What is Banei Horse Racing?
Banei Horse Racing is a kind of Japanese horse racing in which horses pull heavy sleds for 200 meters. During the races, they must go over two obstacles with sleds which are more than 500 kilograms. On the sleds, jockeys are balancing and instructing. Their techniques are so important because they have to think about how to overcome the obstacles. The race is finished when the sleds cross the finish line. You can buy betting tickets if you are over 20. Actually, Banei Horse Racing is held throughout the whole year only in Obihiro, Hokkaido. You can enjoy the races not only in the daytime but also at night there. To go to the racecourse, you can get the bus from Obihiro station and Obihiro airport.
Banei Horse Racing started in 1964. But it was a kind of entertainment for sellers in Hokkaido before it was admitted as horse racing. Clearing land in Hokkaido needed horses to carry heavy wood and cultivate large fields. People made use of these horses and enjoyed competing horse’s power, letting horses lead sledges and holding a festival to release people from daily work. Well, that race was held in Asahikawa and Iwamizawa for the first time. At first, it didn’t have detailed rules, so it was busy as people rapidly made them and told jockeys rules just before the race. As the time went by and Banei horse racing established a position as a horse racing, gradually the competition became popular.
Banei Horse Racing is different from normal horse racing. The large difference is whether to lead a sledge or not. Horses used in the race, normally called Bannba, are twice as large as thoroughbreds because of it. Also there are some obstacles like a hill on the fields and Bannba has to run over them. Maybe it’s because people enjoy watching Bannbas’ strong power.
Marimo, Yurieばんえい競馬とは？競馬のサラブレッドとの４つの違い｜イチのメモ帳 (ichinomemochou.com)
https://banei-keiba.or.jp/dl/pdf/ebook/10th_thebanba/p026_043.pdf#view=FitV
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