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Secret of success is staying in the pack

Helmet (right), ridden by Kerrin McEvoy, wins the Guineas in race record time

Contrary to popular perception, the final sprint in fact sees a slowdown rather than an acceleration (Source: Julian Smith: AAP)

Aerodynamic advantage Racehorses that stay in the pack longest before breaking for the final sprint have the best chance of earning prize money, say scientists.

By tucking in cleverly behind the leaders, the horse uses "aerodynamic drafting" to its advantage, they say.



But this is the first time its importance has been pinpointed in data and measured, the paper's authors say. The work, published in the journal Royal Society Biology Letters could one day develop into a tool for racing fans, they believe.

"When measured over the entire race, the average speed of a horse goes up the more time it spends tucked in behind other horses," says Andrew Spence of the Structure and Motion Laboratory at Britain's Royal Veterinary College.


Spence and colleagues had access to a statistical gold mine: data garnered by a British company, TurfTrax Racing, which places a radio-frequency chip in the horse's saddle, enabling the animal's position to be triangulated at any point in a race.

The team had access to more than 4500 races staged at 10 British racecourses from 2005 to 2007.

The last 500 metres

On average, horse races are decided in the last 500 metres, give or take 200 metres depending on whether the race is longer or shorter, the study's authors write.


But contrary to popular perception, the final sprint in fact sees a slowdown rather than an acceleration, for the horses are tiring.



By reducing aerodynamic drag by 13 per cent, a horse can notch up an additional two percent gain in the average speed for the whole race.

Two per cent may not sound much but it amounts to the difference between first place and fifth, according to the analysis.

"For a horse that drafts for 75 per cent of a race, this effect is worth three to four finish places," it says.

The study defined drafting as being when a horse was roughly one horse length (2.5 metres) behind a rival and was within 10 degrees either side of its line of running.

Good for punters, not so for riders


"You have to be nicely tucked in but tucked in a way that still leaves you with a shot at getting clear," he says. "You have to manage not getting stuck in the pack."

Top French jockey Olivier Peslier, who has over 1000 wins to his credit, says he doubts whether the study would help experienced riders, who already knew of the benefits of drafting and had to use instincts at high speed in positioning the horse.


"Maybe you could come up with profiles of jockeys, and say, 'this jockey is really good at drafting', because some jockeys are really good at tucking their way in and threading their way through nicely."

Tags: physics, sport, horse-racing, marsupials