A day at the races: beginner's guide
Tired of the same old social scene, same old stale faces and places? Then go along and have a fun day out in the open air, because no matter where you are in the country there is probably a race meeting within reach. Come with friends and family on a warm Summer's day and wander about with a cold drink. Come in Winter, snugly wrapped up, and warmed up by a couple of hot drinks and lively chatter in the cafes. If you are looking for a chance to show off that new outfit, there are often prizes for the best-dressed lady or man at major race meetings and, at the bigger race meetings and festivals, a designated ladies day. However, before leaving home (well, it is Britain!) it's a good idea to check the weather forecast for the day because you may need to bring a coat or an umbrella. Pick up your daily paper, which will have all the racing news and information you will need, and remember, the internet is packed with racing sites that can give you an introduction to every racecourse, with all the races, breaking news and special offers.
Horse racing has been taking place in the UK for many hundreds of years. Chester, the oldest racecourse in the country, dates back to the sixteenth century. The sport is split into two main divisions, flat racing and National Hunt or jump racing. The flat season traditionally runs from April to October and the jump season from approximately October to late April. However, these seasons are not strict and since the introduction of All Weather tracks we can enjoy flat racing all year round. These days you can often see jump racing at the height of summer as well.
Flat Racing
Flat racing takes place seven days a week and features some of the world's most famous races. Horses run on the flat from the age of two. It's rare for a flat horse to continue running past the age of six, and certainly for them to still be racing when they hit double figures. A flat horse tends to reach its peak at four or five years old.
During the flat season, much attention is on three year old horses due to the five classics restricted to this age group: (i) the 1,000 and (ii) 2,000 Guineas, run at Newmarket in early May; (iii) the Derby and (iv) Oaks, both run at Epsom in early June; and (v) the St. Leger, run at Doncaster in mid-September. These races form the three most important weekends of the flat racing calendar. But there are many more major flat festivals held throughout the season, for example: Chester's May Meeting, Royal Ascot in mid-June, Newmarket in July meeting, Glorious Goodwood, late July to early August and York's Ebor meeting in mid-August.
Types of Flat Races
There are numerous different types of flat races. Firstly there are pattern or black type races. These are the most prestigious races and include Group 1, Group 2, Group 3 and listed races.
There are also many other types of flat races which determine the type or quality of a racehorse:
(i) Handicap race - where the horse carries a weight determined by its official rating.
(ii) Nursery race - also a handicap race but for two year old horses only.
(iii) Maiden race - these races are for horses who have never won.
(iv) Novice race - in flat terms, this is a race for two or three year olds who have won two or less races.
(v) Auction race - a race for yearlings or two year olds sold at public auction for a price not exceeding a specified amount.
(vi) Claiming stakes - the weight a horse carries is here determined by the connections price placed on it. The lower the price, the lower the weight.
(vii) Seller - a low class race where the winner is offered at a public auction after the race.
(viii) Apprentice race - for apprentice jockeys only.
(ix) Amateur race - for amateur jockeys only.
(x) Ladies race - for female amateur and apprentice jockeys only.
(xi) Gentlemen race - for male amateurs only.
Jump Racing
Most horses start in jump or national hunt racing at the age of three or four and graduate through the ranks. They'll start in bumper races, followed by a season of hurdling, after which they either continue to specialise in hurdle racing or move onto bigger fences. There are three main types of jump races:
(i) Chases - these are races where rigid fences of approximately five feet (1 1/2 metres) in height must be jumped.
(ii) Hurdles - where smaller, less rigid, obstacles must be jumped.
(iii) NHF (National Hunt Flat) racing or Bumpers - which are flat races for jump horses to gain racing experience on flat conditions, before beginning a career in hurdling or chasing.
The jump season's climax is the Cheltenham festival, which is run mid-March. The entire jumps festival is geared towards this festival, which covers four days (Tuesday to Friday) of top quality jumps racing, including 12 races of Grade 1 status.
Some of the most notable Grade 1 jump racing festivals are: The Champion Hurdle, The Arkle, The World Hurdle, and of course the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which is the most prestigious race in the jump season. There are also other jumps races throughout the season - none more famous than the Grand National, the jewel in the crown of a three day jumps festival at Aintree racecourse in early April.
Types of Jump Races
Similar to flat racing, the main events are Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3 and Listed races.
(i) Handicap race - same as on the flat, where the weight a horse carries is determined by its official rating.
(ii) Novice race - chase or hurdles races open to horses who have not won this type of race this season.
(iii) Juvenile novices hurdle - a hurdle race for three year olds only.
(iv) Hunter chase - a unique steeplechase for horses that are certified by a master of hounds and ridden by amateurs.
(v) National Hunt Flat (NHF) race or bumpers - flat race designed to give experience to young horses. Normally restricted to four to six year olds.
