HORSE RACING GLOSSARY OF TERMS

JACKPOT - The Tote Jackpot is a betting option available at part of the Tote where the winners of the last 5 races on a race card are nominated. The prize fund accumulates depending on the number of players and is awarded to players who successfully identifys all 5 winners. If more than one person correctly identifies all 5 winners the prize fund is split.

JOCKEY FEE - Sum paid to a rider.

JOG - Slow, easy gait.

JOINT fAVOURITE - When two or more horses have the same starting price at the beginning of a race.

JOLLY - Another term for the favourite in a race.

JUDGE - The official who determines the finishing order of a race.

JUMPER - Steeplechase or hurdle horse.

JUVENILE - Two-year-old horse.

KEY RACES - Races which, because of their quality or the exceptional time in which they were run, are likely to act as an important guide in future contests.

KNOCK OUT - Coup in which by manipulating the odds at the course a generous starting price is achieved for the favourite, the benefit of which is enjoyed with the S.F. commission away from the course.

LADY - Cockney rhyming slang for £5 - 'Lady Godiva'.

LAMINITIS - Inflammation under horny wall of foot.

LASIX - See furosemide.

LATE DOUBLE - A second daily double offered on the latter part of the program. (See Daily Double)

LAY - A bookmaker's offer quoting the price at which he wishes to trade. eg - 'I'll lay this favouriteat 2/1.'

LEAD - Strap attached to halter to lead a horse.

LEAD (or LEAD PAD)- Weights carried to make up the difference when a rider weighs less than the poundage a horse is assigned to carry.

LEAD PONY - Horse or pony who heads parade of field from paddock to starting gate. Also a horse or pony who accompanies a starter to post.

LEAKY ROOF CIRCUIT - Minor tracks.

LEFT HANDED TRACK - Raceourse where horses run anti-clockwise

LEG UP - To help a jockey mount his horse. Also a jockey having a mount. Also to strengthen a horse's legs through exercise.

LENGTH - Length of a horse from nose to tail, about 8 feet. Also distance between horses in a race.

LEVY - Much of the money that goes towards prizes and improvements to racecourses comes from amounts collected from bookmakers, based on their turnover. The body responsible for this is known as the Levy Board.

LISTED RACE - A European race just below Group standard in quality but above handicap and conditioned races.

LOCK - Slang for a "sure thing" winner.

LONG HANDICAP - The weight allocated by the handicapper to a horse prior to the race. It could be 4 stone or 6 stone anything really but the horse if running in the race has to carry the minimum amount the race permits say 7 stone 7. So a horse could have a long handicap of 6 stone but still has to carry a minimum of 7 stone 7. Hope ive put that clear enough its easier to explain than write lol.

LUG (in or out) - Action of a tiring horse, bearing in or out.

LUNGE - Horse rearing or plunging.

  

MAIDEN - A horse who has not won a race. Also applied to non-winning rider.

MAIDEN RACE - A race for horses who haven't won a race.

MAKE A RUN - Charge by a horse in a race.

MARE - Female horse 5 years old or older. Also, female of any age who has been bred.

MARKET - A market is created, according to demand, by the prices offered for each runner by bookmakers at the course.

MARK YOUR CARD - Make selections for each race.

MASH - Moist mixture, hot or cold, of grain and other feed given to horses.

MEDICATION LIST - A list kept by the track veterinarian and published by the track and Daily Racing Form (when provided by track officials) showing which horses have been treated with phenylbutazone and/or furosemide.

MIDDLE DISTANCE - Broadly from one mile to less than a mile and an eighth.

MINUS POOL - A mutuel pool caused when one horse is so heavily played that, after deductions of state tax and commission, there is not enough money left to pay the legally prescribed minimum on each winning bet. The racing association usually makes up the difference.

MONEY RIDER - A rider who excels in rich races.

MONKEY - slang for £500.

MORNING GLORY - Horse who performs well in morning workouts but fails to reproduce that form in races.

MORNING LINE - Approximate odds quoted before wagering determines exact odds.

MUDDY TRACK - Deep condition of racetrack after being soaked with water.

MUDDER - Horse who races well on muddy tracks.

MUDLARK - Superior mudder.

MUZZLE - Nose and lips of a horse. Also a guard placed over a horse's mouth to prevent him from biting or eating.

 

 

NAP - The best bet of the day from a particular tipster

NAVICULAR DISEASE - Corrosive ulcer on the navicular bone, usually in the fore feet.

NEAR SIDE - Left side of a horse, side on which he is mounted.

NECK - Unit of measurement, about the length of a horse's neck; a quarter of a length.

NERVED - Operation that severs vital nerve to enable horses to race without pain. Illegal in most jurisdictions.

NOD - Lowering of head. Winning in that manner.

NOM DE COURSE - Assumed name of owner or racing partnership.

NO OFFERS - A horse who has no betting quotation - the book-makers are not offering a price.

NOSE - Smallest advantage a horse can win by. In England called a short head.

NATIONAL HUNT - The traditional name for jumps racing.

NOVICE - Inexperienced Horse

NEVES - The 'tic-tac' term for 7-1.

NO OFFERS(N/O) - When bookmakers are unwilling to offer a price on a horse.

NURSERY - A handicap for two year old horses

 

OAKS - A classic stakes event for 3-year-old fillies.

OBJECTION - A complaint by a jockey against another.

ODDS - The ratio of the probability of an event's occurring to the probability of its not occurring.

