Dog racing was originally an extension of hare coursing.[25] Whippets began to be bred to race in the mid-nineteenth century.[2][3] The first form of the sport was a rudimentary form of coursing known as 'ragging', and dogs who participated were said to be 'trained to the rag'.[15] Dogs were kept on a leash by a person known as a slip, who was frequently also the race judge.[15] The slip would release the dogs from their collars at the same time, and they would race towards their owners, who were standing at the opposite end of the track waving towels.[15][25]