Secrets for Newbies: To Race or Not to Race

Original article written by Clinton Jacinto posted 14 years 3 weeks ago

Can I race my horses now?

Most new players are impatient and rush their new found race horses %99.9 of the time. The best thing for a new player to do at this time is to evaluate their horses. There are many things that need to be done before a race horse in the SIM is deemed race worthy.

Rest Time:

It is very important to give your race horses ample time to rest before it can go back out to its next race. Most SIM trainers give their runners three weeks of real time rest. That means if your horse raced Mon wk 1 its next race should be Mon wk 4 or Mon wk 5. You can race your horse within 2 weeks, not all horses like running in such a short time, some do however. Four weeks of rest is also not favorable for all horses, just like some horses don’t like 2 weeks of rest some other horses don’t like long rests.

Correct Surface and Distance:

Some horses get mismanaged a lot of time especially by new players. They forget to evaluate the preferred surface and distance of the race horse. If a dirt horse is running in a turf race. That horse more than likely will not even get close to getting a win in that race unless it is multi-surfaced oriented. It goes the same with the distance. You can bet that most routers won’t win in short distances and vice versa. It is very important to get these two right if the new player wants his new race horse to be competitive.

Correct Type of Race:

Many new players are not aware that some races are easier to win than others. Most will just want their new horse to race no matter what type of race it is. A lot of new players make mistakes of entering their horses in stakes races they have no business being in. It’s a weird thing because I remember doing the same thing as a new player. I had this notion that my horses had a chance at winning. Well, unless that new player picked up an amazing horse %90 of the time they will not win that stakes race. New players need to learn how to place their horses in the right races. If your horse’s best chance to win is in a claiming race then that is where they belong. There is no sense in putting them in races that they can’t win and make you decent money. This is unless you are just trying to fill a race.

Weather:

The weather affects the race tracks and the race tracks affect the horses that run in that race. Not all horses love the slop. Some hate the mud and will affect their performance in the race. It is unknown how much track condition really affects horses, but I’m sure it is also a factor to consider. For new players who are just starting out in the game, a good thing to do is just try to avoid the sloppy tracks. Unless your horse has in its notes that say your horse likes the foul weather then I would avoid the slop all together. With SIMperior a new player can access a horse whisperer, who is able to let you know if your horse likes the slop or not. Most of the time with mediocre horses players do not use the whisperer because it cost money to use him and it really in most times necessary to know if your horse runs well on slop or not because your horse will show hints that they don’t like the slop. The horse might not run as well on the slop compared to the faster track.

Shipping:

Try not to enter your horse to race half a world away. Try to enter horses in tracks close to where they are. Most horses are sent to farms after they race. They recover faster in farms with amenities rather than being left in the race tracks. By shipping short distances your horse can rest much longer rather than being stressed out because of long travel.

With this info a new player should be more successful in racing given that they follow through and not break any cardinal rules.

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