I’ve just finished reading the free electronic book called “The American Standardbred” and written by Professor Ron Groves. A very well-written book, I might add!
It was just what I needed: a complete review of American Standardbreds. I enjoed reading it especially about the history of horse racing in America.
America and Russia… For centuries we’ve had two very different selection programs because the purposes of breeding the Orlov trotter and the American Standardbred were different. In the book I ran across this quotation also: «… unlike the Americans, the European founders established neither guidelines for creating a distinct breed nor standards for their inclusion into stud books»…
Yes, it’s all true! That’s why the Orlov trotter could never approach the American Standardbred in speed. But I don’t think it needs to because in selection only by speed we can lose the Orlov itself as an elegant, and at the same time strong, powerful looking carriage horse.
I love Orlov trotters! There’s something magical about them. I’ve been in love with this horse breed for over 20 years and I can’t stand the thought of losing it. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the future of the Orlov Trotter is still unclear. I hope my research project will help (a little bit) to keep this beautiful breed from dying out.
P.S. I wonder how many mistakes in English I`ve made…
This entry was originally posted in my livejournal (LJ) but I don’t use LJ anymore so I’ve transferred all of my Livejournal content to this website.
