Female Jockeys

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Horses are also not broken in as well as they used to be. Some yards have them ridden away in days now with little lungeing and no long-reining which IMO is vital to a horses future (for those who don't know - lungeing is when the horse is on the end of a long line and it walks/trots/canters around a person in a circle - approx 20 feet away; long reining is when you literally have a long rein either side from the bit back to a person standing about 5 feet behind the horse usually through the stirrups and the person walks along behind the horse) - both exercises teach the horse most importantly to be responsive to the voice but also the horse will learn pressure on its mouth and steering. If both are done properly you should end up with a cooperative horse who is happy to turn either way when pressure is applied on the rein and to stop when asked. You should also get a horse which is relaxed in its mouth so any signals from the rider eventually are not responded to with resistance.
Hope that makes some sort of sense!
 
If they get a good start and it is established correctly in that department it is always something you can revert back to if necessary and presents less problems in the long term. It seems the horse whisperer idea of back it and ride it away quickly does no favours to the horse, and is only bravado showmanship.
 
What does anyone know or consider in regards to Gamelova (if I've spelt that correctly) I haven't paid much attention to her but her name is rather distinctive and keep meaning to watch a few of her rides when time allows.
 
Absolutely, Redhead. If a horse is broken in properly it tends to be far better mannered, because not only has it not been rushed during breaking, it has been taught the right aids and signals so understands what you are asking it to do. I've seen horses that haven't been long reined bolting and the rider not only not being able to stop, not being able to turn the buggers either which gives you even less chance of stopping them. Get someone doing the early work on a horse without the relevant experience and with bad hands and you encounter all sorts of problems when trying the faster paces. Bad hands doesn't just mean hauling on their mouths; I've seen horses ruined just as easily - or being a nightmare to sort out afterwards - from people not taking a hold of their mouth to establish a contact nor using their leg on the horses sides. What happens then i the first time someone puts their leg on they panic like hell, either jump six feet in the air, buck, rear or bolt. Similarly if they are not used to some sort of contact on their mouth, the first time someone picks up the reins they panic and do one of the above. Having someone just sit on them quietly doesn them no favours if that person cannot teach the horse what he needs to do; you have to be firm with them, show them the aids and signals, show them what is required of them and administer discipline when you need to or you will more than likely have problems later on.
 
I've no experience of the breaking/training side of things but I do recall looking after a horse who was owned by a friend of my boss. He was a beautifl ride and his mouth was so soft that just a tap on the rein and a movement of the calf was enough to get what you wanted. I got the impression that he had been trained not only with expertise and patience, but also with love, as he was a pleasure to have anything to do with, a real gentleman in and out of his box.

Unfortunately, his owner, besides being a big, heavy man, was very much a novice rider and still bumped at the canter. He would get this lovely horse into the indoor school and start belting round with him as soon as he had warmed up, bumping his back and jagging his lovely mouth.

The first sign of problems was when he became headshy. Within a month of his arrival the horse had started leaning badly on the bit, shaking his head at the trot and eventually was so distressed that he attacked me over the box door one evening. He didn't get me and turned away into the corner of his box. I went in and could have wept for him, he was trembling from head to foot and was covered in sweat. He let me rub him down and just stood with his head so low that his nose was almost on the floor. My boss was ex-Royal Artillery and not very sympathetic to how the horse was obviously suffering. I left for a new job a week or so later, having spent a great deal of time trying to console this poor, lovely horse, but I later heard that he had been put down for trying to savage his owner.

I felt so sorry for the horse and so angry that just having the money to pay for such a well-bred and beautifully-schooled horse was sufficient to let him pass into such inept hands. I am sure that whoever trained him with such love and patience would have been heart-broken.
 
Toobe said:
Looking at the wins per runs ratio, since the 13/07/09 it appears by quick calculation as follows:-

Gannon - 5 from 19 runs
Turner - 4 from 26 runs
Milczarek- 0 from 21 runs

I realise these are from only a small period of recent form, but as a picked at random and if they were used as a base example I think it pretty much looks that way.
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By way of an update

Since 20/07/09

Gannon - 7 wins from 29 runs
Turner - 7 wins from 45 runs
Milczarek- 0 wins from 20 runs
 
Amy Ryan has been doing well too Toobe - I know she'll not be anywhere near Turner or Gannon's strike rates but she's been riding superb of late, particularly good ride on one of her father's horses at Hamilton on Saturday night (the horses name escapes me at the min).
 
Shifting Gold.

Just needs to start converting a few more of her placed rides into wins but is doing ok.

Be interesting to see if Hayley keeps the ride on Broomielaw if she isn't committed to riding something for Michael Bell.

Would imagine she will be on The Betchworth Kid if he takes his chance in the Ebor.
 
That's the one Arkwright - hope that Hayley keeps the ride on Prompter and other high profile Bell horses. It's pointless employing a jockey of her undoubted quality if you're going to jock her off for the big races when a decent (not better) male counterpart comes along.
 
Precisely, another reason a womens league is more a necessity now there are more women on the circuit.
 
I don't see the point of having a womens league Toobe - if the likes of Julie Krone, Rosie Homeister Jnr and Emma-Jayne Wilson can be top jockeys at their tracks and ride thousands of winners why can't our jockeys do the same?
 
Opportunity restrictions I feel would present a possible or one of the most likely reasons.
 
How is a "womens league" going to increase opportunity in the long run? Any owner/trainer who is sceptical about putting a woman jockey up is not going to be convinced by her beating a load of other women jockeys.
 
Owners/Trainers are sceptical already or the women jocks would have been given more opportunity by now. So it would not make any difference in that quarter then?.
 
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Trainers are sceptical as they're all stuck in the past and IMO there's no way there are 15 better jockeys in the UK and Ireland than Hayley Turner - she should certainly be getting rides in the classics.
 
Irish Stamp said:
That's the one Arkwright - hope that Hayley keeps the ride on Prompter and other high profile Bell horses. It's pointless employing a jockey of her undoubted quality if you're going to jock her off for the big races when a decent (not better) male counterpart comes along.
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Absolutely, I know who I'd want on Prompter in the Derby between Hayley and Jamie, especially with my 50/1.
 
Irish Stamp said:
Trainers are sceptical as they're all stuck in the past and IMO there's no way there are 15 better jockeys in the UK and Ireland than Hayley Turner - she should certainly be getting rides in the classics.
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Looking at recent form and regardless of other factors I still maintain that Gannon is and will hold pole position this year. I feel both her and Turner should be getting better quality races.
 
Of course a woman's league isn't a 'necessity' - if anything, it only serves to segregate the female jockeys further. Isn't the whole point supposed to be that they can compete on an equal footing - or nearly equal footing - to the men? Well, some can, at least.
 
Agreed some women can most definately hold their own against men. But instead of it just being a case of she does alright for a girl, we can see who is top female jock without fashionable or, connection influences, in a way at least these would be reduced and give a clearer view of who genuinely has the edge within the female ranks.
 
There seemed to be a bit of a battle between Turner and Milczarek today at Yarmouth and the two jocks got 1st and 2nd respectively. I think it was the 4.20 I was left with the impression that they both fought stronger when up against each other and have noticed that when female jocks are up against another female they seem come out fighting more.
 
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