SIMHorseRacing.com

The following is a list of equipment that can help your horse improve:

Blinkers What they are/What they do: A fabric “hood” placed over the upper half of a horse’s face, with ear holes and eye holes. A small plastic “cup” is placed around the back half of the eye-hole; the further out this cup extends, the more restricted the horse’s vision. Possible positive effects: Horses can be distracted by too much sensory input, and restricting their vision of events to their sides and rear can help to focus a horse and “keep his mind on the race.” This is especially helpful with skittish or young horses who are easily distracted and may “run greenly” (swerve across the track, or suddenly accelerate and decelerate without warning). They can also be used to put a horse who frequently starts slowly “into the race” much faster, and a horse wearing blinkers will often demonstrate more early speed than a horse without blinkers. Possible negative effects: While blinkers can often produce drastic positive effects, they have a chance to create similar negative effects! Often times, a horse racing in blinkers will quickly rush out of the gate and refuse to “settle,” or relax into a maintainable speed. They’ll burn up their energy too quickly, especially if the jockey tries to restrain them and the horse fights the jockey. They can also cause a horse to “hang” once he makes the lead: some horses will only do as much as they have to win, and will slow down to wait for their competition if they strike the front too early in a race. This is an especially dangerous trait for a horse in blinkers, since it leaves them vulnerable to the late rush of a closer who the blinkered horse is unable to see in time to get “back into gear.” Also note that “hanging” is not a trait RESTRICTED to horses wearing blinkers, it can be caused by a variety of things.	© Alysse Jacobs
Shadow Roll What it is/What it does: A roll of fleece fabric placed across the noseband of a horse’s bridle, it prevents the horse from seeing the ground directly in front of his feet. Possible positive effects: Young and immature horses are often prone to jumping over marks and shadows in the track, especially if they should happen to run over a path in the track that has been packed down (by, perhaps, a tire dragging the starting gate across the track). This disrupts their momentum and has been known to cost horses placings in very significant races. Note that these marks are not actual obstacles to be avoided, and the horse is at no risk by simply running over them. If the horse cannot see the ground directly in front of him, he is less likely to jump over these marks. Possible negative effects: Few horses actually jump these marks, but the equipment has very few possible side effects. It is conceivable that a horse could be irritated by the fabric and toss his head, but this is extremely rare. Most trainers simply prefer not to use more equipment than is absolutely necessary.	© Rose Hepburn
Hind/Front Bandages What they are/What they do: A fabric wrap (akin to equine athletic tape) wrapped around either the hind or front legs of a horse when training or racing. They provide extra support for a horse’s legs, and are especially useful on unsound horses or horses coming back off of a layoff. Possible positive effects: Mainly used simply as a precautionary measure, the extra support that they afford a horse can be effective in preventing minor muscle strains and ankle soreness. Possible negative effects: May mask small problems in a race that, if noticed and remedied immediately, would not be an issue, but may become an issue if overlooked. This is especially noteworthy in the SIM, as trainers do not have the opportunity to “observe” their horses over the course of day-to-day training.	© Emily Shields
Figure-8 Bridle What it is/What it does: A special type of bridle that affords a jockey more control over the horse than the standard bridle. Possible positive effects: Rank horses will often come bursting out of the gate and rush for the lead, refusing to settle into a cruising pace. Other horses will tend to “blow their turns,” or swing very wide around turns. The figure-8 bridle will tend to give a jockey increased control, giving him/her a chance to resolve these problems over the course of a race. Possible negative effects: Some horses may resent the added restraint and fight their jockey, while others with a timid demeanor may simply cave to their jockey altogether and sulk through a race, refusing to put themselves back into an appropriate mindset for racing after ceding to their jockey’s wishes early in the race.	© Alysse Jacobs
Tongue Tie What it is/What it does: A cloth or rubber-band strap that loops over the top of a horse’s tongue and ties under his chin. The bit (the part of the bridle consisting of the metal bar that slips into a horse’s mouth and is responsible for controlling the horse) usually rests over a horse’s tongue, but some horses tend to “play with the bit” in their mouth and work their tongue out from under the bit. If this happens, the jockey will lose significant amounts of control and the horse is in danger of swallowing his tongue or “flipping his palette,” both of which produce roughly the same visible effects as “bleeding;” that is to say that a horse is likely to “stop” suddenly in the middle of a race. Possible positive effects: Generally prevents the horse from working his tongue over the bit, preventing the problems described above. Possible negative effects: If accidentally tied too tight, tongue ties can cut off circulation to a horse’s tongue. This would be roughly equivalent to having your foot fall asleep while you attempt to run a marathon; it would create significant amounts of pain for the horse, cause him to lose focus on the race, and struggle against any restraint that the jockey applies. Note that this side effect is rare, but can cost a horse a race should it occur.	© Rose Hepburn

Earmuffs What are they/What they do: A form of blinkers, except instead of cutting earhole pockets in the blinkers, a type of “hood” is sewn on for the ears to fit into. This generally reduces the horse’s ability to hear crowd noise. Possible positive effects: Some skittish or easily distracted horses may be frightened or distracted by crowd noise, which is particularly notable because grandstands of all racetracks are positioned to give the public the best possible view of the finish of a race. A horse that loses focus late in the race will often be beaten by horses who maintain their focus and can effectively block out the crowd. Possible negative effects: Like many human athletes, most horses seem able to tune out crowd noise, and a select few seem to thrive on it. Generally an esoteric fix to the problem of a horse slowing suddenly in the stretch, it is usually a last-resort fix after the more common and obvious cures to this problem (Lasix, blinkers to keep a horse focused, or a tongue tie to insure that the horse is able to breathe late in the race) have been explored.	© Alysse Jacobs
Lasix (a.k.a. Salix) What it is/What it does: A medication administered to a horse before a race to prevent bleeding in their lungs. While not a life-threatening condition, “bleeding” restricts a horse’s ability to breath; lack of oxygen prevents the horse from maintaining its optimum cruising speed. “Bleeding” is usually characterized by a horse “stopping,” or slowing suddenly in the course of a race. Possible positive effects: Tends to resolve the problem in the majority of horses afflicted with the condition. Possible negative effects: Tends to create a dependency on the drug, and horses racing without the drug after having been treated in previous races are more likely to “bleed.” Administering the medication will soon cost a SIM trainer money (amount to be determined).

No Whip What it is/What it does: Contrary to popular myth, the whip when used properly is not an abusive piece of equipment and does not cause the horse any unreasonable pain. It is generally used as a tool to keep a horse focused on running late in the race or urge it to completely empty the tank in the middle of a tight race. A proficient jockey will use the whip no more and no less than is necessary, and find an optimum balance between never using it at all and abusing the horse. Jockeys (especially in Europe) have been suspended for overzealous use of the whip, and it is a carefully monitored issue. That said, some horses are much more sensitive than others and greatly resent the feel of a whip. This can sometimes be seen if a jockey goes to his whip (usually at the top of the stretch) and the horse shies (jumps) violently away from the side which the jockey has used the whip. Riding without a whip obviously makes this a non-issue. Possible positive effects: A jockey riding without a whip on a horse that shies away from the whip will not cause the horse to shy to one side or another. This obviously helps it maintain its forward momentum. Possible negative effects: The whip can be a useful aide for enticing every last drop of speed from a horse, and a horse who is not afraid of a whip may benefit from effective use of the tool late in a close race. Even as horses gallop to easy, easy victories, a jockey will often “show a horse the whip” or wave it up and down along the side of the horse so that he can see it, though he is never actually touched with the whip. This will keep a horse focused, where a horse whose jockey has no whip may start to dawdle.	© Brandon Benson