© Photo Healy Racing
Horseracing is a fantastic sport to watch and after football, it is the most televised sport in Britain. Despite being a brilliant source of entertainment, if you’re unfamiliar with horseracing and the associated terminology then you can be forgiven for getting a little confused. This handy guide explains some of the basics.
We cover The Seasons, The Races, The Terminology and The Signs that you need to look out for, to maximise your chance of a win at the next race.
The Seasons
There are three racing seasons; The Flat Season, the Winter Flat Season and the Jump Season — this is especially for steeple chasing and hurdle racing. The Flat Season runs from the day the Lincoln Handicap is programmed until the afternoon the November Handicap is programmed.
The Lincoln Handicap is a one mile flat handicap race that is run at Doncaster racecourse. The fixture date for 2017’s is the 1st of April.
The Winter Flat Season runs from the first Flat fixture that commences following the November Handicap is programmed until the final fixture ending before the day the Lincoln Handicap is programmed.
The Jump Season, on the other hand, runs in any year from the first day after the Sandown Park Gold Cup Meeting is arranged and finishes on the final day that the meeting is fixed in the following year. The Jump Season for 2017 ends on April the 29th.
The Races
There are many great racecourses in Britain, with a total of 60 in operation. Some of the best racecourses include Aintree, Ascot, Cheltenham, Doncaster and York. They host many elite events in the horseracing calendar and attract thousands of racegoers each year.
The biggest horseraces in the UK include the Epsom Derby, the Ascot Gold Cup, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, each of which are flat races.
The best jump races include the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the Grand National, and the King George VI Chase to name a few. For those looking for betting and tipster advice on these races, BetHut is the home of Horse Racing News and Free Bets. Definitely worth a look before hand.
The Terminology
It’s probably wise that you should know some terminology too. A bay refers to a horse which has a brown body and mane whilst chestnut means a ginger body and mane.
A colt is a young un-gelded (gelded means castrated as stallions aren’t usually suited to a racing career due to their temperament) male horse up to four-years-old. Filly means female horse whilst a sire is a horse’s father. A Dam is a female horse that is a mother.
National Hunt means racing over fences and hurdles, also known as jump racing, furthermore, bumper refers to a flat race run under National Hunt rules which is over a distance of 13-20 furlongs, eight furlongs is the equivalent to one mile.
A handicap race is one in which the weight each horse has to carry is individually allocated (by an official handicapper) judged on its past performance, this is to make the race more even. The better horses carry more weight.
In terms of jockeys, there is a real host of talent out there and it often pays to latch on to one of the up and coming riders. Be sure to look out for Jack Kennedy, he recently had 27 rides in just 14 days and finished in the top four on 20 of them. 18-year-old Harry Cobden is also one to watch, he currently operates at a strike rate of just under one win for every five rides, his judge of pace is a joy to behold and he has years ahead of him.
Alan Johns is another name to remember, particularly if you’re planning on having a bet as he holds a strike rate of 18% and boasts a £64 profit to £1 level stakes.
The Signs
Doing your research prior to arriving at a racecourse is the way forward to determine which horses are in form and which are to be avoided at all costs. Taking a glance at whether the horse has done well over ‘course and distance’ in the past is important along with the animal’s preferred under-hoof conditions.
Some horses like to ‘get their toe in’ and enjoy racing through the mud but for others, it will spell the end to their chances as they like it dry and fast. Finding this information out is crucial to betting success.
Continuing, it is wise to find out whether the trainer has brought just one horse a long way for a specific race — an action which could signal that the handler knows his charge is in tip-top condition and means business. Trainers and owners often target the same races year after year so check out the previous winners of the races for clues.
Being able to decipher the information on a race card is crucial as it will tell a punter how his or her horse ran last time out. It may have lost but put on an encouraging display with a late burst of speed and now be ready to enter the winner’s circle - possibly at decent odds.
In sprint racing, the draw can play a major part in the outcome of a contest, with parts of the track sometimes faster than others. Looking at the history of a particular race and from which stall the winner is likely to come from can help tip the odds in your favour.
It is also a popular misconception that favourites always win when, in fact, they only claim the spoils about 30% of the time. That means there is a high probability of landing a winner at much better odds than the sometimes restrictive price the favourite is given, and constantly betting on a favourite - especially in jumps racing where anything can happen — can prove to be a false economy.
Trying to find a selection that looks good ‘value’ is always key, when a horse is more likely to win than the odds suggest and has as good a chance of triumphing as anything else in the field.
Some races are wide open and it can be more prudent to stick a pin in the race card for your selection than spending hours trying to find the winner, but it always helps to have an educated guess and at least narrow the list of possible winners down to a handful.
Picking winners is not an exact science and that is the fun of the sport, but it is certainly more enjoyable if you can enjoy the fruits of your research and return home having made a profit.
