A Thing Or Two About Horseracing

[dinglefritz]

As an addition to this post, I ** edited** it to include the following for those that like to wager on turf races. Turf horses will tend to run in a much tighter pattern from race to race than regular dirt horses. In other words, they tend to bounce much less frequently.

As an example, you will many times see dirt horses run numbers something like this, and I'm using a hypothetical here:

72, 74, 58, 62, 73, 70. In other words, except for high-quality horses, you find them being really in and out in terms of racetrack performance. Whereas the turf horses, and of course, there are a lot of different examples but might run something closer to:

72, 74, 74, 73, 75, 72. The very good turf trainers like Mandella, Brown, and Clement seem to have horses that once their ability is established, don't tend to vary that much from race to race.

It's a testament to the fact that running on grass is a natural surface for a horse with much less pounding on joints and typically a better recovery after a horse race. Of course, there will always be exceptions.

Typically when those turf horses throw a low number which varies from their norm, it's the result of the bad placement of the animal nearing the stretch causing the horse to go 7-8-9 wide at the head of the stretch and lose a ton of ground. Rather than from a conditioning/effort point of view it is more likely trip related.

I think one of the positives of the turf is that there’s more efficient transfer of energy from hoof to ground. There’s so many variables in soil type, compaction and moisture though. As I recall there was some controversy decades ago about the consistency of one area of Aksarben’s track that some people blamed for spills and breakdowns.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

Yes, I see the depth & love you have for the sport! Quite thought out would be a under estimate of your work!, Yes, I understand you & your passion! Then again in I emulate what you do as I buy & sell stocks within the 100k limit portfolio! It's one of the side money's my wife & we have that I use! I started doing it when I retired with 2 neck fusion! Thats death to a meat manager & cutter! I only buy long, no shorting or options! I know my abilities and stay within what I know! I follow opinions of a group, & buy what I know! Yes, I've lost a ton of money learning! 💰 I keep a stock on hand of 40k stock worth 4 cents as a reminder! I bought higher! Ha! I learned! Cost money, Always take some profit! I can sit for a long time reading on the computer!, I can't do a simple algebra problem, as I'm just not wired in that, but I know how to do percentages and undera tand the value of compound interest as applied to money! Magnificent marvel to me!! It's made me a much better life than I would have without it! I talk to people alot, Sorry on no paragraphs, I'm working on my cell! NOW, in relation to bug boys or gals & the 5 lb 🤔 weight! Do you learn early who is 👍🏻 good and research them?? How do use it?? That it tonite 123!, I appreciate this!😃

Thanks again for the message dp. If a high percentage of people at the track were operating with "side money" it would be a much more pleasant place to be. Too many are there wagering with money they really shouldn't/can't afford to lose.

Those that stay within their means and understand their own abilities are those who CAN talk about it at the age of 75!

At the track you can buy low and win low, that's how it is if you are playing favorites, even when you win you have limited your winning potential.

You can also buy low and lose low, like playing long shots which require less money to wager and therefore less to lose. When you're right, however, you've just bought low and sold high. As the game is intended.

I tend to identify the really good apprentice riders by what I call "being quiet in the saddle." With some of the really good ones, you could place a glass of champagne on their backs and they wouldn't spill a drop.

Then you have the Euro riders who ride high and are all over the saddle. There's no perfect way to ride, it's about finding that right rhythm to the horse you're riding and letting the horse run his own race, the rider just directs traffic to avoid a crackup.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

I think one of the positives of the turf is that there’s more efficient transfer of energy from hoof to ground. There’s so many variables in soil type, compaction and moisture though. As I recall there was some controversy decades ago about the consistency of one area of Aksarben’s track that some people blamed for spills and breakdowns.

I agree 100% again with the transfer of energy. When I was coaching my son, we did most of the conditioning work on the grass and then moved to the track to fine-tune things. So much easier on the joints, feet, shins, and everything.

Tracks that are uneven, or have trouble spots have been around for a long time. Santa Anita had a terrible problem years back, with a lot of casualties on the track. So much they went to an artificial surface, which, incidentally the race fans hated. Those fans used the new surface as yet another excuse for why they can't seem to win at the track.

I'm sidetracking this post a bit to talk about artificial surfaces, Polytrack, Synthetic, and Tapeta.

The majority of horseplayers fought this tooth and nail. I used the opposite approach. You know how it is----when it's Orders From Headquarters, it's GONNA HAPPEN IF THEY LIKE IT OR NOT. So I don't fight the system, I see what adjustments I can make, then I set about making those adjustments. For gamblers to sit around and bitch and moan about it does them no favors.

I got a really early start when some of the tracks began to convert to synthetic. I used Woodbine in Canada and Golden Gate on the West Coast to basically chart those bloodlines that seemed to produce the best runners that were moving from dirt/turf to synthetic, and then from synthetic to dirt/turf.

I built a spreadsheet and sorted it by sire/dam/grandsire/granddam to determine which were best. It was a one-week project and I never had any issues moving from track to track or race circuit to race circuit because I had armed myself with the right type of information.

