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Horse racing 101- what you absolutely need to know

by: Mansi gupta

Horse racing is perhaps one of the oldest sports in America. The charisma and aura of the game is such that it refreshes and revitalizes your spirits. If taken in the right sense i.e. not as a gamble with your limited money, horse racing is one of the best and conspicuous sports to play.

Before taking on to this game, one needs to have a very lucid idea of the entire chemistry of this game. This includes a proper knowledge of different strategies and rules of the game. Since you will be betting on horses taking part in the race, your primary knowledge should comprise which horse will take you to victory. The best means to educate your self about the horses is to pick up two three latest good magazines on horse racing. The statistics in there reveal which horse is by far the most wanted one and also the reasons for it. Read the average winnings of different horses and why some horses fail to make it to the list of favorable ones. Make an appropriate assessment in your mind about the horses on the basis of your readings.

The best you can do after that is to visit the race course if it is thrown open to public to attend morning sessions. If not, don?t be disheartened. Just try to make it a little early to the ground on the event day. For that will give an opportunity to read the track and perceive various horses to make your observations. Try to match your readings with your perception. Based on a survey of the track (if the track is dry, wet etc.) there are several parameters to decide the winning chances of the horse on that very day. With a hawk?s eye scrutinize the behavior of the horses as they march past to the stands before commencement of the race. If the horse is sweating, limping, walking with head down, or seems inattentive, weary and distracted then there are less chances to its win. Bet on the horse with an adequately sturdy built and fluent gait keeping in mind your analysis of the track and what your intuition says.

The horses are even categorized as- Front Runners, Closers and Morning Glories. The front runners occupy the front stage throughout the race. The closers are close chasers since beginning and can be effective winners in the end. The case is different with morning glories that shine brightly like the sun initially but die out soon, leaving at an unsatisfactory note. If two horses simultaneously reach the end, it is a tie case known as dead heat in the language of this sport. A finish is termed as blanket finish when two horses end up so closely that there is a negligible difference between them.
If you are new to this sport, you are advised not to take any risk of betting on a horse that has more odds. The more are the odds, the least are the chances of winning. For instance if the odds are 10:1 then for every 1 dollar you bet in return you will get 10 dollars back which is not considered to be a good deal. A fair adjudication of the odds on the basis of kind of field, past record and type of the horse and the jockey who takes on the horse is made by the odds makers on the field. This calculative efficiency gradually sweeps in with experience.

But one thing should always be categorically borne in mind that you should wager on the horse only when the money you bet is the one you can contentedly afford to lose. Never make it an addiction that makes you bet the money meant for your child?s education or household work i.e. any basic, important necessity of life. An addiction to any thing is fatal in the end. So let horse racing be a pleasure in leisure.

Mansi gupta writes about horse racing topics.