Harness racing help

[andicap]

I'm finally getting a dish and I see there are a lot of harness tracks on at night -- to go with the few t-breds on TVG.
So I'm thinking about toying with the trots out of viewing interest.

I know a few of you here have success with harness racing (I spent my boyhood at Yonkers Raceway, but those races are a joke now).
Any ideas on good books to read?
what works well with harness?
Does R/S, pace type of handicapping work with harness racing?
Where can I get good PPs?
Yes, I know drivers are very important as is post position (esp. on a half-mile track).

Thanks for any help

[BlueChip@DRF]

At The Meadowlands, you really can't go against Campbell in a favorite. I play a few angles at The Big M and sometimes get decent prices. Kesmodel's new claim, Pelling/Pierce combo, and basically anything coming out if The Four Starzzz Stable.

There is a book called Harness Overlays: Beat The Favorite by Bill Heller. It's sort of like a companion to the thoroughbred version of this book Overlay, Overlay: How To Bet The Horses Like A Pro by the same author. But all-in-all, you really cannot expect monster prices except maybe in inclement weather. The Canadian harness tracks might get you decent prices, though.


Good Luck!

[trying2win]

ANDICAP:

If you look at my post of Dec. 9/02 in the Handicapping Library section, under the thread " BEST AND WORST BOOKS", I listed some harness books and newsletters I thought were the best I've ever read. Pricey in some cases, yes. But the old cliche still applies at times... i.e." You get what you pay for".

If a person likes to play a lot of harness tracks, TRACKMASTER has several good deals for unlimited past performance downloads. That unlimited download plan, also includes unlimited downloads of their data files for harness race software programs. TRACKMASTER is at www.trackmaster.com.

Bob Pandolfo also has some good info on harness race handicapping (current and archived articles) at the USTA website at www.ustrotting.com..

[sq764]

Andicap, let me try to answer some of your questions..

I like TVG for the simple fact that they carry 2 of my favorite tracks (and I only will wager on one other one) - Balmoral Park and Northfield Park..

To be honest, there are not a ton of good harness racing books, in my opinion. I have about 8 or 10 books that are on the shelf and you are welcome to any of them..

What works well with harness is pretty dependent on track size.. On half-mile tracks (Northfield, Maywood, etc) its best to watch for inside posts, speed, top drivers, etc..

For mile tracks (and 7/8 tracks) - Meadowlands, Balmoral, etc.. Its best IMO to watch for the last half. The stretches are where all the action happens, particularly on good nights of racing. Solid closers always do well..

Pace handicapping also will probably depend on the track size. It may give you a good idea of races that may somehow lack speed, but most on mile tracks favor closers..

You can get PP's at Trackmaster.. But GOOD PP's - not any IMO..


And feel free to stop by http://www.equineinvestor.com, you can use some of the free analysis to help.. And feel free to drop us any additional questions you have..

Scott

[trying2win]

SQ:

You didn't mention 5/8's of a mile harness tracks. I mainly bet harness races at the 5/8's ovals. One of the few exceptions to that, is the Meadowlands.

I take my hat off to you, if you can make money on 1/2 mile harness ovals. Generally, I find the win prices there too chalky for my liking. Also congratulations to you or anybody that can make profits at bigger harness tracks like Woodbine, Mohawk and Balmoral. I can't figure out what works at those places, so I usually avoid them.
My favorite tracks for playing harness races are Dover Downs, The Meadows and The Meadowlands.

Anybody that wants to view live videos of harness races online, can get a good selection of tracks at www.pennnational.com. Once you're at their website, just click on the LIVE VIDEO icon. A menu of tracks will appear on your computer screen.

Some harness tracks have live video that can be accessed from their own websites.

[sq764]

Didn't mean to leave out my favorite track - Rosecroft, which is a 5/8 mile track.. I love it there because the pools are small and the bettors are, well, not very sharp.. And as an overlay player, horses that should be 5/1 or 6/1, drift up to 10/1 or 12/1..

I watch races online at Penn National, Oneclickbetting, and Worldbroadcast..

I think the key to a 1/2 mile track like Northfield is to 1) bet against Walter Case Jr when you can, and 2) watch for outside horses that can leave a little, you can hit bombs with those..

[4thandlong]

In addition to what's been mentioned, www.kimstarr.org has some good articles.

Programs for Balmoral are at www.horseracingprograms.com (cost $1).

You can register for a free account at HPI, www.675bets.com and d/l free programs for a bunch of Canadian tracks.

I play at only the bigger tracks, 7/8 and one mile, and a couple spot plays I like: horse moving from allowance to claiming (old as the hills but it still works); lone early speed from the outside posts can catch you a price.

Don't get hung up on times. Look for a formful horse or one that shows signs of waking up. The lead horse can control the pace much more than in tbreds and times are misleading. Last quarter times are meaningful and (usually) overbet, but don't ignore them.

