The most popular breed in the United States, what horse was bred to excel at sprinting short distances, of a quarter mile or less, and has been clocked at speeds up to 55 mph?
American Quarter Horse American Quarter Horse The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name came from its ability to outdistance other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at speeds up to 55 mph (88.5 km/h). The American Quarter Horse is the most popular breed in the United States today, and the American Quarter Horse Association is the largest breed registry in the world, with almost 3 million living American Quarter Horses registered in 2014. The American Quarter Horse is well known both
Horse gait Horse, which in a short sprint of a quarter mile () or less has been clocked at speeds approaching . The Guinness Book of World Records lists a Thoroughbred as having averaged over a two-furlong () distance in 2008. Like a canter, the horse will strike off with its non-leading hind foot; but the second stage of the canter becomes, in the gallop, the second and third stages because the inside hind foot hits the ground a split second before the outside front foot. Then both gaits end with the striking off of the leading leg, followed by a moment