The Ban-ei is not really a specific breed of horse, rather it is a draft horse that is used in Ban-ei racing in Japan. There are actually three different "types" of Ban-ei horse depending on the draft breeds used in the breeding program. The there types of Ban-ei horses are the Percherons, Bretons, and Belgian.
The sport of Ban-ei Racing is very localized with Hokkaido, Japan being the center of the racing circuit. Both speed and strength is required for the draft horses to pull sled and drivers down a 200 meter straight track that has two large humps in each lane.
The sport of Ban-ei Racing is slowly decreasing in popularity and the number of Ban-ei tracks and races per year continues to decrease. Many animal rights groups and humane animal treatment organizations in Japan have been very vocal about banning the sport as they believe it is cruel to the horses.
Originally Ban-ei racing was not formal, rather it was a agricultural type competition where farmers could show and highlight the strength of their draft horses against neighbors and other farmers in the area. With commercialization of the sport there is now gambling and betting on the outcome of the races and horses and now bred and trained exclusively for Ban-ei racing, rather than for general agricultural work.
The heavy metal sled that the Ban-ei horses pull is known as a Sori, and they are made exclusively for the Ban-ei race. The driver stands directly on the sled and the driver's weight is taken into consideration to ensure all horses are pulling the same weight on the track.
The Ban-ei race requires skill and knowledge of the horse's abilities rather than just sheer strength and speed. The drivers will often stop the horses and allow them to gain their breath or gather their strength just before the humps. Typically these horses will only walk during the race with a vary slow trot occasionally seen when the track is muddy and the sleds are easier to move.
Since November 1946 the Ban-ei horses as well as the race management has been under public control. In 1953 the city of Hokkaida took over the management of the breeding and training center as well as of the race track facilities. This was done to ensure the horses were properly cared for and adequate food and vet care was provided to the animals.
There are over 10,000 employed directly or indirectly in Hokkaida due to the Ban-ei racing industry. Many people work at the tracks and are only employed on racing days, but others work at the training centers and even in the stables where these massive horses are kept.
In 2005 the award winning Ban-ei horse was Super Pegasus, who earned over 15,633,000 YEN in that year alone.
The sleds or Sori that the Ban-ei horses pull weigh at least 1000 pounds but can be up to a ton, depending on the type of race that the horse is competing.
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