ODDS-AGAINST - Odds e.g. 7/1 when the numerator is larger than the denominator.(i.e. in this instance, the bookmaker is asserting that there is a 1 out of 7 chance that the horse will win)

ODDS-ON - Odds of less than even money. eg - 1/4 (You must bet £4 to win £1 profit + your return stake of £4)

OFF - If a horse is described as off it failing to retain it's natural performance level.

OFFICIAL - Sign displayed when result is confirmed. Also racing official.

OFF SIDE - Right side of horse.

OFF TRACK - An off track refers to a wet racing surface.

OFF-TRACK BETTING - Wagering on horses at legalized betting offices run usually by the state or the tracks, or, in New York, by independent corporations chartered by the state, with wagers commingled with on-track betting pools.

ON THE BIT - When a horse is eager to run.

ON THE BOARD - Finishing among the first four.

ON THE NOSE - Betting on a horse to win only.

OPEN DITCH - Steeplechase jump with a ditch on the side facing the jockey.

OSSELETS - Bony growth on the fetlock or ankle joint resulting in inflammation of the enveloping membrane of the bone.

OUTSIDE STABLE  - A stable other than the one by which the jockey is retained or employed, or for which he normally rides.

OVER-REACHING - Toe of hind shoe striking forelegs on heel, or back of coronet.

OVERLAND - Racing wide throughout, outside of other horses.

OVERLAY - A horse going off at a higher price than he appears to warrant based on his past performances.

OVERNIGHT LINE - Prices quoted night before the race.

OVERNIGHT RACE - A race in which entries close a specific number of hours before running (such as 48 hours), as opposed to a stakes race for which nominations close weeks and sometimes months in advance.

OVER ROUND - In theory a betting book should be 100%, so a toss of a coin would be even money heads, even money tails. However the bookmakers' profit margins mean the figure is usually above 100%. In cases where it is less (one bookmaker betting 11/8 against on Horse A, another going evens on Horse B in a two horse race) this is referred to as 'over-broke'.

OVER THE TOP - when a horse is beyond it's best.

OVERWEIGHT - when Jockeys riding weight (of jockey + tack) is above the minimum allowed by the handicapper.

PADDOCK - Area of the race course incorporating the pre-parade ring (where horses are paraded prior to the race) and winner's enclosure.

PADDOCK JUDGE - Official in charge of paddock and saddling routine.

PARIMUTUEL - A form of wagering that originated in France in which all money staked is divided among those who have winning tickets, after taxes, takeout and other deductions are made. (The Tote system operated in certain countries such as France and the USA.)

PAST PERFORMANCES - A compilation in Daily Racing Form of a horse's record, including all pertinent data, as a basis for handicapping.

PATROL JUDGES - Officials who observe progress of race from various vantage points around the track.

PENALTIES - Extra weight a horse must carry, especially in a handicap.

PENALIZED HORSES - Horses that have incurred a penalty as a result of previous successes.

PHOTO FINISH - A photo is automatically taken as the horses pass the winning line and when the race is too close to be judged the photo is inspected.

PICK SIX (or more) - A type of wager in which the winners of all the included races must be selected.

PIGEON CATCHER - Exceedingly fast.

PILL - Small numbered ball drawn to decide post positions.

PINCHED BACK - Horse in close quarters and forced back.

PINHOOKER; PINHOOK - To buy a horse at auction fo r the purpose of reselling him later.

PLACE - A placed horse must finish in the top 3. This is sometimes reduced to the top 2 in smaller fields.

PLACE BET - Wager on a horse to finish first or second.

PLACE-POT - A method of betting where the objective is to pick placed horses across the racing card.

PLACING JUDGES - Officials who determine the order in which horses reach the finish line.

PLATTER - Claiming horse. Also a farrier.

PLATES - The shoes horses wear to race. Racing plates.

POCKET - Boxed in, shut off. Running in a position with horses in front and alongside.

POLE - Markers at measured distances around the track, marking the distance from the finish. The quarter pole, for instance, is a quarter of a mile from the finish, not from the start.

PONY - Slang for £25.

POST - Starting point or position in starting gate.

POOL - Mutuel pool. Total sum bet on a race or even, such as the win pool, daily double pool, exacta pool.

POST PARADE - Horses going from paddock to starting gate past the stands.

POST POSITION - Position of stall in starting gate from which a horse starts.

POST TIME - Designated time from race to start.

PREFERRED LIST - Horses with prior rights to starting for various reasons.

PREP (or PREP RACE) - A workout or a race to prepare a horse for a future engagement.

PROP - Refusing to break with field from gate. Standing flat-footed. Also, when a horse suddenly stops running a full speed by extending his forefeet as "brakes."

PUBLIC TRAINER - One whose services are not exclusively engaged by a single stable and who accepts horses from a number of owners.

PULLED UP - Eased or prevented from continuing by the jockey. This is sometimes due to a horse going lame. (crippled or limping)

PUNTER - A person who gambles or lays a bet

PURSE - A prize of money to which owners do not contribute.

QUARTER - One-quarter of a mile; 440 yards; 1,320 feet.

QUARTER CRACK - Crack in wall of hoof running downwards from coronet.

QUARTER HORSE - Breed of horse especially fast for a quarter of a mile, from which its name is derived.

QUARTER POLE - Marker one-quarter mile from the finish.

QUINELLA - Wager in which first two finishers must be picked, but payoff is made no matter which of the two wins and which runs second.

© Horseracingfreetips.co.uk 2008

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