Dear delard-ga;
Thank you for allowing me an opportunity to answer your interesting question.
?If a Crocodile and Horse had a race over short distance (30m) which would win??
There are of course an abundance of arguments for both sides so it all
boils down to who is most credible, and that issue in itself is
subject to opinion. I for one tend to believe your side of the wager
so for the sake of your question I will provide you with data that
supports ?your? side of ?the bet? ? and that is: the horse would win:
It is claimed by a number of sources that a crocodiles can outrun a
horse in short distances. This is a KNOWN FACT. This seems like an
amazing tidbit of trivia doesn?t it? However it is important to
consider how short the ?short distance? is and to note that the
crocodile, which certainly has significant ?get up and go? with
alarming and often deadly speed, cannot, from a resting position,
attain the same initial burst of speed as that of a racehorse. His
center of gravity, weigh distribution and overall smaller dimensions
simply will not allow it. How do they do it then? Easy, they commonly
launch a running start from the water:
?Crocodiles have perfected their hunting techniques for around 200
million years and can swim under water at 30 km/h without a ripple on
the surface and then burst out and on a short distance can outrun a
horse.?
CROCODILE ATTACKS IN AUSTRALIA
http://www.amazingaustralia.com.au/animals/crocodile_attacks.htm
Clearly then, by this description, a crocodile must utilize the
element of surprise coupled with his waterborne environment (in which
he has phenomenal speed) in order to gain the type of forward thrust
necessary to exit the water, become land-borne (dry terrestrial) and
overtake a nearby running horse even at short distances. Even in this
case of course, the prey is not a trained racehorse, but a more
frequently wild beast of lesser health, training and stamina. This
?water launch?, or running start, if you will, is probably the basis
for the incredible claims made about crocodile speeds.
Hans Larsson, a Yale postdoctoral research fellow who found
?Supercroc? fossils (prehistoric crocodiles estimated as once having
living dimensions of 40 ft. in length and weighing 8 tons) in Niger in
1997 and 2000 as a member of a team led by University of Chicago
paleontologist Paul Sereno and sponsored by the National Geographic
Society, says that even these huge creatures would ?PROBABLY? have
been able to outrun ?A MAN?:
"Over a short distance, the supercroc probably could easily outrun a
person on land,"
YALE ALUMNI MAGAZINE
http://www.yalealumnimagazine.com/issues/01_12/l_v.html
Needless to say, if Yale scientists aren?t CERTAIN (i.e.: the
statement ?probably?) that even this undisputedly HUMONGOUS ancestor
of crocodiles could overtake A HUMAN at such a short distance, and the
issue is at the very least ?somewhat? questionable, it is a foregone
conclusion that it could not, in any stretch of the imagination,
overtake a trained RACEHORSE. Logically, it would seem that
supercroc?s significantly smaller and weaker descendants of today
would not be able to either.
Take a look at this land speed graphic. In a sense, it?s an excellent
depiction of who could theoretically beat (or perhaps eat) whom in the
bigger picture of things:
HOW THEY FARED
http://www.kleemanandmike.com/comics/howtheyfared.html
Now let me show you this from the Crocodilian Biology Database hosted
by the University of Florida?s FLORIDA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY. If
you can?t win your argument based on this source your opponent is
simply in denial:
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA - FLORIDA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
CROCODILIAN BIOLOGY DATABASE
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/herpetology/brittoncrocs/cbd-faq-q4.htm
?Running crocodiles evoke images of slavering reptiles chasing people
down for lunch, and there are some wild figures that are often quoted
- speeds over 40 mph are regularly quoted by some books, television
documentaries and enthusiastic tour-guides. Don't be misled!
Crocodiles have unique ways of getting around, but let's be realistic
and look at this properly.?
?A crocodile's greatest strength is not its endurance and stamina on
land, but it's ability to launch a surprise attack when you're least
expecting it. In other words, crocodiles cannot afford to give their
prey the chance to flee - fleeing prey (on land at least) is normally
dinner lost.?
And in pursuit of A HUMAN the article goes on to say:
?But how quickly can they run? Most crocodiles can achieve speeds of
around 12 to 14 kph [7.4 to 8.6 mph] for short periods, which is
somewhat slower than a fit human can run. Don't believe the hype - if
you're reasonably fit, you can definitely outrun a crocodile! Even
faster are galloping crocodiles, and Australian freshwater crocodiles
have been clocked at just over 17 kph [10.5 mph] over distances of
perhaps 20 to 30 metres before they begin to tire.?
Conclusion: If a reasonably fit human could outrun a crocodile in 30
meters, a racehorse CERTAINLY could.
Finally, is it even necessary then to discuss a racehorse?s speed?
Probably not, but just to add insult in injury I will for the sake of
your bet:
A racehorse has a stride ratio of about 2.5 strides per second. It?s
stride length is about 6.5 to 7.5 meters [19.5 to 22.5 feet]. A
30-meter distance then could be traversed (with some distance to
spare) in roughly 5 seconds.
