Doug Kerr
Well-known member
Ruidoso Downs is a charming racecourse located in the Sierra Blanca Mountains of southern New Mexico, at an elevation of about 6900 ft MSL. It is named after Ruidoso (ree-do'-so, to use the Spanish pronunciation), a nearby town of about 8000 population, named in turn after Rio Ruidoso (noisy river), a small but aptly-named creek that runs rapidly through the town in a narrow rocky bed.
Both thoroughbred and quarter horse races are run at Ruidoso Downs. Quarter horses are horses bred for great speed over short distances, for example one-quarter mile, hence the name. The breed is derived from the working horses used in the western U.S.
Ruidoso Downs is unusual in that it has both a 7-furlong (7/8 mile) oval for thoroughbred races and a 550-yard straightaway for quarter horse races. (A quarter mile is 440 yards, but races for quarter horses are of varying length, often a bit greater or less than a quarter mile.)
At Ruidoso Downs, on a given day's program there will be both thoroughbred and quarter horse races, and often (as today) a "mixed" race, in which both thoroughbreds and quarter horses compete, running on the oval at distances of often about one-half mile.
The track is about a one hour drive from Alamogordo, and is a popular site for adventures of Carla's chapter of The Red Hat Society (one held just today, as a matter of fact).
Here we see an unusual 1-2-3 finish for one of the quarter horse races:
Carla C. Kerr: The 1-2-3 finish
Canon Powershot G16
ISO 160, f/2.5, 1/1000 s
The 2 horse is about 2/3 length over the finish line.
As you can see from the exposure metadata, the track benefited from New Mexico's legendary sunshine (this was already at 4:40 pm MDT).
Here we see a classical shot of the pack nearing the finish line in a earlier quarter horse race:
Carla C. Kerr: The home stretch
Canon Powershot G16
ISO 80, f/3.2, 1/2000 s
Its not only at Ascot or Churchill Downs that we see fine ladies in fabulous hats.
This was Carla's first outing with the chapter since her birthday, so it became a celebration of that.
Best regards,
Doug
Both thoroughbred and quarter horse races are run at Ruidoso Downs. Quarter horses are horses bred for great speed over short distances, for example one-quarter mile, hence the name. The breed is derived from the working horses used in the western U.S.
Ruidoso Downs is unusual in that it has both a 7-furlong (7/8 mile) oval for thoroughbred races and a 550-yard straightaway for quarter horse races. (A quarter mile is 440 yards, but races for quarter horses are of varying length, often a bit greater or less than a quarter mile.)
At Ruidoso Downs, on a given day's program there will be both thoroughbred and quarter horse races, and often (as today) a "mixed" race, in which both thoroughbreds and quarter horses compete, running on the oval at distances of often about one-half mile.
The track is about a one hour drive from Alamogordo, and is a popular site for adventures of Carla's chapter of The Red Hat Society (one held just today, as a matter of fact).
Here we see an unusual 1-2-3 finish for one of the quarter horse races:
Carla C. Kerr: The 1-2-3 finish
Canon Powershot G16
ISO 160, f/2.5, 1/1000 s
The 2 horse is about 2/3 length over the finish line.
As you can see from the exposure metadata, the track benefited from New Mexico's legendary sunshine (this was already at 4:40 pm MDT).
Here we see a classical shot of the pack nearing the finish line in a earlier quarter horse race:
Carla C. Kerr: The home stretch
Canon Powershot G16
ISO 80, f/3.2, 1/2000 s
Its not only at Ascot or Churchill Downs that we see fine ladies in fabulous hats.
This was Carla's first outing with the chapter since her birthday, so it became a celebration of that.
Best regards,
Doug
