114 THE RACING WORLD 



tvveen the horses on your left. What will you 

 do ? Rapidity of decision is one of the things 

 a jockey wants. The boy on the rails does 

 seem to be almost making room, but whilst you 

 wait for him to make a little more something 

 else comes up on your left — his jockey has a 

 clear course, and so can go faster than you can. 

 This new-comer does not keep straight — horses 

 hang when they are tired — forces the others to 

 close up, and shuts the gap you could have got 

 through. The leader on the rails meantime, 

 instead of bearing to the left, bears to the right 

 again, there is no room, and you are past the 

 post, beaten, on a horse that would have won 

 with ease if you had not been hampered. Perhaps 

 you decide to pull out and come round, find 

 that one of the others has a little more in him 

 than you had supposed and gets the best of you, 

 and you notice that the leader bearing to the left, 

 hanging from distress it may be, would have 

 given you room on the rails if you had waited 

 a second more. Steadying your horse to come 

 round has just lost you the race. This is the 

 sort of puzzle that constantly occurs in race- 

 riding, and you are lucky if you do the right 

 thing. 



You necessarily want to know what the other 



