A

Across the board
a bet on a horse to win, place and show.

Added money
money added to the purse of a race by the racing association or by a breeding or other fund.

All out
when a horse extends himself to the utmost.

Allowance race
a race other than claiming for which the racing secretary drafts certain conditions to determine weights.

Allowances
weight permitted to be reduced because of the conditions of the race or because an apprentice is on a horse. Also, a weight females are entitled to when racing against males.

Also eligible
a horse officially entered, but not permitted to start unless the field is reduced by scratches below a specified number.

Also ran
a horse who finishes out of the money.

Apprentice
rider who has not ridden a certain number of winners within a specified period of time. Also known as a bug boy.

Apprentice allowance
weight concession to an apprentice rider: usually 10 pounds until the fifth winner, seven pounds until the 35th winner and five pounds for one calendar year from the 35th winner.

B

Baby race
a race for 2-year-olds.

Backside
stable area.

Blanket finish
horses finishing so closely together they could be covered by a blanket.

Board
totalisator board on which odds, betting pools and other information is displayed.

Bolt
sudden veering from a straight course.

Breakage
in pari-mutuel payoffs which are rounded out to a nickel or dime, those pennies that are left over. Breakage is generally split between the track and state and in some cases, breeding or other funds, in varying proportions.

Breakdown
when a horse suffers an injury; lameness.

Break maiden
horse or rider winning first race of a career.

Breeding fund
a fund set up by many states to provide bonus prizes for state-breds.

Bug
apprentice rider.

Bullet
the best time for the distance on a given day at a track.

Bull ring
small racetrack; usually less than one mile.

C

Claiming
buying a horse out of a race for the entered price.

Claiming race
race in which horses are entered subject to claim for a specified price.

Classic
race of traditional importance.

Closer
a horse who runs best in the latter part of the race, coming from off the pace.

Condition race
an event with conditions limiting it to a certain class of horse. Such as Fillies, 3-year-olds, non-winners of two races other than maiden or claiming etc.

Contract rider
jockey under a contract to a stable.

Coupled
two or more horses running as an entry in a single betting unit.

Cushion
surface of track or a layer of the track.

D

Daily double
type of wager calling for the selection of winners of two consecutive races, usually the first and second.

Dead heat
two or more horses finishing in an exact tie at the wire.

Dead track
racing surface lacking resiliency.

Disqualification
change of order of finish by officials for an infraction of the rules.

Distanced
finishing a great distance behind the winner.

Dropdown
a horse facing a lower class of rivals than he had been running against.

E

Eased
chart caller’s assessment of a horse that is being deliberately slowed by the jockey to prevent injury or harm to the horse.

Easily
running or winning without being pressed by rider or opposition.

Eight
a furlong; 220 yards; 660 feet, 1/8 of a mile.

Eligible
qualified to start in a race, according to conditions.

Equivalent odds
mutual price horses pay for each $1 bet.

Evenly
neither gaining nor losing position or distance during a race.

Exacta / perfecta
a wager in which the first two finishers in a race, in exact order of finish, must be picked.

F

Faltered
a term used for a horse that was in contention early and drops back in the late stages. It is more drastic than weakened but less drastic than stopped.

False favourite
a horse who is bet down to favoritism when others would appear to outclass him on form.

Fast track
footing at its best; dry, fast and even.

Field
the horses in a race.

Field horse
two or more starters running as a single betting unit, when there are more entrants than the totalisator board can accommodate.

Firm
a turf course condition corresponding to fast on a dirt track.

Four furlongs
half a mile; 880 yards; 2,640 feet.

Fractional time
intermediate time recorded in a race, as at the quarter, half, three-quarters, etc.

Front runner
a horse who usually leads the field.

Furlong
1/8 of a mile; 220 yards; 660 feet.

G

Good bottom
track that is firm under the surface, which may be sloppy or wet.

Good track
condition between fast and slow.

Graduate
winning at a class and moving up.

H

Half
half a mile, four furlongs; 880 yards; 2,640 feet.

Handicap
a race a handicapper assigns weights to be carried. Also, to handicap a race, to make selections on the basis of the past performances.

