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Born
to Run- Idaho Gem, the First Cloned Mule
http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/05_03/mule.shtml
Mule
Racing?
Those
who follow the Triple Crown races every spring may not have noticed that
mule racing is taking off in many western states. "California is the real
mule racing hotbed," says Don Jacklin, president of the American Mule Racing
Association. "Fans just love it."
Approximately
70 mules race on the circuit. Mules tend to be better sprinters than distance
runners. They can run faster than Arabians and appaloosas, but not as fast
as quarterhorses and thoroughbreds.
A typical
day at the mule races starts with two or three races each run by quarterhorses
and thoroughbreds, and a mixed breed race. The same jockeys that ride horses
ride mules. Because there are so few competitors, there is usually only
one mule race, and often it is the featured race at the end of the day.
But
all that could all change with the cloning of Idaho Gem. He is a genetic
brother of Taz, a world champion three-year-old and the circuit's runner-up
for the last three years. The current world champion mule racer is Black
Ruby, a female mule.
"The
best racing mules are females," says Jacklin. "Everyone wants Black Ruby."
Maybe
she should be cloned. |