Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-07-19
otvtlopINo Sped N colrs.


fArts Ne
DEVELOPING SPEED N colrs.
Nearly every bree,ier of trOtting stock
Who handles his colt. himself or Who
personally supervises their being handled
hy trainer. l. no doabt interested In
the subject of colt training. and IL de-
sirous of learning all h- can In regard tn
how In sde,elop the most speed In HI.
colts, With the least possible risk of In
juring them.
Not having had very much experience
In training colts Tor speed. II u not my
parpose Ia Law down ct of rules a to
how II shonld b. done, but merely Ia ex.
press few hies. on the .ubiect gather
III from What have observed and rad
ot the experience aud method. of sue
cc-sful and unsucce..ful colt trainers.
1 No one should undervalus personal ex-
pericncc, az requisite Tn the sacccs.ful
prscticc or t-sching 10 any business or
prufesslon. Hut life 10 too short to learn
everything he ought to know about any
one subject by hls o~n experience, aud
h. must learn all he can from the eN-
psrience ~ others and study th.ir theo-
ries and use common sens. beslics.
>ome Of the most complete failures In
the Nay 10 horsemsn were men ~ho had
learn~i al there ~ss to know from ex-
Pcrsnce snd would not try Ia learn any
more.
Nov the practiC- ot training and trot.
ting colts Ia Maine i practice that l.
Yet In it, Infancy, and large number Of
the colts that are trained and trOtt.d are
trained BY men Who never had very
much .spsrience Ina trotting horses, or
those ~hose experience has bcen con-
fins,i to mature animals.
Vet there are but few but what have
some good idea. on the subject, and II
all woald give their fellow trainers the
b~ncfit - their IDEAS much good would
b. doDs. Tor therr ar, none so Ignorant
bat that they may learn something from
them.
Nov when We rad or hear spoken
anyons's iieAs ou the subject that just
Cotnciie With our o~n, Ne are apt Ia be
very Interested aud Ia think that the
wgitsr or speaker Il Just right.
~. the othsr day ~hsn | read an arti-
cls In the ksntaCsy stock fsrm, written
by the sucvessful coli trainer, 4. \. Aus
tin, Nas much Interested In n, becAuss
Il ~as Just a. believed.
Mt. Austin -sy. that . ycarling can
M, ~ hichei too light, aud that a. soon
a. a colt l. Naywiscd enough Ia drive
straight hs tesins "a .pccl them, for be
say. tha, to teach them Ia trot you mus,
tiot thcm.
lie will let ycarling or atwo-year-
oh pac- or walk along a. SLOW a. they
please until mic. level footing l. reached,
then he will take hold ~ the blt and
make them trot az fast az they can
for q short distance, then he !. ready for
a slow walk or Jog agaln.
This, h. says. may have tendency 10
make poor ruad horss. Of them, bui
.p.s>l l. the ohjcct sought.
Nov how many handlers ~ colts arr
thrrr that drive them after this fashion,
some do, % ~ sure, and they are the
one. that have speedy colts; but the
majority a. not drive thi. way.
They don't let colt walk aud jog
slow and then when q level .pot !. reach
ed sped thsm IN. hest they can, bat
ihey rad them right along al a good
stiff jOg until they have gone a. far AZ
they want "a, theu put them into the
stable.
Some driver. know % Who are given
many colts o. handle are always la
great hurry 20 get there when th"y gei
colt or \ h0rss harnessei, and you never
.s. them driving hut what their animal
l. stepping right along at his be.t rad
sat, head ard tall up, aud they kecp
them guyc,i right up Ia the highest pitch
from the time they leave the stable I'LL
they get back, unless, perChancc, they
top on the street to talk with a friend,
when they never think of such thing ss
letting down IN. colt. head Ia rcst hl.
neck. even n they stop half an hour
and IN the colt twists his head round
sideways "a ease his n~ck little, he ~
c.lyss 4 cut with the whip.
such handling. doubtlcss, has a tend
ency to make colts uphcadci, free
,iriSer., for by b+ing made "a road last
they g,t into the habit % thinking They
must ~ that way.
hui they ar, apt a. grt gagged 10
c,rtain good road gait, aud II asked To
20 anN faster they hitch and jump and
~ont try to show a bur., of speed.
There are some colts that are very
ambitious, and apt 10 boil over, a. "
were. when you speed them that may DC
benent.i by q certain anount Of last
reading.
hut 1 have vet TO know % a single
instance where QUO % these trainer. Who
invariably drive AZ fast rad gan up
hin and down. bad up and tall over The
da.hsr fashion, that ever .ucccsicd ia
bringing out many fast colts.
For. a. natural consequence, a coli
ar grown horse either, after being road-
"a s.,rral miles az l3-mile-an-hour
clip. doar feel like letting out, s,raining
every mu.sle for q fast brush, aud hence
don't develop speed beyond sharp road
gait. a,
IN. time. aud allowed Ia rv-t the neCk
often. ~h.n a level aud slightly descend-
Ing pi.., of road Il reached they viii
h.ys some ambition To light out aud ~
Ia, aud 90 good galted aud will 20 a
lille faster every tirle YOU ask them u
n I. not too often or too Tar at a time.
Ther, are some owners of trotting
.tocg that, while they don't Rad them
to- fast. they are .o afraid of hurting
them that thsy never speed them as last
a. they can 20 al all.
/
saving that the way to Improve the
.pe.d of a horse l. Ia speed them Al
time. .. fast a. possible. Hut Ia the
case Of colt. only short distance al a
time. .,,.
Again. In .ssm. to b. the general I'M
ur,.s.loa among owners of trotting stock
| that because q man can get up behlnd a
hors. aud drive him la gooi shape, anu
drive him fast and steady, that he must
necessarily ts q good man to handle sna
train their colts aud young horses, and
they employ them to handle their colts.
/ Hut after their colts are spout they
r,.lil. their mistake, for u !. no more
.isn that because . man can drNca
bor.. fast that he Il good man 'o train
colt. and Young horses, than " !. ina,
because A man can saw NO"d isst uia'
n. must be an extra good hand to hie a
i saw.
TO get up behlnd horse and dn,,
him f..t aud steady requires natural
Z 81 and a steady hand.
But 10 train and develop speed IN .
col, a. II should be done require. orains'
Il - Ia .slsxnsff lQ1 conn