Breaking racehorses is somewhat different from starting pleasure horses under saddle, because you are dealing with something a little different: the horses are much younger than in other disciplines, and they are bred to be high-energy and full of run. They are also likely to be asked to perform at very high levels just a few months later. If they are not handled properly, their whole career could be jeopardized.To learn a little more about what goes into the early stages of training for these high-performance horses, we spoke with Kentucky racehorse trainers Tanya Boulmetis of Tanya Boulmetis Racing Stable and Jordan Booker of John Booker Racing.

Avoiding Problems

With the high demands that will be placed on these young horses, it is important to work carefully.

“One of the common problems I see when we get two-year-olds from other trainers is shin splints,” Booker warns. “There’s a lot of pressure to move quickly to get them into the futurities. They push them too far too fast, and it puts a lot of pressure on the horse’s cannons.”

He also points out that it is important to know the horse. Some can move more quickly through the training process than others, while some get traumatized.

“Be patient,” he says.

One piece of advice that Booker thinks is often overlooked is to pay attention to the horse’s mouth. “A lot of problems come from the horse’s mouth and teeth,” he explains. “If they’re worried about their mouth, they can’t concentrate on their work and it causes a lot of stress.”

He suggests warming the bit if it is very cold, as well as making sure to remove wolf teeth as soon as they appear.

The Timeline

Most racehorses start their training after the September sales, which means they are about 18 months old. This is when they receive their first 60-90 days of training. By the end of this time, they can walk, trot and gallop under saddle for brief periods without veering off in different directions, and they have probably been introduced to the track and the starting gate.

What happens after this depends on the owner’s plans for the horse. If they will be raced they following year, they may be given a one to two month break at this point. However, if they are headed to the two-year-old sales, they will most likely stay in training.

Early Saddle Training

Training philosophies vary among trainers, but many of them follow a similar pattern. While young race horses need to know how to go, stop and steer just as pleasure horses do, that is where the similarities end. They need to be able to run straight and fast on an oval track with other horses around them, and they need to learn how to go in and out of a starting gate.

Like other disciplines, many race trainers start their horses with ground work. “When I start my young horses, I start them by teaching them to longe in a round pen,” explains Boulmetis. “Once they are going both directions at a walk and trot, I will add a surcingle and driving reins and start teaching them to drive. This teaches them how to place their heads, and how to steer and stop. Once they are comfortable driving in both directions, doing figure eights, and stopping and standing, they are ready to be saddled and mounted.”

Once the horse is comfortable with steering and stopping, Boulmetis will drive him one more time, using an exercise saddle instead of the surcingle. Then, it is time to take the horse into his stall to put someone on his back for the first time—either to “belly” (lie across their back on your belly) or to go ahead and mount them from the ground.

“A good ground person is a must at this point if you are going to ‘belly,’” Boulmetis says. “My preference is to get on from the ground, as I find I have more control than getting legged up and trying to balance on my stomach as I lie across the yearling. By mounting from the ground, if the horse is nervous I will only go as far as what the horse says.”

With the rider on the horse’s back, the ground person will then lead the horse around the stall in circles. It is important to keep these first lessons short and stop on a good note. Then, you can move on to doing the same thing in the round pen during the next lesson.

Boulmetis continues, “In the next day or so, I will ask for some jogging, turning, and stopping and figure eights. Once they are comfortable with all of that, we usually introduce another rider on a pony (an older, calm horse) and go into a field and start walking, jogging, and steering exercises.”

At this stage, it is common to have several young horses and ponies all working together. This way, the babies get used to seeing other horses with riders on their backs, riding next to and toward each other. Rides are kept short, about 10 to 20 minutes, and a little bit of easy cantering can be added.

As Boulmetis says, “When you are at the track and jogging the ‘wrong way’ and a horse is galloping toward you, it is nice if your baby had already experienced this, and is not afraid, and continues to jog forward, rather than getting scared and running backwards into the galloping horses!”

The Starting Gate

How a trainer introduces a horse to the starting gate can make a huge difference in a horse’s career. It is difficult to race without being able to stand in one quietly and take off at the right moment. According to Booker, taking it slow and easy is the key.

“Some horses never recover from a bad experience in the gate,” he says.

He takes several days to introduce a baby to the starting gate. On the first day, he’ll lead the horse to the gate and let it just look at it. Over the next several days, he will slowly introduce the horse to the gate with the aid of the baby’s familiar pony and handlers, often with other babies of the same age at the same time. The young horses are allowed to see people climbing around on the gate, they are led in and out, then asked to stand while first the back gate is closed and then the front. Finally, they learn to first walk out and then, eventually, gallop out when the front gate is opened.

It is important to remember that each small step is taken one day at a time so the young horse does not feel trapped or frightened in anyway. By keeping in mind the flighty nature of racehorses and paying attention to the individual needs of each horse, you can avoid many problems and give the young horse the best chance possible at a long and successful racing career.