Unlike human runners, who broke the four-minute mile in 1954 and they consistently recorded faster times ever since, horses in classic races such as the Kentucky Derby have had winning times with little improvement: Secretariat’s world-record-breaking Derby tine of 1:59 2/5, for example, was set in 1973 and remained unsurpassed more than a quarter of a century later.

a) they consistently recorded faster times ever since, horses in classic races such as the Kentucky Derby have had winning times with little improvement
b) they have consistently recorded faster times ever since, those of horses in classic races such as the Kentucky Derby have shown little improvement in winning times
c) have consistently recorded faster times ever since, horses in classic races such as the Kentucky Derby have shown little improvement in winning times
d) have consistently recorded faster times ever since, in those of classic races such as the Kentucky Derby, horses have had winning times with little improvement
e) consistently recorded faster times ever since, those of horses in classic races such as the Kentucky Derby have shown little improvement in winning times


OA is C, but lots of people pick D, however I pick E.

Pls explain in detail why pick C!!!

The source of this SC is from GWD, (GWD you can search on GOOGLE and find what it is, but from I Know it is Chinese copied GMAT stipulated test originating all the questions from previous GMAT actual tests.)

Firstly -
We need to compare human runners ( humans ) to horses here ( :D )

and not compare "human" to "those of horses"

Secondly,

Since "like" is not underlined, we need to use NOUN on either side.

those in horses -- is prepositional phrase and cannot be used to compare with "like"

"those of classic races" --> "those" is incorrect; there is no noun for which this pronoun can stand.
also, "unlike human runners" requires a direct comparison with the horses themselves. this comparison starts with "in...", so it's wrong.

“had winning times with little improvement” is unclear. this wording makes it seem as though the horses have been able to win the race, even though they (the horses) have not improved very much.



"those of classic races" --> "those" is incorrect; there is no noun for which this pronoun can stand.
also, "unlike human runners" requires a direct comparison with the horses themselves. this comparison starts with "those of...", so it's wrong.

a verb that is modified by "since" must be in the present perfect.

Hey Ron,

For a moment, could we just ignore the error that "those" does not have a proper antecedent and that "Unlike" requires a comparable noun.In answer choice (D)

d) have consistently recorded faster times ever since, in those of classic races such as the Kentucky Derby, horses have had winning times with little improvement


Would it be safe to adopt this rule:

" COMMA + Preposition" is always a modifier that ALWAYS modifies the preceding noun?
Regardless of the type of modifier " COMMA + Preposition" is.

X, on the box
X, in the box
X, around the box
etc... All modify X

Could we also say that "in those" in option (D) is illogically modifying "ever since"?

Thank you in advance Ron!! Your my hero dude!

Yes, “in those” is a problem in D. I would caution you though not to adopt a blanket rule about comma-preposition modifying the previous noun, well, mainly because it just isn’t true. Consider: Statistics have shown that, in the decade following World War II, many families had one or more children. An absurd example I know (although true).. :)

_________________
Tim Sanders
Manhattan GMAT Instructor