>> It appears to me that the \"Cheater Apologists\" are mistaking the Scientific Method with a Criminal Process Presumption of Innocence. They are two vastly >> different concepts. There is no Presumption of Innocence from observations under the Scientific Method.
Neither is there a presumption of guilt.
> Construct a Hypothesis: \"Plech, Dutrow, Lake and
> others are using illegal performance enhancing
> substances including Carbonates\".
Sorry, Clown. The above isn\'t scientific method. The correct hypothesis would be, \"There is no correlation between TCO2 levels and performance\".
If the hypothesis is disproved, by finding statistically significant associations between TCO2 levels and performance, you\'ve found what you are looking for.
Of course, the answer to that question has already been found. Certain bicarbonate levels help delay the onset of muscle fatigue, and helps decrease muscle soreness the day after hard works. That is why certain doses of bicarbonates are given in equine sports medicine (and to dogs, and to humans).
That\'s why good trainers add a bit (there are many products on the market), or feed high-performance racehorse feeds that contain some basic substances with buffering capacity. Many trainers feed additives and supplements that contains alkalynizing agents, unrealized by the trainer (which can push a horse over legal threshold).
Unfortunately, there have also been many documented instances over the years of trainers killing horses, or causing dehydration, colic, electrolyte imbalance, etc., by giving too much.
It\'s known that TCO2 levels can vary widely among horses, and even an individual horse can have vastly varying levels, depending on factors such as sex, age, time of day, water intake, climate, ambient temperature, exercise, pre-race excitement and presence of respiratory disease.
There is also significant risk of laboratory error involved in the drawing, storing, and shipping of drawn blood.
Thus we have the current threshold levels of TCO2 established that are deemed \"legal\" (and thus could be naturally occuring, or due to good management common in the racehorse industry), and those that are considered \"illegal\".
An additional problem is that when one measures TCO2, there is an error rate of +/- 1.2 mmol/L to 1.4 mmol/L (so levels are reported as a \"range\").
The question of interest, to the gambling public, becomes one of degree.
However, that is obviously complicated by all of the above concerns. If a certain trainers horses are always coming back at roughly 33-34 mmol/L (below the \"illegal\" threshold), and another trainer\'s horses are always coming back in the area of 32-33 mmol/L - is that \"cheating\", or is trainer A simply better educated on optimal care of the equine athlete? And his horses run consistently better than trainer B\'s?
>> Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion: Which horses are running unusally fast what is their carbonate level, and who is their conditioner?
Bicarbonate loading has not been found to increase speed. It\'s gross action is to delay the onset of muscle fatigue. Horses (humans, dogs) can run slightly longer, and hold their speed a little longer - but it does not increase their natural turn of foot.
>>> Communicate Your Results: Right here baby and endure questions from those that hold only opinions and wouldn\'t know science if it bit them in the buttocks that hold their brains. CtC
Feel free to post your scientific bona-fides or CV.
