-race and injuring

     himself.  Once the starting gate opens, he becomes the problem of the new trainer if

     they dropped a claiming slip on him.

3---Some trainers actually tell their jockey not to warm-up their mount.  Bruce Headley

      comes to mind.  Not coincidentally, the Headley barn is currently 0 for 50 something

      since November 2006 when the first Hollywood polymeet began.  He continued to

      “blank” thru the second Hollywood polymeet.  And thru the 3^rd week of this Del Mar

      2007 meet, he remains winless.  Go figure! 

4---Jockey’s are too lazy or too stupid to properly warm up their mounts.  As the great

      Charlie Whittingham once quipped “They don’t wear a size 7 hat for nothing”!

Here’s your bottom line.

The pre-race cantering for 4 furlongs will take no more than 3 to 4 minutes.  Since the usual allotted time on the major Southern California circuit is 10 minutes for the pre-race exercise period (weather permitting) not only is there ample time to canter 4 furlongs, a jockey could go 6 furlongs or more and still have plenty of time to get to the starting gate for loading.

It really doesn’t matter when the 4 furlong pre-race canter begins and ends during that

10 minute period.  Some horses like to slow trot for 2 furlongs before properly cantering

4 more.  Other runners break into a canter right out of the post parade.  As long as they get the essential exercise, they are acceptable from a mutuel standpoint.

Personally, I won’t bet any horse without a proper pre-race warm-up-----------period!   

And yes, horses walked or slow trotted to the starting gate do win races. 

At our DAILY SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HORSES TO WATCH, we continue our extensive 16 year research on the major Southern California circuit on over 4,000 winners. 

Of those 4000+ winners, a mere 7.24% of “non-warm-up” horses won their race.

Think about that percentage for a minute.

How many tools in your personal handicapping arsenal offer you a 92.76% advantage without incorporating any other handicapping factor???

PART 15----SEEING THE PRE-RACE WARM-UP via your racetrack feed.