Steeplechase is form of jump racing with horses. The horses gallop the race, jumping obstacles along the way. The sort of jumps used are brush fences, which have a hard base and a brush placed on top, like this:

The horses are expected to jump through the fence in a flat jump, rather than a rounded arc. Often, and too often in my opinion, the horses trip on the brush, and fall over, resulting in a broken neck, when they die instantly, or some other bone is broken that can’t be fixed, and they have to be put down.

The ‘sport’ is banned in every state of Australia except for S.A. and Victoria. In Victoria, the racing industry is huge, and too many horses die every year. In 2009, the government said that the 2010 jump racing season would be the last, but they changed their minds, and banned it for only three years, which means that it was back again this year.

I don’t know if only horse maniacs like me believe in banning steeplechase, but if you do, please support me and try and get it banned for good in Victoria. You can help just by supporting me on this website, voting on the poll, commenting, and being an active reader.

Thank you!

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