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Thread: Driver weights

  1. #11
    Super Moderator Stallion Messenger will become famous soon enough Messenger's Avatar
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    Thanks TC, I knew there was another but could not find it
    per un PUGNO di DOLLARI

  2. #12
    Member Yearling JanellePeter will become famous soon enough JanellePeter's Avatar
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    I would like to see different wheel widths trialled on sulkies. Some tracks are softer than others and I think the thin wheel would dig in. A fatter wheel tread would work better.
    Bit like those fat wheeled bikes they use on the beaches these days. Has anyone ever looked into this?

  3. #13
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year arlington will become famous soon enough
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    Some trainers and perhaps drivers have looked at this over the years. Not sure if there is as big a variation in track softness, sinkage, these days? The horse cushion the tracks have don't seem to be a negative when it comes to the wheels. It might appear tracks have different softness that could create wheel resistance but there's not much wheel sinkage. You would need to look at surface contact area of a wider tyre compared to a smaller contact area for a thinner tyre and how that effects resistance. Also a thinner tyre can cut through the cushion better than a wider tyre.

  4. #14
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year Dot will become famous soon enough
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    Are we talking about for going faster, or for handicapping purposes? Of course varying wheel and tyres widths and diameters plus tyre pressures could be used to handicap if the administration was providing carts and wheels to participants.

    On going faster the narrow tyre and wheel creates less drag and has a lower rolling resistence due to friction then a wider wheel and “fatter” tyre on most of our all weather tracks under most conditions so most of the time will be the faster set up.

  5. #15
    Member Yearling JanellePeter will become famous soon enough JanellePeter's Avatar
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    Interesting. I would like to do penetrometer readings on every track to determine the difference in tracks sinkage. Using average times to determine average track times shows some interesting differences for tracks with similar dimensions / class of racing.

  6. #16
    Junior Member Foal Nicolaus Silver will become famous soon enough
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    Regardless of theory there is drag that holds back a horse especially when the surface is in any way soft, cut up or testing. The wheels sink less with low weight above and skim over the surface better than one soundly embedded in the surface.

    Farmers know this albeit in extreme conditions of ploughed fields but the logic is the same. To load weights out of sight would be onerous and liable to being abused if not transparent.

    However assuming drivers have a weight range between 7 stone and 12 stone, coloured wrap around weights affixed easily to sulky structure side bars and evenly weighted on both sides could be applied so that all sulkies and drivers weigh the same ie 12 stone. This will eradicate the perceptions of any advantage. A driver weighs in at say 9 stone and assuming a sulky weighs 3 stone carries zero extra weights. A driver weighing 7 stone would add 2 stone of weights to the sulky, 14 lbs on each side.

    All weights used will be designed to fit around and be fully secured and provided solely by the track. They would also be coloured to represent its value in stones and lbs.

    The comment about soft hands is often true but most drivers are capable of a relaxed or any grip that is apt for the horse. In many cases lazy or erratic horses at some stage need some firm handed rousing.

    Think the above would reduce any severe advantage through weight or track condition with little effort as the drivers own weight are generally a constant. All they need to do is check in an hour before their first drive and get their correct weights for the night.

    One scam would be for drivers to bring own set of identical looking weights coloured the same as the track weights but made of an alloy to switch so maybe we should have GPS on each set of track weights........methinks that's enough for now.
    Last edited by Nicolaus Silver; 04-30-2019 at 09:27 PM. Reason: spell

  7. #17
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year Dot will become famous soon enough
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    Welcome Kevin. I guess the issues to be considered would be ensuring the weights are attached in such away to ensure that they do not become detached during the course of the race. Also is, and I’m thinking many people would say yes, is a weighted, heavier, sulky more dangerous to horse and driver in the event of a fall?

  8. #18
    Super Moderator Stallion Messenger will become famous soon enough Messenger's Avatar
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    If we were considering this I wonder whether seats could have a 'slot' underneath them which could hold weights which the stewards would place in position when the horses are inspected in the parade ring.
    The slot would be filled by a disc with the discs made of various materials/alloys to provide a range of weights
    A weight under the seat would distribute the weight similarly equivalent to a heavier driver
    Last edited by Messenger; 05-01-2019 at 03:18 PM.
    per un PUGNO di DOLLARI

  9. #19
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year Dot will become famous soon enough
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    The obstacle there Kev is so many different seat and sulky types and attachment methods between the twothat it would currently be very difficult to attach weights under the seat in the manner you suggest, but it seems a good idea.

  10. #20
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year arlington will become famous soon enough
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    Following on from what Dot has asked, are the new style sulkies as safe as the older stainless steel carts? Newer carts being heavier and, do they 'crumple' like the ss carts do in an accident?

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