Re: Sis City.... TG v Sheets (409 Views)
Date: May 04, 2005 07:40PM
beyer,
I tend to think the horses of today are a lot faster than those of 50+ years ago.
I am less certain they are getting faster at the same rate now as when there was more room for improvement or at the rate suggested by the speed figures.
One thing I will point out is that the population of human beings has exploded in recent decades and so have the financial rewards for elite athletes. Those are two huge reasons to think human athletes are a lot better.
On the flip side, the horse racing industry has to some extent seen shrinking or flat crop sizes in recent years and many of the best horses have been exported to other parts of the world for racing and breeding purposes. So the US pool is probably thinner in size and quality. Plus, since most owners lose money, it's not like there's a huge new financial incentive involved. Those are all headwinds against the idea that horses are improving in leaps and bounds currently.
I don't know the answer, but I wouldn't be shocked if someone proved they are getting faster, but at a rate a lot slower than the figures suggest.