Horses running drug-free

<p>A saga fueled by the death of a racehorse, the admission of a trainer and a congressional hearing has intensified the debate over anabolic steroids in horse racing.</p><p>And in a fragmented sport with no governing body -- 12 of 38 racing states have banned steroids -- California horse racing officials believe they are now on the right side of the issue.</p><p>The California Horse Racing Board began steroid testing July 1. Prior to the move, the four most commonly used steroids were legal and classified as therapeutic drugs. Trainers whose horses tested positive for other steroids were subject to fines.</p><p>The state's new regulations ban most steroids and beginning in September will subject offenders to 30-day suspensions, disqualifications and redistribution of purses.</p><p>Four steroids -- testosterone, boldenone, nandrolone and stanozolol -- will be legal at certain levels because they are produced naturally in horses or have therapeutic value. Exceeding those levels will trigger penalties.</p><p>Supporters of the no-tolerance stance believe it will help protect overworked racehorses, increase much-needed transparency in the sport and level playing fields that are being ruled by the most chemically enhanced.</p><p>The United States is the only major racing country to allow steroids.</p><p>"You look at horses in Europe, Australia and Japan and they are doing just fine," said Tom Bachman of Petaluma, vice president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California. "You have to ask: Why are we doing this?"</p><p>In contrast, some critics have blasted the ban as a knee-jerk, public-relations move designed to appease those who believe the effects of steroid use in humans and equines are closely related.</p><p>"It has to be the most overstated, most misunderstood thing I've ever heard of in my whole life," said Missouri-based owner Bob Cox, whose California horses have included Our Mango, winner of the 2004 California Cup Distaff.</p><p>The California Horse Racing Board penalties will take full effect once they are reviewed by the state Office of Administrative Law, which is expected in September, a month before the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Park.</p><p>In July, trainers whose horses test positive began receiving unofficial notices. Beginning Friday, the ninth of 12 days of horse racing at the Sonoma County Fair, offenders will be be given warnings that will appear in their state CHRB files.</p><p>In the first 10 days of testing this month, 27 of 347 horses -- 7.8 percent -- tested positive.</p><p>CHRB chairman Richard Shapiro said the banning of steroids in the state has been discussed for years. But the issue entered the national consciousness after the death of filly Eight Belles at the Kentucky Derby and the revelation by trainer Rick Dutrow that his horse, Big Brown, the Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, was given the anabolic steroid Winstrol, the brand name for stanozolol, 18 days before the Derby.</p><p>Despite speculation, an autopsy on Eight Belles revealed no trace of steroids, but her death reignited the debate on horse safety. Eight days after her death, the Jockey Club created a safety panel. Five weeks later, a congressional subcommittee blasted the industry in a hearing titled "Breeding, Drugs and Breakdowns: The State of Thoroughbred Racing and the Welfare of the Thoroughbred Racehorse."</p><p>The hearing was held less than two weeks after Big Brown, the heavy favorite, finished last at the Belmont Stakes, fueling speculation that his past dominance was driven by Winstrol, which he was no longer being given.</p><p>Dr. Dick Mansmann, the director of the equine health program at North Carolina State University, said research has not determined if anabolic steroids produce faster racehorses. But he supports a ban of steroids in the sport, which has been battered in the court of public opinion after recent high-profile deaths.</p><p>"In thinking about the American public's feeling about steroids, trying to explain some medical research nuance about steroids in horses is probably not going to hold up," Mansmann said. "Certainly, perception is a pretty big part of the deal, and we don't have enough research to document this stuff. Until research is done and can be presented to the American public, it's probably best to eliminate steroids."</p><p>Dr. Rick Arthur, the CHRB equine medical director, offered a similar assessment. "We're eliminating the question by eliminating anabolic steroids," he said.</p><p>But such a stance makes little sense to trainers who say they have been treating their horses effectively and safely with steroids for decades.</p><p>Santa Rosa trainer Steve Specht has routinely given his horses Winstrol and boldenone during his 39-year career. Specht said he's never given steroids to a colt, but has given them to geldings -- which lose their natural source of steroids when castrated -- and other lethargic horses that aren't eating well. He also uses steroids to help horses recover after races.</p><p>He said trainers are in a predicament. They are pressured by racing secretaries to run their horses and fill races. But the new regulations will increase a Thoroughbred's time off between starts.</p><p>The United States, as opposed to countries in Europe and South America, has a year-long racing calendar.</p><p>"The whole thing basically started with the Eight Belles deal at the Kentucky Derby, which is a bunch of (baloney)," Specht said. "Then these stewards, the racing commission, everybody is overreacting to make sure the public is thinking 'Hey, we're really policing this.' So they've gone overboard with their rules and regulations."</p><p>Richard Lewis, the director of racing at the Sonoma County Fair, said he administered steroids in moderation in his 30-year career as a trainer in Northern California.</p><p>He recognizes their benefit, but also understands the potential for abuse.</p><p>"For the betterment of the sport, and the individual horses, it's probably better to ban them completely and let the trainers go back to the old-fashioned way of training," Lewis said. "Resting their horse. Spacing out races. Not training as hard."</p><p>Bachman, who owns 20 racehorses, agrees. He said steroids allow horses to race more and train harder when they should be resting. The result, particularly in a country with a nonstop racing season, is a gradual decline in horses that never get adequate time off and whose injuries are masked by chemical means.</p><p>Some numbers suggest that it has created a less-durable breed. In 1960, horses made an average of 11.3 starts. Last year, they made 6.3.</p><p>"We're weakening the breed," Bachman said. "We've allowed sires to be successful by racing on drugs, and we have these horses that have genetic flaws that are being bypassed by drugs. They become incredibly successful, and they reproduce that genetic flaw in the next generation."</p><p>Bachman said banning steroids is a start, but more must be done.</p><p>A shortening of the racing calendar would be another positive step for the sport's long-term future, even if it might initially cut into tracks' bottom lines.</p><p>Such an overhaul might seem radical, but those in the horse racing industry can accept change, if Specht is any indication. Less than a month into California's steroid-free world, he's adjusting just fine.</p><p>And so are his horses.</p><p>"I haven't given my horses any steroids since this thing came out," Specht said. "I don't really see that big a difference, to tell you the truth. If you take care of your horse and train them right, they're going to win races."</p><p>You can reach Staff Writer Eric Branch at 521-5268 or eric.branch@pressdemocrat.com.</p>