Race of the Decade, #7 - 2001 Meadowlands Pace

[PlaYah1979]

they whip the horse...But they usally aim for the saddle cloth or the bike shaft

[Ouellette1978]

They don't whip the horse, they whip the sulky shaft which makes noise, which makes some horses want to go faster!!!

[tabarnak02]

C'mon ! Not all the time. Sometine it's so flagrant.

[bgardiner2000]

@Ouellette1978 Are you serious. That's hilarious...

[FinsFurNRacing]

I'm not questioning his driving ability. Obviously, he is a great driver and has proven it for years.

However, plenty other guys have been as good or better than Mike without using the whip like a criminal.

And this is coming from someone who didn't want to see much in the way of changes to the whipping regulations. I believe most of the drivers on the A-level circuits use the whip in a manner that is appropriate. Certainly can't argue that to anyone who watches Lachance though.

[lordpye]

@FinsFurNRacing I think it's what really hurt Mike later on in his racing career. He was ALWAYS gifted w/ trotters. His trotter resume speaks for itself. He was never nearly as proficient with pacers. U see how he lays into BD here and if u watch the 2000 BC Open Pace u can see how much he laid into Western Ideal. Just watching him makes it obvious he's an outright slasher on the pace and the young guys who are aggressive w/ tactics (not whip) AND have good hands have passed him.

[smaexpress]

I'm surprised Mike LaChance kept Better's Delight going as long as he did.

What a game effort! Most horses would have folded after having been used that hard for that long.

Evidently, ML was looking to bottom out the field at about the three quarters mark and it was a strategy that (perhaps) could have paid off.

Take nothing away from Mike LaChance. In fact, Mike may very well be among the Best Drivers EVER to hop aboard a sulky!

[FinsFurNRacing]

Lachance should have had his whip taken away that night. And nothing has changed.

[tabarnak02]

Agreed. That was too much