(vi) Beginners chase - restricted to horses that have not won a chase.
(vii) Conditional and apprentice - in jumps racing, apprentice races are called conditional.
(viii) Amateurs - for amateur jockeys only.
(ix) Claiming stakes - where the weight a horse carries is determined by the connections price placed on them. The lower the price, the lower the weight.
(x) Seller - a low class race where the winner is offered at public auction after the race.
Handicapping
If the purpose of horse racing was to simply find the best horse in each race, all races would be run at level weights and the best horse would most often win. However, that is not how the majority of races are run. All horses, after sufficient runs, are awarded an official rating, and that rating is used to allocate weights in handicap races, which comprise the vast majority of races. The official handicapper assess the merits of the runners in each race and allocates a weight to each runner. This allocation is based on various criteria like race distance, winning time, their ages and the margins that have separated the runners - the idea being that each horse in the race has an equal chance of victory, according to the ratings. The highest rated horse in the race will be allocated the highest weight and the other horses are all relative to the top horse.
Going
'Going', or the condition of the ground at a racecourse, is said by most to be the most important element in horse racing. If a horse is unable to act on the going, then it will be very difficult for it to win on that type of ground. It's the responsibility of the clerk of the course to give the official going, with conditions reported as follows:
-Heavy
-Soft
-Good to soft
-Good
-Good to firm
-Firm
-Hard
Check a horse's overall form to find its best runs. If they have a certain type of 'going' then you can decide what its preferred going is. If, for example, a horse has been performing on soft or heavy and today's conditions are good to firm, then be suspicious about that horse's performance on that surface. Skilled horse racing punters can tell if a horse will act on a particular going by its 'action'. This means that they can judge how a horse moves. Bringing its knees high would point to a soft going preference but if the horse travels closer to the ground it's deemed to like faster and harder ground.
Distance
Horses, like athletes, will perform better over their preferred distance. Horses know their limits, but unfortunately cannot tell you what their preferred distances are. A system used by many bloodstock agents is something called the 'Dosage Index', which is used to assess a horse's pedigree and on that basis can determine its best distance, stamina and speed. As a horse develops and grows, the trainer should then be able to better assess the optimal distance for the horse.
Racecourses
British racecourses come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. The first thing you will notice is that some courses are left handed and others are right handed - horses can have a preference for one direction above the other. For example, Desert Orchid was one of the greatest steeplechasers ever. He won 27 races, however 25 of these were on right-handed tracks. On left-handed tracks, he lost four out of six attempts. In contrast, High Chaparral was much better going left-handed than right-handed.
The Draw
In flat racing, a horse's draw position can be the difference between winning and losing. The draw is very controversial. There are clear biases on certain tracks depending on where a horse is drawn. This is particularly acute over distances of a mile or less. Even modern techniques available to the clerk of the course cannot make the ground even and fair over the entire track.
Horse racing has been taking place in the UK for many hundreds of years. Chester, the oldest racecourse in the country, dates back to the sixteenth century. The sport is split into two main divisions, flat racing and National Hunt or jump racing. The flat season traditionally runs from April to October and the jump season from approximately October to late April. However, these seasons are not strict and since the introduction of All Weather tracks we can enjoy flat racing all year round. These days you can often see jump racing at the height of summer as well.
Flat Racing
Flat racing takes place seven days a week and features some of the world's most famous races. Horses run on the flat from the age of two. It's rare for a flat horse to continue running past the age of six, and certainly for them to still be racing when they hit double figures. A flat horse tends to reach its peak at four or five years old.
During the flat season, much attention is on three year old horses due to the five classics restricted to this age group: (i) the 1,000 and (ii) 2,000 Guineas, run at Newmarket in early May; (iii) the Derby and (iv) Oaks, both run at Epsom in early June; and (v) the St. Leger, run at Doncaster in mid-September. These races form the three most important weekends of the flat racing calendar. But there are many more major flat festivals held throughout the season, for example: Chester's May Meeting, Royal Ascot in mid-June, Newmarket in July meeting, Glorious Goodwood, late July to early August and York's Ebor meeting in mid-August.
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Types of Flat Races
There are numerous different types of flat races. Firstly there are pattern or black type races. These are the most prestigious races and include Group 1, Group 2, Group 3 and listed races.
There are also many other types of flat races which determine the type or quality of a racehorse:
(i) Handicap race - where the horse carries a weight determined by its official rating.
(ii) Nursery race - also a handicap race but for two year old horses only.
(iii) Maiden race - these races are for horses who have never won.
(iv) Novice race - in flat terms, this is a race for two or three year olds who have won two or less races.
(v) Auction race - a race for yearlings or two year olds sold at public auction for a price not exceeding a specified amount.
(vi) Claiming stakes - the weight a horse carries is here determined by the connections price placed on it. The lower the price, the lower the weight.
