The Track Philosopher

The bet is the part of horse racing that sets the sport into a class by itself. It’s like a game inside a game. Sure, one could travel to Nevada to place wagers on auto races, college & pro sports and even election results, but it is horse racing with it’s system of parimutuel betting that has been the originator and the driving force behind what’s known as sports gambling.

In Paris, in 1867, Joseph Oller, a bookmaker in cockfighting, invented a new method of wagering, which he named Pari Mutuel (French for Parimutuel betting or betting amongst each other). He successfully introduced his system at French race tracks. Nonetheless, in 1874, Joseph Oller was sentenced to fifteen days in prison and fined for operating illegal gambling. Later, in 1891, the French authorities legalized his system and banned fixed-odds betting. Quickly, Oller’s Pari Mutuel spread across most race tracks around the world. The system uses a complicated formula that bases the pay out on total dollars bet, taxes, track take, number of entries and so on which changes with every bet. It is only at the close of the betting (when the event starts and the betting ends) does the player know the final odds. This revolutionary system was so much more efficient than “fixed odds” betting where the payout is agreed upon at the time the bet is sold.

If you’ve ever placed a bet on a horse at 4-1 and watched him win at 2-1 then you probably would wish it was a “fixed odds” betting system.

At the turn of the century and before the totalizator was introduced the ever changing odds were posted on a blackboard with chalk. Hence, the favorite in horse racing is known as “chalk”.

Odds – Payoff:
1-9 $2.20….. 1-5 $2.40…… 2-5 $2.80…..
1-2 $3.00…… 3-5 $3.20….. 4-5 $3.60…..
1-1 (aka: even money) $4.00….. 6-5 $4.40…..
7-5 $4.80….. 3-2 $5.00….. 8-5 $5.20…..
9-5 $5.60….. 2-1 $6.00….. 5-2 $7.00…..
3-1 $8.00…..7-2 $9.00….. 4-1 $10.00….. 9-2 $11.00

A good rule of thumb on anything at higher odds is to multiply the number by 2 and add 2 to get your total win pay out. For example, on a $2 bet at 13-1 is 13X2=26 +2 equals $28.

It is through betting that makes horse racing the sport with the most involved spectators.

About the only feeling more invigorating than watching the horse you bet on to win come from behind to win by a nose would have to be that the horse is yours. The owner and the animal which you witness it’s birth, it’s growth as a yearling, it’s training and it’s arrival into it’s first winners circle is a partnership like no other. That, in horse racing, is the dream of most enthusiasts that ever plunked down a $2 win bet.

The famous owner of Secretariat, Penney Tweedy Chenery, once said, “I’ve had a wonderful time in racing, with the fans, my peers, and of course, the horses. The greatest sight in racing is seeing your horse with your silks on coming down the stretch in the lead. The second greatest thing is seeing a foal born. That’s God’s gift to us.”

There was a song featuring her, sung by John Stewart, “Let the Big Horse Run” which came out in the mid 70’s. And, in October of this year the movie about her favorite horse, Secretariat, will be coming out. Hopefully the film will capture the passion she (and other owners) have for thoroughbred horses and the sport in which they shine so brightly.

Silks (or colors) are the colorful jackets worn by a jockey during a race. The origin of the modern jockey silks comes from England.

However, in ancient Rome, chariot drivers may have been the first to sport “racing colors.” They wore capes and headbands in bright colors to identify themselves. Although horse-racing meets are recorded as far back as 1114, individual silk colors are first mentioned in 1515 when Henry VIII occupied the throne. The costume itself was established in the latter part of the 17th and early 18th centuries. As the sport grew confusion resulted from the duplicity of entries which arose. It became absolutely necessary to vary color and design for positive identification. Both judges and spectators began to complain of the confusion. In 1762, the English Jockey Club requested that the owners submit specific colors for jacket and cap and to use them consistently in an attempt to distinguish riders among a field of horses or to settle disputes that might arise.

As racing has changed, so too have colors. Called silks because the early variations were, in fact, silk, today most are actually nylon or lycra. Aerodynamic silks have become more popular in recent years. While in their earliest iterations silks were merely different colors, today the designs can be quite intricate, ranging from geometric patterns to pictures and symbols. Approximately 28,000 sets of silks are registered with The Jockey Club today.

Fans are the backbone of any sport. Without a healthy fan base the sport cannot support itself. Horse racing is going through a time of deep reflection in these days of tough competition from the introduction of hundreds of new casinos across the country.

But racing has been here before, and through consolidation, survived. With the increase of greyhound tracks in the 70’s and 80’s attendance at horse tracks took a major downturn, and in response, many smaller thoroughbred race tracks closed it’s barn doors. Some closed up shop but kept a few rooms open to simulcast from other tracks. How sad it is to sit in a closed track clubhouse, place bets across the country and gaze out over an empty grandstand. Horse racing needs to get it’s priorities straight.

In my opinion, jockeys and horses should come first. No new fans are going to come to a sport where the scene of life threatening injuries are laid out on the track to view. Fans come second. The industry needs to sell the sizzle and the feel of the experience of a day at the track. Chris McCarron speaking from Santa Anita in California stated, “This industry has failed miserably at trying to encourage people to enjoy the social aspect of horse racing,” McCarron said. “To enjoy a beautiful afternoon gazing out at the San Gabriel Mountains and watching a bunch of incredibly talented athletes run by every 30 minutes.”

As pictured above, the Kentucky Derby brings out the best of racing along with The Preakness, The Belmont Stakes and The Breeder’s Cup. These are the sport’s time to shine and shine they do. But that’s only 4 days of the year. The movers and shakers of the racing industry need to get to work on the other 300 some days that races are being held.

Churchill Downs, pictured here, is one of the most famous race tracks in the United States. The mile race course opened in 1875 but is not the oldest. That honor goes to Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs , NY which was established in 1863. Horse racing has been around longer than basketball and football and at one time in the 50’s & 60’s it’s annual total attendance was greater than all sports, even baseball.

The track shown here is a mile on the dirt and 7 furlongs on the turf. There are 8 furlongs in a mile. Furlong comes from the Old English unit of measure. In the 1300’s England standardized a long list of measures including foot, yard, rod (there’s one we use every day), furlong (meaning “long furrow”) and mile. When you hear that a race is a mile and an eighth, then that would be (8+1=9) nine furlongs. Some of you might remember that stocks on the New York Stock Exchange were also measured in eighths a decade or so ago. Just a side note, in the UK races are run in the opposite direction to our country.

In 1890 there were 314 tracks across the country but today that number is only 95. And attendance has declined severely over the last 10 to 20 years. There are many factors that could be claimed as the cause of the decline. Whatever the reason, the focus of everyone in the sport should be to give this wonderful pastime the support and direction to bring it back.

Here are three of the top trainers of our time, Nick Zito, D. Wayne Lukas and Bob Baffert. Trainers are the equivalent to coaches in other sports. They train the horse to react to different situations in a race as well as teaching the horse to pace itself throughout the race and when to kick it into high gear for the finish. Each horse has it’s own personality in which the trainers learn.

Trainers relay that information to the jockey to let them know how to get the maximum effort from the horse. Trainers must also deal with the owners who just might think they know more than the trainers. That is common in every sport. The most effective relationship is where the owner hires the best trainer and allows them to do what they know best. The trainer then hires the jockey and coaches them on getting the most out of the racehorse. And, finally, the jockey takes the information and with his professionalism does the best he can out of respect of the owner, the trainer and the horse. It’s a winning combination that makes for a winning performance.