Entering Races
Entering a race does not cost any money, unless it is a stakes race.
The following sections describe what resource is used to find that
next race, how the entering process works, and, if you are lucky
enough to own a stakes horse, what fees are paid to enter a stakes
race.
The Condition Book
The condition book is published every two weeks and is usually
applicable for two weeks. The book is available to everyone, and can
be obtained in the office of the Racing Secretary at the track with
a current meet. The Condition Book is the basic Bible for the next
two weeks of racing, and your trainer, if one of your horses is
race-ready, will fall upon it eagerly to find out if there is a race
perfectly suited to your horse. This is also the day when jockeys'
agents filter through the backside, making preliminary deals for
their "boys" to ride mounts in the listed races.
The Racing Secretary "writes" the roster of races based on the
preponderance or types of horses residing at the track. That is, to
the extent that there are "maidens" and "claiming horses" stabled at
the track hosting the meet, the Racing Secretary will write an
abundance of "Maiden" and "Claiming" races to accommodate them. The
Racing Secretary, on the other hand, is sometimes required by state
mandate to write an average of one per day for state-bred horses
only. The Secretary must also accommodate owners by writing an
appropriate number of high-purse and "Stakes" races, so that owners
of the relatively few top-class horses available within the bounds
of a "circuit" have a chance to make good on their investments.
The Secretary's main role is to painstakingly design races with "a
level field" - races, both for the sake of bettors and owners, in
which all the horses will be closely competitive.
Theirs is not only an extremely detailed and difficult job, but the
Secretaries will be the first to admit that the listed
qualifications often seem to present a tangled web. No one - least
of all you, or your trainer - should hesitate to contact the
Secretary for an explanation of any condition that is even slightly
unclear. The Secretary's second main goal is to fill 8-10 races
every day: if an owner or trainer hangs back from entering a race
because of a confusing condition, and that race fails to fill, the
Secretary's job just got several hours harder.
Before looking through the Condition Book, you might want to be
certain you are familiar with the correct definitions of terms and
titles you'll be seeing.
"Conditions":
These concern the horse's racing record, sex, age -- and sometimes
even color. There are actually races, such as Hollywood Park's "Gray
Cup," written strictly for grays and roans.