(vii) Seller - a low class race where the winner is offered at a public auction after the race.
(viii) Apprentice race - for apprentice jockeys only.
(ix) Amateur race - for amateur jockeys only.
(x) Ladies race - for female amateur and apprentice jockeys only.
(xi) Gentlemen race - for male amateurs only.
Jump Racing
Most horses start in jump or national hunt racing at the age of three or four and graduate through the ranks. They'll start in bumper races, followed by a season of hurdling, after which they either continue to specialise in hurdle racing or move onto bigger fences. There are three main types of jump races:
(i) Chases - these are races where rigid fences of approximately five feet (1 1/2 metres) in height must be jumped.
(ii) Hurdles - where smaller, less rigid, obstacles must be jumped.
(iii) NHF (National Hunt Flat) racing or Bumpers - which are flat races for jump horses to gain racing experience on flat conditions, before beginning a career in hurdling or chasing.
The jump season's climax is the Cheltenham festival, which is run mid-March. The entire jumps festival is geared towards this festival, which covers four days (Tuesday to Friday) of top quality jumps racing, including 12 races of Grade 1 status.
Some of the most notable Grade 1 jump racing festivals are: The Champion Hurdle, The Arkle, The World Hurdle, and of course the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which is the most prestigious race in the jump season. There are also other jumps races throughout the season - none more famous than the Grand National, the jewel in the crown of a three day jumps festival at Aintree racecourse in early April.
Types of Jump Races
Similar to flat racing, the main events are Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3 and Listed races.
(i) Handicap race - same as on the flat, where the weight a horse carries is determined by its official rating.
(ii) Novice race - chase or hurdles races open to horses who have not won this type of race this season.
(iii) Juvenile novices hurdle - a hurdle race for three year olds only.
(iv) Hunter chase - a unique steeplechase for horses that are certified by a master of hounds and ridden by amateurs.
(v) National Hunt Flat (NHF) race or bumpers - flat race designed to give experience to young horses. Normally restricted to four to six year olds.
(vi) Beginners chase - restricted to horses that have not won a chase.
(vii) Conditional and apprentice - in jumps racing, apprentice races are called conditional.
(viii) Amateurs - for amateur jockeys only.
(ix) Claiming stakes - where the weight a horse carries is determined by the connections price placed on them. The lower the price, the lower the weight.
(x) Seller - a low class race where the winner is offered at public auction after the race.
Handicapping
If the purpose of horse racing was to simply find the best horse in each race, all races would be run at level weights and the best horse would most often win. However, that is not how the majority of races are run. All horses, after sufficient runs, are awarded an official rating, and that rating is used to allocate weights in handicap races, which comprise the vast majority of races. The official handicapper assess the merits of the runners in each race and allocates a weight to each runner. This allocation is based on various criteria like race distance, winning time, their ages and the margins that have separated the runners - the idea being that each horse in the race has an equal chance of victory, according to the ratings. The highest rated horse in the race will be allocated the highest weight and the other horses are all relative to the top horse.
Going
'Going', or the condition of the ground at a racecourse, is said by most to be the most important element in horse racing. If a horse is unable to act on the going, then it will be very difficult for it to win on that type of ground. It's the responsibility of the clerk of the course to give the official going, with conditions reported as follows:
-Heavy
-Soft
-Good to soft
-Good
-Good to firm
-Firm
-Hard
Check a horse's overall form to find its best runs. If they have a certain type of 'going' then you can decide what its preferred going is. If, for example, a horse has been performing on soft or heavy and today's conditions are good to firm, then be suspicious about that horse's performance on that surface. Skilled horse racing punters can tell if a horse will act on a particular going by its 'action'. This means that they can judge how a horse moves. Bringing its knees high would point to a soft going preference but if the horse travels closer to the ground it's deemed to like faster and harder ground.
Distance
Horses, like athletes, will perform better over their preferred distance. Horses know their limits, but unfortunately cannot tell you what their preferred distances are. A system used by many bloodstock agents is something called the 'Dosage Index', which is used to assess a horse's pedigree and on that basis can determine its best distance, stamina and speed. As a horse develops and grows, the trainer should then be able to better assess the optimal distance for the horse.
Racecourses
British racecourses come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. The first thing you will notice is that some courses are left handed and others are right handed - horses can have a preference for one direction above the other. For example, Desert Orchid was one of the greatest steeplechasers ever. He won 27 races, however 25 of these were on right-handed tracks. On left-handed tracks, he lost four out of six attempts. In contrast, High Chaparral was much better going left-handed than right-handed.
The Draw
In flat racing, a horse's draw position can be the difference between winning and losing. The draw is very controversial. There are clear biases on certain tracks depending on where a horse is drawn. This is particularly acute over distances of a mile or less. Even modern techniques available to the clerk of the course cannot make the ground even and fair over the entire track.
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