How to disadvantage speed in horse racing: how to use the beyer speed classification in 2008

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The Beyer Speed ​​Rating is one of the most practical ways the handicapper should begin their journey to choosing the right horse. A horse’s speed can alter the race in how quickly he takes the lead or when he decides to turn down the stretch. The speed rating was created by Andrew Beyer and although it gives us a numerical representation of a horse’s performance based on the final time of the track on which he ran. The higher the speed figure, the better the performance, sounds simple right? If one could go to the track and win the ones with the highest speed ratings all the time, there would be no need for this website.

When you look at the rankings and see a horse regularly earning figures in the 50s and running into a handful of runners always in the 70s, we can usually write this horse off. This brings to our attention that the horse is in a class below the horses he is up against. It’s not the actual figure that makes the difference, it’s how he got that speed. You are trying to limit the true speed of the horse, this is done by looking at past figures that stay in the same range. Also a true one can be determined by a horse going from wire to wire with no real challengers.

You also have to consider the horse that had a low speed rating last time, but has been stellar in previous ones. There could be a valid reason for this poor statistic. These horses can sometimes avoid betting traffic and you can get some decent odds on a horse that wins the race easily. Look for the circumstances that offer the best value. Unfortunately, factors play into the speed number, such as track bias, problem trips, coach conditioning, post position, coach intent, etc. Don’t let that put you off the more you know about them, the more accurate you will be with speed. ratings These ratings are basically something to compare one horse to another to see which one is superior. The problem with speed ratings is that they are only accurate enough for comparison if the same conditions were present that day with the same distance.

Numerous patterns have been studied for common ground between speed rankings, so in this modern age you can use them to your advantage in handicapped horse racing. Here is a very simple approach you can apply

* Do this for each horse in the program, the more recent the races, the better the prediction of the speed at which the horse will run

* Take the horses out in the field and average your top two speed ratings over today’s distance. (because distance plays a very important factor in a horse’s speed)

*make a note if the races are on the same track that is running today. If you can compare it to a horse that ran on the same track, it has direct speed ratings and choose the one that is higher.

*After doing this for each horse, I like to make a note of the top 3 and continue with my handicap. This gives it a good solid use for the beyer system in the modern age. This is a very simple but very effective process and gives you a solid number to start with.

As you can see, the speed rating can be played in a number of ways. If you have horses you are comparing actual Beyer speed ratings to. You want to find out if they ran the same distance on the same track under the same conditions, then you have a real comparison. You can compare these horses with their heads up and choose the one that is taller.

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What I like to do is keep looking for overlaps as to why they had a great trip or a bad one. If the horse just had a bad start that is uncharacteristic for him, then you can rule out that particular race that others are still watching. I always shoot horses that have their overall speed rating much lower than the rest. Incorporate this simple formula while looking at the speed rating and make sure this is one of several bullets in your gun.

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