The problem is that a lot of harness races are won by favorites or low priced winners. The reason is the consistency of the breed and the way harness races shape up. This is especially true on half mile tracks and five eighths mile tracks where post position is so critical. Just betting the long shots is financial suicide. So what do you look for to find a good long shot bet?

As crazy as it may sound, inconsistency is a good place to start. There are a lot of talented Standardbreds that win once in a while but often get beaten by inferior horses. The reason may be a chronic physical problem like lameness, or a problem with their heads and desire.

Many good trainers and drivers will tell you they don’t know when a horse will give you a good race or throw in a listless effort. It is very frustrating to know you have a horse with great potential that refuses to give his or her best most of the time. It is also equally as frustrating to know that if your horse is healthy and feeling good, it can beat anything else in the race but to also know it isn’t at its best and will probably get beaten.

Sometimes, however, a trainer does know his horse is ready and has overcome a problem, at least enough to win a race or two. Many times, you will see an inconsistent horse moving up in class off a dull effort. When you see such a situation, the first step is to check out the trainer and to see if he or she is competent. When a good trainer makes this move it often signals a big race for the horse.

It also usually means a big price. However, when such a horse moves up and gets any action at all in the pools, you can bet that the trainer and the “in” crowd are onto the horse and expect a good race. Keeping a list of trainers who make this move and knowing how to watch the pools to spot inside money will often help you to find a good long shot bet at the harness races.

The most consistent harness horse racing systems have to have the basics and a handicapper must understand the basics. I have been around horse racing for 50 years including as an owner. Without the basics the rest is not going to do any good. If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to http://williewins.homestead.com/harness_racing_system.html and get the truth.

Bill Peterson is a former horse race owner and professional handicapper. He comes from a horse race handicapping family and as he puts it, “Horse Racing is in my blood.” To see all Bill’s horse racing material go to http://williewins.homestead.com/handicappingstore.html , Bill’s handicapping store.

Whether you are handicapping harness races or thoroughbred races, speed figures can be very helpful, but also misleading. Just using speed figures alone to pick winners will usually result in long term losses, though they may make a profit on one day or another. Horse races are multi-faceted events that depend on many factors.

You cannot add a column of numbers and come up with the right amount unless you know all the numbers in the column and you cannot handicap a harness race or thoroughbred race without all the factors. Those factors also have to be weighted and the reason that we rely so heavily on speed figures is because they are one of the more important factors.

But how you use speed figures is very important, because they can lead you far astray if you do not know how to compare them. I like to look at speed figures in two different ways.

The first thing I want to know is, “What have you done for me lately?” To answer that question I look at the horse’s latest race and speed figure. Of course, I want to see it on a fast track and preferably the same surface as today’s race. One of the many reasons for that is that a horse that is lame or sore may post a high speed figure on a soft turf course, but do considerably worse on a hard dirt surface. So I like to see a race on the same surface under the same conditions.

My next consideration is whether or not that race was typical of the horse or for some reason, atypical. While Standardbreds and usually more consistent than Thoroughbreds, either breed may have an unusually fast race from time to time based on the trip and other conditions that I may not be aware of. On the other hand, if I see that the speed rating was within the normal to high side of the horse’s usual speed then I know that it was not a fluke.

That is why I like to always compare the last speed rating to the average for the horse over a reasonable period of time. A horse with a speed rating out of its own range will make me dig deeper and occasionally, if I can’t find a suitable reason, I will skip the race. But bear in mind that no matter what the speed figures do show, they are still only a part of the overall picture.

The most consistent horse racing systems have to have the basics and a handicapper must understand the basics. I have been around horse racing for 50 years including as an owner. Without the basics the rest is not going to do any good. If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps just go to http://williewins.homestead.com/truecb.html and get the truth.

Bill Peterson is a former horse race owner and professional handicapper. He comes from a horse race handicapping family and as he puts it, “Horse Racing is in my blood.” To see all Bill’s horse racing material go to http://williewins.homestead.com/handicappingstore.html , Bill’s handicapping store.

There are several aspects of betting on harness races for money that lend themselves very well to a system. First of all, there are factors in racing that each have their own importance. Things like post position, driver success reflected as a UDR (universal driver rating), and class of the race must be considered and compared.

Using a systematic approach makes sure no factor is left out of the final result and that each one receives the right amount of weight. When you’re looking for a good bet, another consideration is which races to play and which races to pass. By evaluating a race using the same method each time, you assure yourself that you won’t play a race one day that you would have passed over on another day. That is consistency, and as good harness horse race handicappers know, consistency is very important in Standardbred races.

The final thought on a good harness racing system is that it allows you to keep track of your progress and to know where you are in your quest for successful betting. Investing in races is no different than any other form of investing. You have to keep track of your money and manage it well. In other words, a systematic approach.

You may have been handicapping harness races for many years, but if you are just doing the same things over and over and still losing, that is financial suicide. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results. A good harness system, because it is predictable and measurable, allows you to not only keep track of your progress, but also to make small adjustments to suit your own style and changing conditions at the track.

The most consistent horse racing systems have to have the basics and a handicapper must understand the basics. I have been around horse racing for 50 years including as an owner. Without the basics the rest is not going to do any good. If you want to learn how a horse owner and insider handicaps a harness race just go to http://williewins.homestead.com/truecb.html and get the truth.

Bill Peterson is a former horse race owner and professional handicapper. He comes from a horse race handicapping family and as he puts it, “Horse Racing is in my blood.” To see all Bill’s horse racing material go to http://williewins.homestead.com/handicappingstore.html , Bill’s handicapping store.