Tag: Handicapping 101

By Ray Wallin Once a handicapper finds what wins it is only natural to be excited. Thoughts start racing through your head about how much you could stand to make each week, month, or over …

By Ray Wallin Recently a reader emailed me a question. Scatterbrained Scott wanted to know how to get more time to handicap and how to use that time efficiently. This is a problem that I …

By Ray Wallin Ask almost any handicapper about what pace style they think has an edge at the track and you will get the same answer: Early speed As handicappers we frame our reference of …

By Ray Wallin Are you that person who can’t remember what your spouse asked you to get from the store? Did you forget what you had for breakfast by mid-morning? Did you already forget why …

By Noel Michaels Fall Stars Weekend is upon us, which means it’s time for the prestigious Keeneland fall meet, opening Friday (Oct. 8) for 17 days of racing over three weeks in Lexington, Kentucky, the …

By Ray Wallin Have you ever considered what the difference is between someone who is a good handicapper and someone who is one of the best handicappers? What took them over that hump of churning …

By Ray Wallin My older teenage son is an eclectic movie buff. While he loves the current mainstream movies, he has affection for some of the classics and obscure directors. One night over a family …

By Ray Wallin We all have dreams we want to pursue. For some people it is an exciting career as an accountant or juggling unicyclist. For others it may be making a living from playing …

By Ray Wallin Recently a reader sent me a question that I thought was easy to answer until I thought about it longer. Frustrated Frank asked, “What is a successful way to approach a race?” …

By Ray Wallin After 30 plus years of playing the races, I am convinced that handicapping is alchemy. Alchemy is as old as the ages. In Ancient Greek times the great philosophers like Aristotle and …

By Ray Wallin In the past, I have shared some great videos of horseplayers behaving badly or being a bit over the top in cheering their horses to victory. But how does man’s best friend …

By Noel Michaels The Saratoga racing season attracts the best horses and horsemen, not only from New York but from everywhere. Trainers from many circuits point their best horses to Saratoga, and the competition for …

By Ed McNamara The late Dick Enberg was such a fine announcer that he could have made play-by-play of an ant race entertaining. In 1984, he hosted the first Breeders’ Cup, and his likeable personality …

By Ed McNamara Rule of the Earth No. 1: The rich always get richer. Exhibit A: Godolphin LLC. Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum’s international superpower has ruled the world in 2021. For three months, Godolphin has …

By Ray Wallin I’ve crossed paths with a lot of different characters at the track in my 30 plus years of horseplaying. There have been guys you could laugh at like our good friend Rail …