Conditions Question

[OverlayHunter]

“OClm 50000 … FOR FILLIES THREE YEARS OLD WHICH HAVE STARTED FOR A CLAIMING PRICE OF $50,000 OR LESS AND WHICH HAVE NEVER WON A RACE OTHER THAN MAIDEN OR CLAIMING OR OPTIONAL CLAIMING PRICE $50,000.”

Is this the equivalent of a Starter Allowance but with the twist of, at the owner’s election, allowing a horse to be claimed?

My first thought was that these conditions are typically written just to make it easier to fill a field but, if I’m reading the PP’s of this race (GP Race 7 on Feb. 10, 2013) correctly, it was an almost full field of 11 horses only one of which was entered for a claim price.

[Brogan]

It's a Starter Allowance AND a $50k claimer smooshed together. Its not that you have the option to run for a tag, its that you have the eligibility to run for a tag even though you don't meet the other conditions.

[WoxFan]

When I see races like this it means one thing: don't bet.
Move onto another race.

[chadk66]

the horse had to have started for a claiming price of 50k or less and has never won an race other than a maiden race, a claiming race or an optional claiming race of 50K.

This kind of BS race writing is done to entice horses to enter to fill fields. usually written so that a certain trainer can get a horse ran while enticing others to fill the race. They never used to write garbage like this. Things were pretty straight forward back in the day.

[Tom]

Agree, claiming races were better than this crap. there are a lot them written today, to the benefit of the horsemen, not the average customer.

If you are going to play the races infrequently, my advice is seek out races at the simulcast tracks and play those. Money won on Finger Lakes buys as much as money bet at Belmont.

If you are going have to deal with these, then it will pay to keep notes. Which races do you suppose is the better one, as shown in the PPs?

Alw25000 or Alw40000?

Hands down the 25000 is better than the 40000, because the 40000 conditions limit the entrants to M40000 winners.


Keep notes of the conditions, and keep notes of which trainers are winning them. If you can, cut and past photos of the winners so you can see the paths they took to get there. Charts are free and a click or two away - use them.

Beat them by being prepared or beat them by passing them - there are lots of races out there. No one is bound to play a certain track or type of race.


Maybe a good thread would be one to discuss the creative writing skills of today's tracks.

[OverlayHunter]

Thanks, all, for the replies.

Which races do you suppose is the better one, as shown in the PPs?

Alw25000 or Alw40000?

Hands down the 25000 is better than the 40000, because the 40000 conditions limit the entrants to M40000 winners.

Tom, I hate to be "thick" about this but I'm not following what you said here. Perhaps it comes down to how you are defining "better" but I took that to mean the race that would attract - on average - the better (more capable, faster) horses. Doesn't Alw25000 have a $25,000 purse and Alw40000 have a $40,000 purse? If that's true, won't the better horses try for the higher purse?

[OverlayHunter]

Maybe a good thread would be one to discuss the creative writing skills of today's tracks.

I think that topic is probably pertinent to and appropriate within this thread, so go for it.

[therussmeister]

Originally Posted by OverlayHunter

Thanks, all, for the replies.



Tom, I hate to be "thick" about this but I'm not following what you said here. Perhaps it comes down to how you are defining "better" but I took that to mean the race that would attract - on average - the better (more capable, faster) horses. Doesn't Alw25000 have a $25,000 purse and Alw40000 have a $40,000 purse? If that's true, won't the better horses try for the higher purse?

Actually Mr. Tom is wrong. At least in my past performances there is no such thing as Alw250000, it would say something such as Alw2500nw1x, and a race limited to maiden 40000 claiming winners would be something like Alw40000s.

[OverlayHunter]

therussmeister,

Even if Tom meant those allowance classes to be starter allowances, wouldn't the race that permitted winners of higher class races be considered better? Is Alw25000s typically better (i.e., has a stronger field) than Alw40000s? I've always thought the opposite.

[Tom]

From the Handicapper's Edge at BRIS, July 25 this year (link no longer active):

Alw40000s
It is a starter allowance event for horses who broke their maiden for $40K or less or $50K or less if they are New York-breds AND have never won two races.
The second race is listed as follows:
Alw20000s
It is a starter allowance event for horses who have started for a claiming price of $20K or less AND since that start, have not won a race other than maiden, claiming or starter.
Normally, when you examine past performances, you would think that the first race for Alw40000s is a higher quality race than the one for Alw20000s. But it is not.
The non-winners of two condition that is part of the Alw40000s essentially limits the race to horses who have only won one race lifetime and broke their maiden for either $50K or $40K.

[therussmeister]

Originally Posted by OverlayHunter

therussmeister,

Even if Tom meant those allowance classes to be starter allowances, wouldn't the race that permitted winners of higher class races be considered better? Is Alw25000s typically better (i.e., has a stronger field) than Alw40000s? I've always thought the opposite.

Yes, but in the example Tom gave only the alw40000 race was a starter allowance, that's why he said the 25000 race was stronger. My point was your past performances differentiate between the two different types of allowance races, so you don't have to keep notes or look up old charts to know the difference.

[Tom]

Not always. you will see both the Alw40000s and the Alw25000s.
One is for horses who broken their maidens for $40K and have not won 2 races, the other is for horse who have started for a claiming price of $25K or less since a date and have not won a race other than maiden, claiming, or starter since then. Much better horses could get into the later race.