[Football-horse84]

Hey I been at horse handicapping for a little while still very much a newbie and I have a couple of questions.

Is horse handicapping all about understanding how to read past performances?


In what circumstances would u consider the dosage index of a horse?

Is there any type of program to use as a tool and guide?

What books would u recommend to a newbie?

Thanks for any and all input!!!

[blueguitar]

I would recommend the book "Betting on Horse Racing for Dummies," by Richard Eng, no offense intended. The Dummies series has some excellent books and this is one of them. I would never use a dosage index but maybe others would. You ask about a program and I'm assuming you mean a computer program and I can't help you there. There is a service called "Trackmaster" put out by Equibase but I can't recommend it, I don't know if it's worthwhile, maybe others do. Certainly reading past performances is a main part of handicapping. Reading charts which give even more info about a single race is also recommended. I also use info that I can obtain visually. It generally takes a fair amount of time to become a good handicapper so you shouldn't rush yourself. There are many, many different types of strategies and you must find a betting strategy that you are comfortable with. Many who have learned about betting horses have enjoyed doing this for their whole lives. Quite a few have lost too much money. Good Luck.

[Football-horse84]

Thanks for that bit of insight its very helpful. If I may ask but what charts are you talking about? Where can I find these charts to follow up on?

[blueguitar]

Thanks for that bit of insight its very helpful. If I may ask but what charts are you talking about? Where can I find these charts to follow up on?

Charts are written after a race by an expert who is I believe employed by the Daily Racing Form. They give more detailed info about a race than the past performances from the program or from the Daily Racing Form. Charts are free to see on the website equibase.com. I have provided a link to a chart here. Scroll down to the bottom to read the footnotes which are the most valuable thing about the charts. Also, the Daily Racing Form is the most respected publication about racing. I recommend that you buy a couple of issues at a newsstand and read the commentary or subscribe to their website drf.com

http://www.equibase.com/premium/char...15&cy=USA&rn=6