The Ban Ei (also: 'Banei') is a Japanese heavy draft breed that is famous for competing in horse-pulling races in Japan.

A legendary draft racehorse:
The Ban Ei was created in the early 20th century by crossing Percheron, Breton, and Belgian Heavy Draft (Brabant) horses. Today, it is accepted to cross any of these three breeds with Ban Ei horses.

Originally, the Ban Ei served for farm work and logging, but soon enough it became the prominent breed for "Ban Ei horse-pulling races" in Japan. This popular race requires the horses to pull an iron sled, which can weigh up to 1 ton, over a 200-meters long course, that features 2 small hills and a sandy slope on the way to the finish line.

Being bred to excel in Ban Ei Races, Ban Ei horses have a heavily wide and muscular build. While they can weigh over a ton, they still have a spectacular combination of strength and endurance, making them the most ideal horses for horse-pulling draft competitions.

Conformation:
Ban Ei horses have a large head, a short, muscular neck, a short back, a muscular croup, a broad chest, and thick legs. Their wide body is massively muscular and can weigh up to a ton.

The mane and tail can grow long and be wavy, and the legs have feathering which ranges from light to medium in thickness.

Performance metrics:
The following are the: range, average, (SD), and MOE of performance metrics of ordered Ban Ei horses in Horse Isle (not bred ones). In rare cases, horses might have metrics outside of the range. Breeders can produce horses that are beyond this range.

Speed: 13.2-14.4, 13.7 (0.3), 0.05.
Sprint: 33-49, 39 (3), 0.58.

Accel: 0.89-1.06, 0.97 (0.04), 0.01.
Decel: 1.12-1.26, 1.20 (0.03), 0.01.

Jump: 4.52-4.84, 4.68 (0.07), 0.01.
Pull: 4.24-5.50, 4.91 (0.3), 0.06.

Turning: 51.73-64.28, 57.90 (2.68), 0.52.
Reverse: 1.9-2.5, 2.2 (0.1), 0.03.

Stamina: 51.03-59.64, 55.44 (2.03), 0.4.
Reaction: 0.83-0.91, 0.87 (0.02), 0.00.

Coats & Height:
Colors: bay, brown, chestnut, black, grey, and, more rarely, silver-dapple.

Additionals: flaxen, mealy, sooty, dark mane & tail, grey mane & tail. The coat is usually solid, but in rare cases it can be tobiano or white-spotted sabino.

Markings: white markings often occur on the face, including blazes, but are less common on the legs.

Height: 14.1hh* to 17.2hh.
* most Ban Ei horses stand between 16.2 and 17.2hh, but some can be as short as 14.1hh.