I guess it's just better for them to be "Alibi Ike", cause it gives them their built-in excuse.

 

[PeliniTheCrutch]

I like Atone tomorrow.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

I like Atone tomorrow.

Good luck, I stay out of races like this one.

Not much speed signed on. Mike's gonna ship, but the horse won't get the trip. If Lady Speight gets out clean, she'll be a handful. It's not a real long run to the turn, so if your horse breaks clean and gets good position, could make it interesting. Only 6 horses in the field have been on the GP surface, so hard to tell who will or won't like it. I'll be rooting for you.

 

[PeliniTheCrutch]

Good luck, I stay out of races like this one.

Not much speed signed on. Mike's gonna ship, but the horse won't get the trip. If Lady Speight gets out clean, she'll be a handful. It's not a real long run to the turn, so if your horse breaks clean and gets good position, could make it interesting. Only 6 horses in the field have been on the GP surface, so hard to tell who will or won't like it. I'll be rooting for you.

I’m betting on very little speed and he can lay just off it or control it himself. I won’t be betting him at less than 8-1 though, and I’m afraid he could get bet down because of the Irad factor, and City Man all the way out in the 12 hole.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

I’m betting on very little speed and he can lay just off it or control it himself. I won’t be betting him at less than 8-1 though, and I’m afraid he could get bet down because of the Irad factor, and City Man all the way out in the 12 hole.

He ran a good race, like I said Mike was gonna ship but did not live the trip. Lady ran well that got caught in a pocket, and Atone came flying. Too bad the 5/1 wasn't within your sights.

Maker is having a big day.

 

[PeliniTheCrutch]

He ran a good race, like I said Mike was gonna ship but did not live the trip. Lady ran well that got caught in a pocket, and Atone came flying. Too bad the 5/1 wasn't within your sights.

Maker is having a big day.

I went vertical wager hunting after seeing the price and ended up hitting the exacta a few times.

Apparently others can read the form too…and Irad Ortiz can almost be unbettable at times.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

I went vertical wager hunting after seeing the price and ended up hitting the exacta a few times.

Apparently others can read the form too…and Irad Ortiz can almost be unbettable at times.

The form lies.

 

[JerseyHusker]

They say owning horses is the fastest way to turn a large fortune into a small fortune.

I've never had any interest in owning horses. Those things eat every day, and we've all heard them say your friend can eat like a horse. Plus you have to pay a trainer, medicate them, float their teeth, trim their hooves, hire exercise riders, etc etc etc.

But, for those that do, like you say it's a great write-off.

Never had a fetish with old cars, but man, do I know some guys who do! If you like to fix them up it's just a labor of love.

In 1972 I bought a '69 Dodge Charger 440 Magnum for $ 1,500.00. Got about 9 mpg when gas was skyrocketing to a buck a gallon.

In about '75 I sold it to a neighbor cause I couldn't get the damn thing running. Sold it for $ 600.00. About 30 minutes later he fires it up and goes roaring down the street. LOL

As long as you enjoy it and it doesn't affect your family finances, I say go have some fun man!

Horseracing is not for everyone. I totally get it.

I owned a Standardbred racing Syndicate for 19 years, it was a labor of love and one of the most frustrating but yet exhilarating things I have ever done!

I started in late ‘95 with 3 friends, we bought a few Horses, sold shares to investors and whatever we did not sell, we kept. It was called Stake Your Claim Stable, raced in NJ, NY, PA, KY and Canada.

I had a hotline that investors called into, got a new update everyday on what Track, date, purse, post the Horse was in that week, we had a full gammit of horses, claimers , conditioned races, Yearlings, 2 and 3 year olds as we grew the business. I loved going to the yearling sales, that was exciting, picking out your next potential champion. Our Horses were stabled in the jurisdictions I mentioned above.

As we grew, we developed a website, started to get more investors and after a few years grew the Stable to more than 60 Horses; however, this is Not a sport for the weak hearted, disappointment happens more than exhilaration! I learned so many things, cheating trainers and vets, bad owners, bad posts, a thrown shoe, a Horse you had in a good spot getting a bad drive, bumped into, scoping sick after a race, it’s brutal!

To keep things transparent, we made copies of every invoice, shoeing, shipping, stakes payments, Trainer fees, vet fees, etc. I would then put the packets together of hard copies with their respective check for their winning s for the month, if there was one and sent to the individual investors.

I have seen our Horses be in Breeders Crown races, 2 and 3 year old finals, winning some but losing a lot more than winning, a very tough pill to swallow but when you win, there’s nothing like it, especially a stakes race.

We never pocketed the money, we were sick bastards and just bought more Horses with those winnings, having 7-10 Horses race per week at the different tracks was like a drug, could never get enough action, it was great!

We sold the business in 2016 after having been involved in over 9,000 races and over 1,000 wins, it was time, after I did the tally, I lost $65k over the 19 years but it was worth it, felt competitive again, the anticipation of seeing your Horse race, there is nothing like it!