In The Sulky Forum

The simple explanation of what baking soda does: neutralizes lactic acid. Lactic acid causes muscles to tie up or cramp, making the horse stop badly the last quarter.

Baking soda does not enhance a horse's speed per se, it allows the horse to not cramp or tie up, which allows it to go faster.

Did Bob Belcher make Walter Case look good too? Bob Belcher's horses did not race the same for anyone else as they did for Walter Case.

What people fail to conceptualize is that getting the best driver wins a whole lot of races, simply because the best driver does not get parked, boxed in, run down to the half, etc. The best driver gets what he wants in most races...because they simply do not want to screw with the big dog.

Discussing this any further is futile ...Let me just say that every one of the top ten drivers are human and make occasional mistakes, but they all know what they need to do when they have the best horse...stay out of trouble.

Sometimes a driver gets along a little better with a horse than another...Sometimes a driver can win a race with a superior steer when things are equal. But in most occasions (90%), that is just not the case. Top drivers get parked and their charge still goes right through the wire at the finish line. They get run down to the half and still have another move in them. They get boxed in and go up the lightning lane to win with a .26 final quarter.

Even Walter Case a.k.a. "God" did not look very good when he took on the best and had no stock.

huh ?