posted July 9, 2008 at 17:52 in Triple Crown Betting Trends

It takes a big man to admit something is not his forte or that he is wrong and the admission here is that harness racing is not exactly my cup of tea but horse bettors that find themselves wandering around the Las Vegas casinos in the early evening sometimes have not other horse betting options so here is a quick overview on the sulky game.

It’s not like I have no clue about harness racing wagering as I actually took the official race call for the Daily Racing Form for a couple of meetings back in the day in the early 1980s, but this is a sport that is unique and his is nuances.

The normal program at any harness track in America has a card that consists mainly of pacers with a few trotters sprinkled in.

Pacers have a more even gate, think of a football player that can run the 40-yard dash under 4.5 seconds while trotters have a staccato up and down motion to their running and are therefore slower.

Unlike thoroughbreds, harness horses are more stout and come to race every week or so. And unlike thoroughbreds, where a gap in training can sometimes bring a horse back fresh and dangerous, gaps in racing by harness horses is generally a negative thing.

The main things handicappers look for in the program when they start the process is the runner’s fastest winning time in the last 2 years and where it was accomplished.

Obviously, the overall record of the horse and his fastest lifetime mark along with career earnings.

Like the more prominent breed, drops in class are important and even more so for the sulky set. Usually a drop from a $10,000 race to a $6,000 race will produce a major improvement in the result.

Whereas consistency in thoroughbred runners can sometimes translate to a runner that is usually around the wire but has the lack of a killer instinct, the ability to hold form and run the same way every time is a major plus for the harness set.

The best harness horse bettors have a great concept of trips and of where each entrant shows his best race. Some sulkies hate the inside and although the rail is usually considered a major plus in the harness game, the horse bettor that studies charts and video replay will have a much better edge on where each horse prefers to start.

The races themselves are designated as a conditioned race, where eligibility is based on age, sex, money won or races won, invitational, open or preferred races, where the fastest horses on the grounds compete. In Invitational and Preferred events, the racing secretary invites the top horses he wants for a particular race.

The basic pace theories that surround the thoroughbred game also play out with harness races. If there is a race with a number of speed horses in the line up, a runner that can save ground and pace from a cozy rail or post 2 slot could have a distinct edge in the final quarter of a mile.

When the day is out, horse betting fans must decide which driver they trust and want to put their hard money on. Like in thoroughbred, where the top jockeys get the best horses, the same can be said of the sulky game and some of the best drivers can be found at the Meadowlands in New Jersey.

The bottom line about the sulky game is not to be afraid to bet horses that are well fancied, the favorites do very well over the long run and if you are wagering on guys back East named Croghan, Rucker, Silva or Fusco, you are well on the way to turning a profit in this niche sport.

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