Horse Racing Tradition Has Influenced the Vernacular
by Candice C. Dunnigan

Although this year's Preakness race ended in disaster for the Kentucky Derby favorite Barbaro, there is still a third jewel up for grabs in the Triple Crown. The upcoming Belmont in New York State is anyone's guess. But, no matter, these three horse races hold the interest of many Americans. Of all the scores of equine competitions, from the local 4-H shows to the international Olympics, it is the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont that win hands down in notoriety and interest with the general public.

Recently I received a letter from a good Island friend, who included in the note an interesting editorial by Nathan Bierma, a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. Mr. Bierma had written a piece about how horse racing had once dominated our world of sports and sporting life. Commonplace terms and phrases are still used today, all of which had beginnings in and around a fourlegged animal that America as a nation drove, rode, betted on, and loved. Horses, why we were crazy about them. Racing was all over this nation, even here on Mackinac Island. It only takes a little digging to find reports of horse racing in the early Village of Mackinac. There was also betting and racing around by the soldiers at the Fort. The cottagers held races in the summer. Grand Hotel included horse racing in its Field Days, and there was well documented harness racing down Main Street in the 1930s.

It only seems appropriate to share some of Mr. Bierma's findings, and to add one or two of my own, prior to the last race of the 2006 Triple Crown. The phrases have an uncanny corollary to the political world as well.

DARK HORSE: A competitor of whom little is known. A Benjamin Disraeli quote from 1831: "A dark horse which had never been thought of rushed past the grandstand in sweeping triumph." Then again there is the other definition of a "dark horse" as a phony, "horses that regularly won races were darkened to conceal their identity and thus, increase the betting odds."

SHOO-IN: This can mean the most popular, the heavy favorite. It also is associated with a fixed race in which jockeys would hold back or "shoo" and urge ahead the predetermined winner. It can mean to allow the favorite horse to win easily without a fight. Eventually this was further distilled to mean a competitor, which expected to win, does, and succeeds legitimately.

FRONT RUNNER: A contestant who runs best in the lead, also the one who sets the pace, the leading candidate.

ALSO-RAN: The weak or forgettable competitor. A horse that "also ran" in a big race but left no mark. It did not win, place, or show, and is inconsequential.

HEDGE YOUR BET: A racing term that has several meanings. In some circles, such as the Oxford English dictionary, to "hedge your bet" means to secure against loss. By making transactions on the other side one can compensate for a possible loss on the first. Hedge means "protect" or to fence.

HANDS DOWN: Meaning to win with ease or little effort. In racing vernacular, "to win hands down" refers to the jockey dropping his hands that hold the reins, relaxing his hold on the horse, when the victory seems certain.

RUN ROUGHSHOD: This means to carry oneself in an aggressive manner. Rough-shod refers to the nails in a horse's hoof, that are not finished smoothed or clinched tight, holding the shoe. These can hold, but may also damage.

GET ONE'S GOAT: A personal favorite here, which means to deeply irritate. The theory is that the phrase comes about from the practice of putting goats in a stall with a racehorse for company, as the goat often has a calming, companion-like effect. Yes, we have a goat, and he did live with one of our horses that was an ex-racehorse. He was his buddy. It is purported that the stealing of said goat is a goal in order to disrupt the horse before the big race; this is the root of the phrase. In any event, "to get one's goat" means annoyance, frustration, anger, and oneupmanship.

JOCKEY: To maneuver for advantage quickly. To guide with skillful handling, and control. It can also mean to trick. Jockey comes by way of northern England, a diminutive of Jack, Jock, or John, common names for a stable hand who could also ride.

Candice Dunnigan is an active member of the American Equestrian Association, the Waterloo Hunt, and the Mackinac Island Horsemen's Association. Seasonally she resides at Easterly Cottage.