Grand National

I watched the Grand National yesterday at the recommendation of a coworker. It is a 4.5-mile horse jumping race that takes place in Liverpool each year and it seems that nearly everyone bets on it even if they would never otherwise pay attention to any other horse race. During the race itself 20 of the 40 riders failed to finish because either they were unseated from or fell from their animals; or the rider simply had to stop out of concern for the animal's health. After the race, the winning horse had to be immediately brought to the stable for emergency rehydration. This is one grueling race.

The race is two laps so several of the fences, which are topped with spruce, are jumped twice. In this year's race, the riders had to be waved around two of the fences on the final lap. The cameras dutifully followed the race, but you still could clearly see what looked like a tarpaulin covering something roughly the size of a horse as the riders were waved around the first skipped fence. As the cameras followed the race past the second skipped fence, you could see a makeshift enclosure with a few people franticly moving around it. Because of the enclosure, it was difficult to see if the people were attending to a horse or a rider. Both were horses... and they both died from injuries sustained in the race.

I remember as a child going out with my family to pick out a steer for slaughter. Being raised as a meat eater, this event was neither surprising nor traumatic in any way. And as an adult, I have seen slaughtered animals and have even been to several slaughter houses. Again, this does not really bother me. (I have to admit that I am frequently troubled that this does not bother me more than it does.) I was definitely way more shaken watching Dale Earnhardt die in the Daytona 500, but this was still hard to watch. Part of it was I just was not expecting it. I knew that it was dangerous for the riders, but I had no idea I would be watching animals die. I might feel differently had I been told that this happens from time to time before I watched it. I don’t want to give the wrong impression here. I believe that the owners, handlers, and riders absolutely adore these magnificent animals. I am happy to leave it to the English to figure out what, if anything, needs to be done. All I am saying is that I was just not emotionally prepared for what I saw.

Photo Credits:
Jumping Horses
Fence 19
Dale Earnhardt