I like the fact the runners are around for longer in the jumps scene and you get more equine characters. Horses like Lough Derg are perfect examples – not a winning machine but you know the animal has heart and will invariably give maximum effort.
What about Quito on the flat has run over 100 races, over 9 years, with 20 wins, god knows how many places, and was beaten 1/4 of a length in a group1? Most horses short of top class dont get retired at the end of the season on the flat, much like lough derg et al on the jumps.