Jockeys(職業(yè)賽馬騎師) are the smallest athletes. They are rarely over five feet six, or 120 pounds. The lighter the weight on the horse, the faster it can go.
Riding fast horses on the track is tough on the small jockeys. The jockey doesn’t“sit”on the horse. He leans forward on his legs. The strain is on his thighs(大腿) and calf(小腿) muscles. As jockeys age, their legs“go”first. Jockeys also need arm strength. It’s a strain holding a 1000-pound racehorse.
On muddy days, jockeys get a pounding of mud. The mud comes flying off the hooves(蹄) of the horses in front. “It feels like someone is punching you all over,”says one rider.
And a jockey can be hurt. A jockey can have a leg jammed between two horses. Or it can get caught between horse and the rail. The worst accidents are from falls. A horse may fall on his rider. Or horses behind may trample if he hits the track. In one year about 240 riders are hurt badly. That’s one out of six jockeys.
But the jockeys are well-paid. A jockey keeps about ten percent of the money his horses win. Jacinto Vasquez, a five-foot-three comer, has ridden horses to $7,000,000 in wins in the last eight years, which means he does almost $100,000 a year.
Why do some jockeys do better than others? “It isn’t the way a boy sits on a horse or uses the reins or the whip,”says Conn McCreary. McCreary was a top jockey of the 1950’s. He rode two Kentucky Derby winners. “Most jockeys do this the same. It’s the ‘feel’ he has for the horses.”
“When you come right down to it, it just seems that horses run better for some riders,” McCreary says. “A real good jockey doesn’t lose with the best horse. And sometimes he’ll win with the second or third best.”
Many Latin-American riders, like Jacinto, seem to have the knack. “Maybe it’s because we grew up with horses,”says Jacinto. “Maybe it’s because we like to ride. There was a strike at Aqueduct last year. We, Jorge Velasquez, and Angel Cordero (two other top Latin riders) went to a park. We rented horses, and rode around the bridle path(騎馬專用道)!”

  1. 1.

    The main idea of Paragraph 1 is about ______________

    1. A.
      the size of jockeys
    2. B.
      the age of jockeys
    3. C.
      the size of the horse
    4. D.
      the speed of the horse
  2. 2.

    When a jockey is riding a fast horse, he doesn’t __________

    1. A.
      really sit on the horse
    2. B.
      lean forward on his legs
    3. C.
      use much arm strength
    4. D.
      get any mud on wet track
  3. 3.

    The most dangerous problem for a jockey arises __________________

    1. A.
      when his leg is jammed between two horses
    2. B.
      when his clothes are splashed over with mud
    3. C.
      when the jockey’s horse falls on the jockey
    4. D.
      when the jockey is not well paid
  4. 4.

    A really good jockey can often win a race ____________

    1. A.
      only when he rides on the best horse
    2. B.
      even when he rides the second best horse
    3. C.
      when he rides on a rented horse
    4. D.
      if the horse is just a Kentucky Herby
  5. 5.

    The underlined word “Knack” in the last paragraph probably means__________________

    1. A.
      special skill
    2. B.
      dangerous hobby
    3. C.
      riding culture
    4. D.
      excellent horses
AACBA
文章介紹了賽馬師的一些知識(shí),包括賽馬師的身材要求,職業(yè)技能和報(bào)酬,以及可能受到的傷害等。
1.段落大意題:從第一段的句子:Jockeys(職業(yè)賽馬騎師) are the smallest athletes. They are rarely over five feet six, or 120 pounds 可知第一段講的是職業(yè)賽模師的大小。選A
2.細(xì)節(jié)題:從第二段的句子:Riding fast horses on the track is tough on the small jockeys. The jockey doesn’t“sit”on the horse. 可知職業(yè)賽馬師不是坐在馬上的,選A
3.細(xì)節(jié)題:從第四段的句子:The worst accidents are from falls. A horse may fall on his rider. Or horses behind may trample if he hits the track.可知最糟糕的傷害是賽馬倒在賽馬師身上。選C
4.細(xì)節(jié)題:從倒數(shù)第二段的句子:“A real good jockey doesn’t lose with the best horse. And sometimes he’ll win with the second or third best.”可知最好的賽馬師騎二等的馬也可以贏,選B
5.猜詞題:從后面的句子:“Maybe it’s because we grew up with horses,”says Jacinto. “Maybe it’s because we like to ride. 可知他們從小在馬背上長(zhǎng)大,有特殊的才能,“Knack”相當(dāng)于special skill,選A
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