Where were all you tree huggers when Foxhunt and Bronze Cannon died @ the Dubai WC?

signed

I hugged a tree once and a bee stung me in the scrotum.  True story.

Did you tell the doctor to take away the pain but to leave the swelling sid?

Same here OTS.  The Grand National is an easy target as it is the most high profile race in the country.  After the race we had Animal Aid Director Andrew Tyler calling it mob entertainment as if we're all a bunch of Romans in the Colosseum baying for blood.

Maybe some of the anti-National comments are bordering on the ridiculous, but then again, maybe they aren't. How many other races feature 40 horses racing over huge fences and four and a half miles? Is it really surprising that so many horses die and/or get injured in the race?

Furthermore, this is a senseless thread for another reason. Maybe you all had your heads where the sun doesn't shine but there was outrage on here about the deaths of those horses in Dubai - particularly at the decision to re-run the race after the initial incident.

Going back to the original point, the death rate in the Grand National is unacceptably high - much higher than any other race or at any other track. Why do so many people struggle with the notion that this bothers a huge number of people who follow the sport closely and are very knowledgeable about it? If a Gold Cup winner dying just four weeks after his finest hour doesn't stir a little emotion in you, you are clearly a very cold, hard-minded human being.

tomdeane,i dont like to see anyone die,be be animal or human,but death is a part of life.how many accidents on the roads kill people annualy??i hear of car accidents every day,but ive yet to hear anyone suggest we should ban cars,have you?

Totally missing the point though, isn't it?

You don't get in your car expecting to die. Some people have even been saying we should ban Cheltenham as more horses died there, but they are clearly missing the point too. There were a hell of a lot more runners and races at Cheltenham.

Does anyone realistically expect the National to be run without a horse dying? Therein lies the problem.

No we don't,but we get in our car knowing there's the possibility,but,here's the clever part,
on our roads,there's speed limits,as we all know,speed kills,maybe the BHA have never been informed of this.

True, but impossible to make the field go at a slower pace surely?

Part of the problem is this nonsensical idea that the National is the greatest race on Earth, worth more money than any other jumps race. Was thrilled to see such a great servant as Neptune Collonges win it, but the race itself is hugely overhyped and overfunded. 

Surely 40 runners is too many as well.

I know what your saying Tom but what makes the race special for me is the actual field size a race of say 26 runners would make it just another race and I think that would be very sad. For me  the National will always be one of my favourite races because its the only race I have memories of watching as a kid. Really sad we lost a couple of warriors today and hope we can find some way of making the race safer but reducing the field I hope is not one of them.