Racing: New whips pushed forward by Jockey Club

Compulsory use of shock-absorbing whips may have come a step closer.

There has been a change to the UK's Jockey Club instruction on whip specifications.

Instruction H8 has been amended to include the sentence "it is recommended that whips have shock absorbing characteristics".

The recommendation of these whips may be the first step before it is made mandatory for jockeys to carry them to ensure horses are not marked.

Leading jump jockeys are due to try out a new whip, modified from the Aircush whip which was launched in 1999, within the next couple of weeks.

The move has been brought in without any publicity, but Jockey Club spokesman John Maxse said: "This is the recognition of the improvements in design of whips which are coming on the market and we would like to see jockeys using them.

"We are recommending these whips rather than anything else because they are not yet widely available and they have not yet been subjected to prolonged use on the racecourse.

"We are very encouraged by the design and the progress that has been made and at some later point the instruction may change."

David Muir, the RSPCA equine consultant, is encouraged by the Jockey Club move and the new whip.

He said: "This is the first time that the Jockey Club has used the term shock absorbing and it means that jockeys will use new technology whips which are designed not to injure.

"The whip developed by Robert Patton is a truly shock absorbing whip. He already makes whips which a vast number of jockeys use.

"I have problems with the word encouragement in racing which in my view should mean promoting the horse forward by threat rather the application of physical pain.

"The new technology whips encompass that. The horse still feels the whip but he is extremely unlikely to suffer cuts and jockeys still have an item of safety."