[Tom]

Welcome to the other side <G>
The book by Heller is good, and those by Steve Chaplain are excellent. I find a lot of Ainsle's stuff from his harness book still apply. Checkl out Pandolphos's webpage- he has a archive section of good articles and he does a line every night for the Big M. It is very good and you will find longshots regularly.
don't be scared off by times that varry as much as two seconds.
Here is a tip - divide the final time of the race by 4. Each quarter should be run within +/- 2/5's of the average quarter time. Over this is either a very fast or very slow fraction. Example-final time 2.01 = avg qtr is 30.2 Final time 1.58 = avg qtr is 29.4. In the first race, a time of 30.0 is probably better than a quarter in the second race of 29.6 because it was faster compared to the final time. ( a Fast 1 compared to a Slow 1).
TrackMaster has good PP's, PDF and Exe files.
USTA home page is good for results and articles. Kimstarr.com is excellent for old articles.
Check in with Melman-he will have a lot to offer in harness.
The Big M is really good, and I also like Saratoga, Mohawk/Woodbine, Batavia, Balmoral, and Vernon.
Good luck.

[trying2win]

4TH AND LONG:

Do you know, if 675BETS.COM accepts betting accounts from our American friends? I just studied their website and I couldn't find anything regarding residency requirements.

I know going the other way, i.e. EBETUSA.COM welcomes Canadian residents to open an American dollar online betting account, if they want to.

[4thandlong]

Attempting two win...

They love Americans! Just fax them ID and you are good to go.

:D

[bigray76]

Barry Meadow has a good book "Success at the Harness Races" which you can find a good quality copy at half.com for a couple of bucks. Unlike his money management books this one does focus in on some strategies that I feel are rather solid to use as a base for building a harness handicapping system from the bottom up.

[Zaf]

Originally posted by trying2win
4TH AND LONG:

Do you know, if 675BETS.COM accepts betting accounts from our American friends? I just studied their website and I couldn't find anything regarding residency requirements.

I know going the other way, i.e. EBETUSA.COM welcomes Canadian residents to open an American dollar online betting account, if they want to.

I have accounts with both of the above as well as On the Wire (Autotate, New Haven CT.) I am very satisfied with these 3 services.

ZAFONIC

[sq764]

trying to win, yes, they accept american $$. I use their wagering service to play Balmoral..

Keep one thing in mind though. You are betting into a seperate pool, so there is some differences..

1) Pools are much smaller
2) Payouts are different (typically in the same range, but not always)
3) Pick 3's are different races ( I think Balmoral is races 2,4 and 6 start pick 3's)
4) They usually cut off racing after like 8 or 9 races..

[norm f]

Al stanley works are of excellent quality
Stanleys law although outdated to a point, i find its still useful on most smaller tracks,especially when used with his Harness racing angles.
Al Stanleys Professional Methodology is a true piece of work although it runs about $100 a pop but worth its weight in gold
Bob Pandolfo's articals on www.ustrotting.com are also very insightful,especially if you follow the Meadowlands
Hope that helps

[anotherdave]

Originally posted by norm f

Al Stanleys Professional Methodology is a true piece of work although it runs about $100 a pop but worth its weight in gold


Actually you can pick it up for
49.95 Canadian $ from the OJC site - http://www.ojc.com/Online_store/product_list1.asp?SEC=2

AD

[melman]

Lots of good replys to your post andi. I would take the time to re-read Tom's post. Steve Chaplain book is still available on amazon.com. Great stuff. If you would like send me a private e-mail and we can talk some more. Big track Harness i.e. Woodbine/Mohawk, The Meadowlands, Balmoral have been very very good to me over the last couple of years. This Harness stuff is FUN as in money in the pocket.

[melman]

Sent you a regular e-mail Andicap, if interested just let me know.

[Tom]

Came across this today surfing the newsgroups.
Lots of handy information.

http://www.racingangles.com/

Like the track profiles and variants sections.
I hear T-bred info is in the future plans.

[Zaf]

Originally posted by Tom
Came across this today surfing the newsgroups.
Lots of handy information.

http://www.racingangles.com/

Like the track profiles and variants sections.
I hear T-bred info is in the future plans.

Very Nice site, I hope to see the T-Bred version soon.
Thanks Tom

ZAFONIC

[Tom]

Their selections for Medowlands Friday night were decent - Top pick went 10 -1-8-0. 8 places! for the top pick. Several paid over $10 to place.
This looks like a site to watch.

[andicap]

Interesting that he provides little info on the Meadowlands. Wonder why?

[Zaf]

Originally posted by Tom
Their selections for Medowlands Friday night were decent - Top pick went 10 -1-8-0. 8 places! for the top pick. Several paid over $10 to place.
This looks like a site to watch.

Tom or Andy,

Could you give me a hand with the abbreviations in the selections section. I know what the Sartin/Brohamer abbreviations mean for the T-breds, but I am a total amateur in Harness. THANKS.

Race 1 Distance: 1 Mile
Gait: Pace Class: 10000CL Purse: $4700

Horse Name (ML) ES LS AP PF AF Total
B R MCGWIRE (20) 83 88 85.5 62 70 217.5

ES - early speed ?
LS - late speed ?
AP - average pace ?
PF - ???
AF - ???

ZAFONIC

[Tom]

Not sure - what you guessed looks god - PF AF ???
Mystery to me. Will try to find out.
Tom

[Zaf]

Originally posted by Tom
Not sure - what you guessed looks god - PF AF ???
Mystery to me. Will try to find out.
Tom

I e-mailed eddie, the guy running the site. He is supposed to post a glossary explaining their meaning soon.

ZAFONIC