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Horses may be described as winning by several lengths, as in the notable example of Secretariat, who won the 1973 Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths. In 2013, the New York Racing Association placed a blue-and-white checkered pole at Belmont Park to mark that winning margin; using Equibase's official measurement of a length—8 feet 2 inches (2.49 m ...
Thus, a horse described as "15.2 h" is 15 hands plus 2 inches, for a total of 62 inches (157.5 cm) in height. [24] The size of horses varies by breed, but also is influenced by nutrition. Light-riding horses usually range in height from 14 to 16 hands (56 to 64 inches, 142 to 163 cm) and can weigh from 380 to 550 kilograms (840 to 1,210 lb). [25]
The hand is a non-SI unit of measurement of length standardized to 4 in (101.6 mm). It is used to measure the height of horses in many English-speaking countries, including Australia, [1] Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. [2] It was originally based on the breadth of a human hand.
Horses are used to measure distances in horse racing – a horse length (shortened to merely a length when the context makes it obvious) equals roughly 8 feet or 2.4 metres. Shorter distances are measured in fractions of a horse length; also common are measurements of a full or fraction of a head, a neck, or a nose. [10]
Between 1950 and 1959, only 25 horses were registered in the United States. However, numbers began to increase, and 121 horses were registered in the US by 1985. [11] A bay-coloured Shire, showing Clydesdale influence in colour and markings. The National Shire Horse Spring Show is held annually and is the largest Shire show in Great Britain. [12]
Horses are sometimes measured in hands – one hand is 4 inches (10.2 cm). Horse heights are extremely variable, from small pony breeds to large draft breeds. The height at the withers of an average thoroughbred is 163 centimetres (16.0 hands; 5 ft 4 in), and ponies are up to 147 centimetres (14.2 hands; 4 ft 10 in).
Furthermore, some horse breeds may have individuals who mature under that height but are still called horses and are allowed to compete as horses. In Australia, horses that measure from 14 to 15 hands (142 to 152 cm; 56 to 60 inches) are known as a "galloway", and ponies in Australia measure under 14 hands (56 inches, 142 cm). [3]
Height: 14.3 to 17 hands (59 to 68 ... In the running walk, the horse's rear feet overstep the prints of its front feet by 6 to 18 inches (15 to 46 centimetres), with ...