Essay On Horse Racing
The history of racing on mounted horses dated to the first millennium BC. In the beginning no breed of horse could carry jockeys a significant distance. The first mounted horse races took place in Ancient Greece. More frequent races were for charity in Roman times. When Rome fell in the 5th century horse breeding and racing declined in the west.
In 1665 formal horse racing began in North America when Richard Nicolls was the governor of New York. By establishing formal races he improved the horse breeds. Racing was popular in the 17th and 18th centuries in Virginia these races were stretched out on aligned pavement. During the Revolutionary War, racing was temporarily suspended but quickly resumed after the war ended.
The year 1792 the …show more content…
Since that time, it has been held on the first Saturday every May at the Churchill Downs racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. Over the years the distance of the race has changed. When the Kentucky Derby first started it was a mile and a half. In 1896 it was changed to a mile and a quarter. Because there are two different lengths of the race there are two records. “The record speed for the 1½ mi distance, 2 min 34½ sec, was run by a horse named Spokane in 1889. The record for the 1¼ mi distance is 1 min 59 2/10 sec, set by Secretariat in 1973” (Funk & Wagnalls 1). The Triple Crown is made up of three races one of them being The Kentucky Derby. The other two races that make The Triple Crown up are The Belmont Stakes and Preakness. In 139 races there were only 11 winners of The Triple Crown. This award is a very colossal achievement in horse racing. Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr. wanted to create a Derby to be larger than England’s famous Epson Derby. When the race was in financial difficulty, Matt J. Winn convinced New York horse owners to enter the horses to the Kentucky Derby. By 1911, a horse named Meridian was the races’ real claim to fame because he was named the best three year old of the year after winning the Kentucky Derby. Matt J. Winn continued to get more famous race horses from around the county to attract more attention to the
In 1665 formal horse racing began in North America when Richard Nicolls was the governor of New York. By establishing formal races he improved the horse breeds. Racing was popular in the 17th and 18th centuries in Virginia these races were stretched out on aligned pavement. During the Revolutionary War, racing was temporarily suspended but quickly resumed after the war ended.
The year 1792 the …show more content…
Since that time, it has been held on the first Saturday every May at the Churchill Downs racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. Over the years the distance of the race has changed. When the Kentucky Derby first started it was a mile and a half. In 1896 it was changed to a mile and a quarter. Because there are two different lengths of the race there are two records. “The record speed for the 1½ mi distance, 2 min 34½ sec, was run by a horse named Spokane in 1889. The record for the 1¼ mi distance is 1 min 59 2/10 sec, set by Secretariat in 1973” (Funk & Wagnalls 1). The Triple Crown is made up of three races one of them being The Kentucky Derby. The other two races that make The Triple Crown up are The Belmont Stakes and Preakness. In 139 races there were only 11 winners of The Triple Crown. This award is a very colossal achievement in horse racing. Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr. wanted to create a Derby to be larger than England’s famous Epson Derby. When the race was in financial difficulty, Matt J. Winn convinced New York horse owners to enter the horses to the Kentucky Derby. By 1911, a horse named Meridian was the races’ real claim to fame because he was named the best three year old of the year after winning the Kentucky Derby. Matt J. Winn continued to get more famous race horses from around the county to attract more attention to the