It can be very useful to know about the individual details of each course when you are looking to make a profit from horse racing as these differ from course to course considerably.
Over the last week Glen has been putting together the details of each course in the forum and it is such a useful tool that I wanted to make it into a post in order to maximise it’s use. You will also be able to download the spreadsheet with the details in the Download area.
| Course | Group | LH / RH | Turns | Finishes | Finish Distance in Furlongs | Altitude in Feet | Track Type |
| Ascot | 1 | RH | Easy | Uphill | 3 | 300 | Stiff Galloping |
| Beverly | 3 | RH | Normal | Uphill | 2.5 | 145 | Stiff Galloping |
| Curragh | 1 | RH | Normal | Uphill | 5 | Stiff Galloping | |
| Carlisle | 4 | RH | Normal | Flat | 3 | 211 | Stiff Galloping |
| Bath | 3 | LH | Normal | Uphill | 4 | 780 | Galloping |
| Doncaster | 1 | LH | Easy | Flat | 4.5 | 40 | Galloping |
| Haydock | 1 | LH | Normal | Uphill | 4.5 | 150 | Galloping |
| Kempton | 3 | RH | Normal | Flat | 3.5 | 40 | Galloping |
| Leicester | 3 | RH | Easy | Undulating | 5 | 350 | Galloping |
| Newbury | 1 | LH | Easy | Undulating | 5 | 260 | Galloping |
| Newcastle | 1 | LH | Easy | Uphill | 4 | 200 | Galloping |
| Newmarket | 1 | RH | Normal | Down and Up | 90 | Galloping | |
| Redcar | 2 | LH | Normal | Flat | 5 | 27 | Galloping |
| Salisbury | 2 | RH | Normal | Uphill | 7 | 475 | Galloping |
| Sandown | 1 | RH | Normal | Uphill | 4 | 120 | Galloping |
| Wolverhampton | 4 | LH | Normal | Flat | 5 | 435 | Galloping |
| Yarmouth | 3 | LH | Normal | Flat | 5 | 12 | Galloping |
| York | 1 | LH | Easy | Flat | 5 | 40 | Galloping |
| Catterick | 4 | LH | Sharp | Downhill | 3 | 200 | Sharp |
| Chester | 2 | LH | Sharp | Flat | 2 | 25 | Sharp |
| Edinburgh | 4 | RH | Sharp | Uphill | 4 | 56 | Sharp |
| Goodwood | 1 | RH | Sharp | Downhill | 5 | 53 | Sharp |
| Lingfield | 2 | LH | Normal | Downhill | 3 | 200 | Sharp |
| Nottingham | 3 | LH | Easy | Flat | 4.5 | 75 | Sharp |
| Ripon | 2 | RH | Sharp | Undulating | 5 | 85 | Sharp |
| Thirsk | 2 | LH | Normal | Flat | 4 | 113 | Sharp |
| Warwick | 4 | LH | Sharp | Flat | 3.5 | 200 | Sharp |
| Windsor | 3 | LH / RH | Switch Back | Flat | 6 | 65 | Sharp |
| Ayr | 1 | LH | Easy | Flat | 4 | 57 | Undulating |
| Brighton | 2 | LH | Easy | Uphill | 3.5 | 400 | Undulating |
| Chepstow | 2 | LH | Normal | Undulating | 5 | 250 | Undulating |
| Epsom | 1 | LH | Normal | Down and Up | 4 | 483 | Undulating |
| Folkestone | 4 | RH | Easy | Uphill | 2 | 250 | Undulating |
| Hamilton | 4 | RH | Easy | Uphill | 5 | 190 | Undulating |
| Pontefract | 3 | LH | Sharp | Uphill | 2 | 100 | Undulating |
There are many ways that this information can be used. For example if you know a horse is a strong finisher but likes to run in the middle of the runners until the finish then you may want to be cautious of betting on him when there is only a 2 furlong finish. A runner who has some stamina difficulties may find a 4 furlong uphill finish to much at the end of the race.
Very interesting info, i have one question though whats the finish distance in furlongs for Newmarket?
Didnt have that on file Matt
wlii look it up somtime i also have one or two courses to add
regards
glen
I always find these kind of charts pretty bland and not much use. The information on the diferent course characteristic needs to be broken down and more detailed to be of any real use. Eg at Brighton the course has quite pronunced undulations this especially affects 2yo races where the horses have not matured sufficiently to handle the ground. therefore if backing 2yo at brighton you need to know the horse can handle the undulations. it is good for laying 2yo favourites though.
Beverley is another course where the ground can have a material effect on the result. Beverly is probably the stiffest 5furlong course in the country therefore if backing you need to ensure your selection has the necessary stamina to get home. Course details need to be broken down to distance and how it affects different types of runners.
Remember there are TWO courses at Newmarket : Rowley Mile and July course. The former has a 10 furlong straight the latter an 8 furlong straight. For longer distances they both use the same turf ( which is known as the Beacon course ! )
I think Davey Towey tackled this problem in his book The Solidus written back in 1993. The book was brilliant in it’s conception but I don’t think Davey was very good at explaining how to use his ratings, as it seemed to sink without trace. But I constantly revisit it. I think the charts put most people off.
I noticed years ago that racecourses came in groups, (Bath, Chepstow, Salisbury) (Beverley, Pontefract, Hamilton,) (Leic, Nott, Warw) (Ling, Epsom. Brighton) (Donc, York) etc. I did a study on these courses, and initially I thought it might be geographical. which it is partly, but I discovered that horses will run on the difficult courses and do fairly well, ie train on them really, but win on the easier ones. It stands to reason if they can cope with the most difficult course of the trio, and come 2nd, then it will be a piece of cake to win on the easier course. It happens all the time.
Also another thing to ponder on is why do racecourses have distances of say 6f 15yds. That is totally illogical, and thinking of it there is a very logical reason, if your horse can run the extra yardage and is used to doing it constantly, then he will have the edge on a horse that has only run 6f – a few inches is all that is needed to get their head in front. Punters seem to think that yardage is not important, it is vitally important in my opinion.
Thanks for your comment Wendy. The Solidus is a brilliant conception but slightly confusing and unfortunately it also misses some key information in the actual calculations to enable it to be done automatically. A good heads up about being trained on tougher courses and then moving to run on easier ones.
I think the odd readers of such articles should remember they have been put together by a member for a forum
simply as a suggestion for members to look into and so is not going to have the in-depth feel some might
be looking for but then once the idea has been put into your head it`s then up to you to research the article
more fully by books or the internet that’s how i would view it
Thank you for the comment Glen. Absolutely and I think this information is an important start into understanding trainer and jockey cycles as well as looking at runners from a course perspective (something I will be looking at later).