THE IMPROBABLE HORSE
http://www2.truman.edu/~capter/jins343/week2-3.pdf
Even at a gallop (which some crocodiles are briefly capable of) a
crocodile could not, on its best day, cover this distance so quickly.
Its much shorter stride length would not permit it even if its stride
ratio were the same as the horse.
?The American Quarter Horse rockets from starting gate to finish line
at speeds up to 55 mph, living up to its trademark as ?Americas
Fastest Athlete?
IOWA QUARTER HORSE RACING ASSOCIATION
http://www.iqhra.com/
What does this mean in terms of INITIAL burst of speed?
Cinematographer John Schwartzman, in preparation for the difficulties
shooting running horses for the movie ?Seabiscuit?, noted ?a
thoroughbred can accelerate from zero to 40 mph in three strides?.
SEABISCUIT: THE SUCCESS STORY OF A RACEHORSE
http://www.kodak.com/US/plugins/acrobat/en/motion/newsletters/inCamera/july2003/seabiscuit.pdf
Former jockey Chris McCaron, member of the Racing Hall of Fame, vice
president and general manager of Santa Anita Park, and consultant on
the movie confirmed this in a recent interview on Larry King Live!:
?A thoroughbred race horse goes from zero to 40 in three strides,
which his only about 20 feet. The average length of a regular stride
is about 21, 25 feet, but the first three strides are very quick. It's
a tremendous feeling of power, and it's awesome.?
GARY STEVENS ? KEEP INFORMED
http://www.garystevens.com/keep-informed-lking-live.html
Even this very conservative estimate of zero to 40 mph in SIX STRIDES
places the attained speed at only 2.5 seconds.
A DAY AWAY: RACING MUSEUM
http://www.pressrepublican.com/travel/adayaway/010701rl.htm
At any rate let?s do some math:
30 meters is roughly 90 feet.
A horse travels 21-25 feet per stride (let?s say 21 feet just to give
your wager buddy the leading edge.
It would take 4.28 strides (let?s say 5 just to give your wager buddy
every benefit of the doubt) to cover 30 meters.
The SLOWEST estimate we have is that a horse takes six strides in 2.5
seconds. Five strides (or the number of strides necessary to cover 90
feet) then would take him only 2 seconds.
Based on the University of Florida?s top land speed estimate of a
crocodile (10.5 mph) covering a short distance of 30 meters, a horse
is a far greater athlete and more than compatible of outrunning a
crocodile in a 30-meter race. In fact, even if the crocodile could run
25-30 mph (which it simply cannot over this distance) the horse would
still win hooves down ? just like you did!
Now, I cannot guarantee you that you will win the bet based on what is
evident here, because winning means one party must concede to defeat.
In the best-case scenario, armed with this information, you will win
the wager. In the worst-case scenario, at the very least, you will
learn that your opponent is too hard-headed to risk entering into
another wager with in the future and that alone is worth the money
invested here, isn?t it?
Below you will find that I have carefully defined my search strategy
for you in the event that you need to search for more information. By
following the same type of searches that I did you may be able to
enhance the research I have provided even further. I hope you find
that my research exceeds your expectations. If you have any questions
about my research please post a clarification request prior to rating
the answer. Otherwise, I welcome your rating and your final comments
and I look forward to working with you again in the near future. Thank
you for bringing your question to us.
Best regards;
Tutuzdad ? Google Answers Researcher
INFORMATION SOURCES
SPEED SCALE OVERVIEW
http://fudge.phoenyx.net/guide/bin/view/Guide/SpeedScaleOverview?skin=print
CROCODILE ATTACKS IN AUSTRALIA
http://www.amazingaustralia.com.au/animals/crocodile_attacks.htm
YALE ALUMNI MAGAZINE
http://www.yalealumnimagazine.com/issues/01_12/l_v.html
HOW THEY FARED
http://www.kleemanandmike.com/comics/howtheyfared.html
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA - FLORIDA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
CROCODILIAN BIOLOGY DATABASE
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/herpetology/brittoncrocs/cbd-faq-q4.htm
THE IMPROBABLE HORSE
http://www2.truman.edu/~capter/jins343/week2-3.pdf
IOWA QUARTER HORSE RACING ASSOCIATION
http://www.iqhra.com/
SEABISCUIT: THE SUCCESS STORY OF A RACEHORSE
http://www.kodak.com/US/plugins/acrobat/en/motion/newsletters/inCamera/july2003/seabiscuit.pdf
GARY STEVENS ? KEEP INFORMED
http://www.garystevens.com/keep-informed-lking-live.html
A DAY AWAY: RACING MUSEUM
http://www.pressrepublican.com/travel/adayaway/010701rl.htm
SEARCH STRATEGY
SEARCH ENGINES USED:
Google ://www.google.com
SEARCH TERMS USED:
Crocodile
Horse
Racehorse
Thoroughbred
Land speed
Locomotion
Burst of speed
Initial speed
Distance
Calculate speed |
