Measuring Chuckwagon Racehorse Movement Asymmetry Before and After Racing Using Wearable GNSS-IMUs: A Preliminary Study

In Chuckwagon racing, teams of four Thoroughbred horses pull wagons at high speeds. Movement symmetry is a key locomotion metric linked to force production, racing direction, and lameness. Racehorse symmetry in trot during on-track warmups and cooldowns was assessed. Over 10 days, 60 horses (average 8 per day) were fitted with Global Navigation Satellite Systems combined with Inertial Measurement Unit (GNSS-IMU) sensors. Weight-bearing asymmetry was quantified using the minimum difference (MnD) in vertical trunk displacement between diagonal limb pairs, and push-off asymmetry was quantified using the upwards difference (UpD). Absolute (mm) and normalized (% ROM) asymmetries were compared between warmups and cooldowns using linear mixed models. Mean MnD was similar between warmup (6.2 mm; 17.6%) and cooldown (6.4 mm, 19.7%). Mean UpD increased from warmup (11.3 mm, 31.7%) to cooldown (12.8 mm, 38.0%), with UpD% significantly higher in cooldown (p = 0.046). No other differences were significant (all p ≥ 0.202). One horse sustained a catastrophic musculoskeletal (MSK) injury. This horse’s UpD ranged from 3.3–29.7 mm (11.4–69.3%) during warmups and 24.3–25.5 mm (47.8–76.4%) during cooldowns. Push-off asymmetry may increase after Chuckwagon racing. The injured horse showed high asymmetries, but high values also occurred in uninjured horses. Further work needs to establish normal asymmetry ranges in Chuckwagon racing and identify patterns associated with MSK injuries.