What Is A Steeplechase?

If you are familiar with horse racing at all, the chances are you have most likely heard the term ‘steeplechase’ come up in conversation.

This is one of the most well-known events in horse racing and generates much discussion among keen betters.

But you might be wondering, what actually is a steeplechase?

A steeplechase is a high-profile jump racing event that takes place on the Flat. It typically involves racehorses jumping over various hurdles or fences to prove their precision and strength abilities. Famous steeplechase events like the Grand National can garner vast prize funds due to their iconic nature.

This article will take a look at how the steeplechase works in the USA, why it is called a steeplechase, what breed of horses are usually competitors, and an example of a famous steeplechase event.

So, let’s not waste any time and get to answering these questions!

How does a steeplechase work?

This section will firstly outline in more detail how the steeplechase event works in North American steeplechase racing.

In the US there are 2 forms of steeplechases: hurdles and timber.

Hurdles races involve the horses jumping over the standard size steel fences that are roughly 52 inches in height along a course of around 2-3 miles in distance.

Other materials have been used in various courses across the US historically, such as natural pine fences on the Springdale Racecourse in South Carolina, or live hedges in Virginia.

Horses are trained to jump as close to their natural stride as possible throughout the hurdles events so as to maintain their speed as far as possible.

The second type of steeplechase involves timber jumping.

These are similar to hurdles, except they are solid wooden fences that can be as high as 5 ft tall!

Due to the height of these timber fences, the distance run by horses is much longer in these events (around 4 miles).

Timber racing requires a lot more precision, strength and technique than the hurdles events, and can be considered more dangerous too.

Why is it called a steeplechase?

‘Steeplechase’ is an unusual-sounding name for a race, so you might be wondering where the name comes from.

The answer dates back to the 18^th century in England.

The first steeplechase was a cross-country event between just two men and their horses, running a distance of around 4 miles.

The first recorded steeplechase in a prepared 1-mile field took place in 1794 and used 5ft bars that were dispersed every quarter of a mile.

The name is thought to derive from the use of church steeples as the start and end points of the races in the 18^th century.

This is because church steeples were highly visible to the riders from afar – especially on cross country events – and were a good reference points to calculate distance.

Interestingly, there is also an athletics event called the steeplechase which was inspired by the horse-racing event and also involves athletes jumping hurdles.

What breed are steeplechase horses?

Thoroughbred horses are the most popular breed of steeplechase horses.

This is because horses have to be both extremely fast and agile to compete in the steeplechase events.

Indeed, thoroughbreds are widely considered the most athletic breed of horses and as a result most famous steeplechase horses have historically been thoroughbreds.

Some well-known thoroughbreds throughout history include Seabiscuit (active 1935-1940) and Secretariat (1973).

As such, thoroughbreds are highly controlled when it comes to breeding, with the aim to preserve and exceed their athletic genetics over time.

Bloodstock can thus be very expensive when it comes to thoroughbreds.

What is the most famous steeplechase event?

Having discussed the steeplechase event in more detail in the previous sections, at this point, you might be wondering what the most famous steeplechase event is?

The answer to this question is the Grand National even which takes place in the English city of Liverpool.

This event is world-famous and has run every single year since 1836 at the iconic Aintree Racecourse.

In order to demonstrate just how famous this event is, in 2014 the official prize fund for winners of the steeplechase in the Grand National was £1 million, or around $1.3 million USD.

In the United States, the Virginia Gold Cup is one of the oldest and perhaps best-known steeplechase events as it began in 1922.

However, the Grand National remains the biggest event.

In conclusion, this article has discussed the concept of the steeplechase within horseracing.

It was found that the steeplechase event is a jump race involving the use of hurdles and fences to test both a horse’s speed and agility.

In the US, hurdles and timber make up the two main types of steeplechase events, with timber races being the more challenging and dangerous of the two categories.

We also discovered that the name originates in 18^th Century England when the initial steeplechases quite literally used church steeples as their point of reference to gauge the distance.

It was also found that thoroughbreds are the most common type of horse breed used in steeplechases.

This is due to their unmatched athleticism, and this is why the most historically well-known, high-profile horses tend to be thoroughbreds.

Finally, we discussed the most famous steeplechase events and found that this was the Grand National which takes place in Liverpool, UK and has been ongoing annually since 1836!

I hope this article has been useful in helping you to gather some insight into the steeplechase event and any other questions you might have surrounding it!