Chuckwagon champ Kelly Sutherland defends the sport after 3rd horse dies in Calgary Stampede
Driver Chad Harden fined $10K and banned from event for triggering collision Thursday that killed 1 horse
Legendary chuckwagon champion Kelly (The King) Sutherland is defending the integrity of his sport after another horse died during this year's Calgary Stampede.
Driver Chad Harden has been fined $10,000 and banned from competing in this Calgary Stampede for causing "preventable accidents and injuries" after a horse died in Thursday's chuckwagon race. It was the third horse death in this year's Rangeland Derby.
Harden unintentionally cut off another wagon, causing a collision in which a third chuckwagon driver's lead horse slammed into the guard rail, Stampede management said.
Sutherland says Harden's punishment was fair, but he still stands behind the controversial sport. Here is part of his conversation with As It Happens guest host Robyn Bresnahan.
What went through your mind when you saw that horse slam up against the railings there?
Although I have not talked to Chad Harden, the competitor I know well, I think that he did not realize that there was another competitor in the backend and did not see him in there.
That was just human error mistake that happened at competition at very high speeds.
The chair of the chuckwagon safety committee says this is the first time that the Stampede has disqualified a driver. Do you think that was the appropriate response?
I think so. Those events, I have not competed for two years, but in the years leading up, naturally we have meetings with the judges and the officials and they clearly made a point that people could be suspended, disqualified for preventable errors in racing — especially if it resulted in a catastrophe to either horses or humans.
- Warning: The following video may be disturbing for some viewers
Two other horses were actually killed earlier this week. What do we know about the deaths of those horses?
One would be what I would term to be natural. ... The second one was a stress fracture under competition, and that happens to human athletes as well as all the equine athletes. Whether they're jumping or whatever, that can happen.
Mr. Sutherland, you have had horses on your chuckwagon teams die in the past. What is that experience like as an owner?
One horse I bought [was] a three-year-old — who was, by the way, destined for slaughter out of a Vancouver racetrack — and they begged me to take him. And I did take him for $300 at the time. And he is currently retired at 26 in the pasture.
So that horse has been 23 years at my place. So, as you can understand, there's a tremendous bond with a driver competitor and his livestock. Because they are the athletes that can put you on stage, win you the money. They do exceptional amounts of things for you. So any time that there's a fatality, it's rocked the whole community.
So, in a way, do you feel like you're you're saving these horses from the slaughterhouse and giving them this alternative life?
Well, there's no doubt about it. Currently, there's 20,000 thoroughbreds thereabout in North America that are foaled each year. Half of them end up in the slaughterhouses. And the chuckwagon industry, currently there's about 100 drivers and they have about 30 horses — so there's about 3,000 chuckwagon horses at all times.
If you eradicate the sport, then there will be 3,000 more of these thoroughbreds that are destined for slaughter because there's absolutely no other alternative for these horses.
I don't think it's going to come as a surprise to you to know that there are people who think that the sport of chuckwagon racing is extremely cruel, and when you talk about horses with bone fractures, having heart attacks, getting crushed by other horses like we saw [Thursday] night, some people might say maybe the slaughterhouse is the lesser of two evils.
Well, have they been in a slaughterhouse? Because I have.
I think of the less than .001 per cent of horses that, so far, have been injured racing at the Calgary Stampede — now that is a risk that I don't know if you can get any lower than that.
What do you do? Do you slaughter 3,000 adult horses, or do you risk a horse that has that small percentage to have a fatality — either a heart attack naturally, or in competition?
I firmly believe that the horse wants to live like any living thing. And I think he wants to extend his life.
Since the Stampede started, there have been dozens of horse deaths, but there have also been drivers killed as well. Do you see a way to make this sport safer for both animals and humans?
I think there's always going to be risk for both.
I don't think it's any different than any other sporting event. I don't think it matters. There is a risk there, which is one of the reasons that it commands worldwide attendance — because there is a risk there. Just like NASCAR. Just like a lot of things.
I think the drivers know that there's a risk there and they're willing because they love the sport, they love the horses. They're willing — at least I was — to risk my life.
It's a sport that's based around the West. I mean, that's how the West was settled — with wagons and horses. And I don't think there's any question that the drivers understand the risk.
Written by Sheena Goodyear with files from CBC News. Produced by Chloe Shantz-Hilkes. Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.