Horse Racing S Most Wanted

Known as the sport of kings, horse racing has been around the track, so to speak. Out of the gates as early as ancient GreeceOCOs Olympic Games, racing would truly find its footing centuries later when Arabian horses were brought to England during the Crusades. Soon nobles with deep pockets were striking friendly wagers, and by Queen AnneOCOs reign, races with big purses were off and runningOCoand making their way across the pond. In the United States, horse racing has given the world of professional sportsOCoeven baseballOCoa run for its money. In Horse RacingOCOs Most WantedOao, readers will have the inside track on the sport that draws more than a million viewers every spring with the Triple Crown. Only eleven horses have swept this illustrious series in its 130-year history. Race alongside these near-mythical champions, the jockeys and trainers who spurred them on, and the many competitors who came, raced, but did not conquer. Whether or not itOCOs the Derby, this sport is exciting. Learn about the fastest fillies, oddest names, greatest tracks, studliest siresOCoand more. Author David L. Hudson Jr. returns to the Most WantedOao series with more than fifty lists that cover the sportOCOs surprising upsets, tragic falls, and photo-finish races. No matter if you win, place, or show, this book is a sure bet.

This book constitutes the first full volume dedicated to an academic analysis of horseracing in British cinema. Through comprehensive contextual histories of film production and reception, together with detailed textual analysis, this book explores the aesthetic and emotive power of the enduringly popular horseracing genre, its ideologically-inflected landscape and the ways in which horse owners and riders, bookmakers and punters have been represented on British screen. The films discussed span from the 1890s to the present day and include silent shorts, quota quickies and big-budget biopics. A work of social and film history, The British Horseracing Film demonstrates how the so-called “sport of kings” functions as an accessible institutional structure through which to explore cinematic discussions about the British nation—but also, and equally, national approaches to British cinema.

This is the definitive history of thoroughbred racing's three premier events, which have never before been explored in such detail. This book gives the history of America's classic races from the inaugural Belmont Stakes in 1867 through 2013, identifying which equine participants were truly worthy of lasting acclaim and which were one-hit wonders. Perhaps even more compelling are the stories of the men and women who rode, trained, owned, or bred classic winners, including their exploits on the turf and their triumphs and failures in arenas far removed from horse racing.

In the months leading up to the 1971 Kentucky Derby, Canonero II was an unknown horse with a Venezuelan trainer who spoke only Spanish. The Derby "experts" laughed when an exercise boy rode the horse out on the track with no saddle or stirrups. But the laughter promptly ended when Canonero II charged to the front from twenty lengths back to win the Derby, followed by a victory at the Preakness Stakes in track record time. In recounting Canonero II's quest to become the first Triple Crown winner since Citation, award-winning turf historian Milt Toby tells the compelling story of how one man's wildly improbable dream became the dream of a nation and how a bargain-basement yearling born with a crooked front leg became the "people's horse."

The book was written for all of you, who watch horse racing only to find themselves lost, wanting to know more about the sport, but not knowing where to begin. Perhaps you're a regular race watcher, who ends up spending all of their time explaining the sport to their accompanying friends and loved ones. It's not like you don't want them sharing in the enjoyment of a sport you love, but how many questions can you really answer? Or you may be someone who just visits the track for those special race days. You want to go more often, but just don't know how to learn more about this great sport. This book may just be the help you're looking for, as it offers a unique perspective on how to enjoy horse racing. By the end of our lively and amusing discussion on how to handicap with your head, eyes, blood, gut, heart, and by your tail, the reader will be able to converse comfortably on any of the sport's diverse aspects. Most importantly, they will learn how to have fun at the track.

A “superb” account of the enduring connection between humans and horses—“Full of the sort of details that get edited out of more traditional histories” (The Economist). Fifty-six million years ago, the earliest equid walked the earth—and beginning with the first-known horse-keepers of the Copper Age, the horse has played an integral part in human history. It has sustained us as a source of food, an industrial and agricultural machine, a comrade in arms, a symbol of wealth, power, and the wild. Combining fascinating anthropological detail and incisive personal anecdote, equestrian expert Susanna Forrest draws from an immense range of archival documents as well as literature and art to illustrate how our evolution has coincided with that of horses. In paintings and poems (such as Byron’s famous “Mazeppa”), in theater and classical music (including works by Liszt and Tchaikovsky), representations of the horse have changed over centuries, portraying the crucial impact that we’ve had on each other. Forrest combines this history with her own experience in the field, and travels the world to offer a comprehensive look at the horse in our lives today: from Mongolia where she observes the endangered takhi, to a show-horse performance at the Palace of Versailles; from a polo club in Beijing to Arlington, Virginia, where veterans with PTSD are rehabilitated through interaction with horses. “For the horse-addicted, a book can get no better than this . . . original, cerebral and from the heart.” —The Times (London)

Betting on Horse Racing For Dummies is packed with information that teaches you the ins and outs of the racetrack. You’ll learn how to improve your odds, avoid common betting mistakes, and just plain have fun at the races. This is a spectator’s easy-to-understand guide, so you’ll have no trouble identifying the racing breeds with their strengths and weaknesses, sizing up the jockey, understanding the importance and role of a trainer, placing bets, managing money, and beyond. Can’t make it to the track? No worries! You’ll get the scoop on online betting with off track betting sites and apps. This update covers the latest changes in the betting world and in the racing world, so you’ll know just what you’re wagering. Learn about the different types of horse racing Discover and identify the best racing breeds Know your jockeys and trainers Make smart wagers and manage your funds For beginning betters, Betting on Horse Racing For Dummies is your ticket to well informed wagers and a winning edge. Already know the ropes? You’ll love the market trends and insider tips you’ll find inside.

How do the class and gender inequalities found in horseracing affect the working practices of women within the industry? Drawing on the work of Bourdieu and his concepts of field, capital and habitus, this book shows the inequalities that are prevalent within the world of racing, both historically and currently, by illustrating the classed and gendered nature of racing and how it has developed since the eighteenth century when it was the sport of the aristocracy. Using research obtained through her year-long ethnographic study of a racing yard, Deborah Butler demonstrates that the racing field is an arena of power conflicts, and that men and women who work in racing acquire a contradictorily gendered racing habitus. This is achieved by learning certain elements in a formal setting but mainly informally, by ‘doing’, developing practical skills and participating in a (gendered) community of practice. For female stable staff this means adapting their behaviour and working practices in order to be accepted as ‘one of the lads’. This book will appeal to both scholars and students of the sociology of sport, the sociology of work and gender studies.