Handicapper
one who assigns weights. Also one who makes selections on past performances.

Handle
amount of money wagered in the pari-mutuel pool on a race, a program, a meeting or a year.

Head
a margin between the horses. One horse leading another by the length of his head.

Head of the stretch
beginning of the stretch run home.

I

In the money
finishing first, second or third.

Inquiry
stewards reviewing the race to check into a possible infraction of the rules.

J

Jockey fee
sum paid to a rider.

L

Late double
a second daily double offered on the latter part of the program.

Lenght
length of a horse from nose to tail, about 8 feet. Also distance between horses in a race.

Lock
slang for a "sure thing" winner.

M

Maiden
a horse who has not won a race. Also applied to a non-winning rider.

Maiden race
a race for non-winners.

Middle distance
broadly; From one mile to less than a mile and an eighth.

Minus pool
a mutual pool caused when one horse is so heavily wagered on, that after deductions of state tax and commission, there is not enough money left to pay the legally prescribed minimum on each winning bet.

Morning glory
a horse who performs well in morning workouts but fails to reproduce that form in races.

Morning line
approximate odds quoted before wagering determines exact odds.

N

Neck
a unit of measurement; a quarter of a length.

Nod
lowering of head. Winning in that manner.

Nose
smallest advantage a horse can win by.

O

Odds on
odds of less than even money.

Official
sign displayed when result is confirmed. Also racing official.

On the board
finishing among the first four.

On the nose
betting a horse to win only.

Overnight line
prices quoted the night before the race.

Overnight race
a race in which entries close a specific number of hours before running (such as 48 hours) as opposed to a stakes race for which nominations close weeks and sometimes months in advance.

P

Pari-mutuel
a form of wagering that originated in France in which all money bet is divided up among those who have winning tickets, after taxes, takeout and other deductions are made.

Past performance
a compilation in the Daily Racing Form of a horse’s record, including all pertinent data, used as a basis for handicapping.

Photo finish
a result so close it is necessary to use a finish-line camera to determine order of finish.

Place
second position at finish.

Place bet
wager on a horse to finish first or second.

Pool (mutuel pool)
total sum wagered.

Purse
prize money.

Q

Quarter
one-quarter of a mile; 440 yards; 1,320 feet.

Quinella
a wager in which the first two finishers must be picked in either order.

R

Rabbit
a horse that is considered to have little chance of winning a race but is entered purely to ensure a fast pace, softening up the competition for the benefit of the entry mate.

Route
race distance of a mile or longer.

Router
horse who perfoms well at distance races.

S

Saddle Cloth
a cloth under the saddle on which a horse's wagering number is displayed.

Scratch
to be taken out of a race.

Seven furlongs
seven-eighths of a mile; 1,540 yards; 4,620 feet.

Show
third position at the finish.

Show bet
wager on a horse to finish in the money, third or better.

Six furlongs
three-quarters of a mile; 1,320 yards; 3,960 feet.

Sixteenth
one-sixteenth of a mile; 110 yards, 330 feet.

Stakes placed
finishing first, second or third in a stakes race.

Stake
a race for which the owner must pay a fee to run his horse. Some stakes races are by invitation and require no payment or fee.

Starter race
an allowance or handicap race restricted to horses who have started for a specific claiming price or less.

Stretch
final straight portion of the racetrack to the finish.

Stretch call
position of horses at the eighth pole, usually about halfway down the stretch.

Stretch runne
horse who finishes fast.

Stretch turn
bend of track into homestretch.

Subscription
fee paid by owner to nominate horse for a stakes race or to maintain eligibility for a stakes race.

Suspend
a punishment for infraction of rules.

T

Take / takeout
a commission deducted from pari-mutuel pools.

Totalisator
a machine which sells and records wagering tickets and shows odds. Also figures out and displays payoffs.

Tout
one who gives tips on racehorses.

Track records
fastest time at various distances recorded at a particular track.

Trial
workout.

Trifecta / triple
a wager picking the first three finishers in exact order.

Trip
a horse’s race.

Triple Crown
the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes.

W

Walkover
a race which scratches down to only one starter who merely gallops the required distance.

Winner takes all
a winner receiving all the purse or stakes.