Amicus, my 1% five year old trotter is in to race at Mohawk raceway on 8-21-17. This is my most recent purchase and to me he is still a bit of an unknown. He is lightly raced this year with only four parimutuel races. He has not raced at Mohawk this year except for a qualifier race, and he has not raced against these horses at least lately. He is in a 12,000 to 15,000 handicap claimer.
For those that are not familiar with racing terms and how horses are entered, let me give a quick overview. The race secretary at each track writes the conditions for the races to be held that week. The purpose is to group horses of similar performance together. A secretary might write a race such as”NW $4,000 LAST 5 START”. This mean in order to enter the race the horse must have earned less than $4,000 over their last 5 starts. Qualifiers do not count as a start. The secretary will write conditions for each race they intend to race. If a trainer has a horse that fits the conditions he can enter it into the race. A few days after the conditions are posted, there is a draw. Each horse is assigned a number and a corresponding numbered ball is placed in a container. There is a second container with balls that represent the post position. A judge draws a number from the horse container and one from the position container. Which ever horse was drawn is assigned the position drawn. If there were more horses entered than able to race an additional horse will be drawn which is assigned AE, also eligible. If one of the horses is scratched before race day, the AE will take their place.
On each race card will be a number of claiming races. to enter a claiming race, the owner of the horse is agreeing to sell the horse at the price set. For example, a $12,000 claimer means the horse is available for sale at $12,000. This is how a claim happens. At least 30 minutes before the start of the race, a qualified buyer will present a claim form to the race secretary along with a certified check in the amount of the claim. Such transactions are done in secret at the time. to be a qualified buyer, the potential owner must have a trainer and hold a license as a owner in the jurisdiction of the race. At the start of the race ownership changes hands, however, the winnings if any belong to the previous owner. Claims are announced after the race is declared official. the new trainer takes custody of the horse when it returns to the paddock.
Amicus is racing as a $14,000 claimer.
amicus8-21-17Position mouse on the bottom of the PDF file and click to go to the next page.