DVD - The HORSE in SPORT: HARNESS RACING

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From the wild and furious chariot races of the ancient Greeks and Romans, which was the first Olympic equestrian sport, to the floodlit track of the Meadowlands comes a thrilling sport that seems to have been made for filming. The strange notion of racing to trot then evolved in the 18th Century as families trotting home tried to outdo each other. Then the British stallion, MESSENGER, came to America and started a new trotting breed of horse - the Standardbred; his son HAMBLETONIAN would sire 1,330 sons and today 95% of all American harness horses are his direct descendants.

Though the races have changed, they have never been tamed: top horses leave the starting gates at 35 m.p.h. - almost as fast as a Thoroughbred can gallop AND they can earn thousands of dollars with one winning circuit of the track!

All aspects of harness racing: history, breeding, training techniques and the business of, are explored in this very comprehensive and informative feature. More than 30 countries around the world have some form of harness racing and in North America, the sport rivals flat racing as a business. In Sweden, France, America and Australia drivers and owners are interviewed to find the secrets of their success; one trainer risks crocodiles in Breakfast Creek to give his horse a swim.

Find out many fundamental facts such as the difference between a trotter and a pacer; and why 80% of horses are pacers instead of trotters in the U.S. vs. the opposite for Europe.

A few of the sport's toughest races such as the Hambletonian at the Meadowlands is shown and a few of its most shining stars - MACK LOBELL and NAPOLETANO. Also very rare footage of MACK LOBELL's sire, MYSTIC PARK, is shown of him fully recuperated at stud in honor of his bitter struggle for life in which he endured endless months off his feet due to severely painful hoof problems - only a dedicated and patient group of people who refused to give up made it possible for him to survive.

A tribute to the great DAN PATCH and footage of many of his babies are also shown from rare, archival footage from the turn-of-the-century. Fast, colorful and absolutely compulsive!

This video is part of the "Horse in Sport" Series recognizably the finest documentary series ever produced about horses and horse people; the seven equestrian disciplines represented in this acclaimed series each stand alone in their spectacular photography, music and narration. No equestrian library would be complete without this timeless collection.

53 Minutes.

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