The Horse Race

I was able to get the chance to see a real proffesional horse race. For me I always dream of the life of the funny big hats, and the glamour that comes with the track style. For one day I got to be a part of that life. Three other exchange students and I got the chance to go to the largest horse race in Köln. The race itself was on the fron page of the newspapers, and not everyone could get into this race. With rotary we were able to have a gentleman give us a tour. He use to be a steward at the track so we got to see and expereince things that not all the people who have been to a race could. We got to see where the jockey had to weigh in, we got to stand in the winning circle where the winner would go after the race was finished, we got to take a look into all the strategies to bet, and we even were able to bet. I bet on the first race, and to my luck I won, but that was the only race that I bid on that won. It was still the highlight of my day to be able to bet. We also as a souvenier were able to get a picture of the finish where all the horses heads are counted to see who won, just like in the movies when they take the final snap shot. I am not sure if we are suppose to have that photo because there are alot of regualtions in the races with that sort of thing, but we still have them though :D. I also got to see a famous person from germany, and although I dont know who he is I saw people asking for his autographs and he was able to stand in the center of the viewing stable to see which horse looks the best and could possibly win. Of course I took a photo of him, although it is not the best photo in the worl, it is still one all the same. Now I will say some of the strategies that I was taught to bet on a horse.

First they show the horses in a circle where the groom will walk the horse around and you can view it from all sides to see the height of the horse, if it looks more stout of muscular than the rest. Than you are able to see the horse being saddled, and than walked around again with its number represented on it so you can see what the horses name is, and the jockey who is mounting it. I was also able to notice how the horse reacted, for example there was this horse that had to have two grooms walk it around because of how big it was and for the fact that it was lets say really high spirited, no bush was left unkicked, so in my mind I thought that this horse had alot of energy, so I bet on it. Than you can also check the newspaper so see what horses are highlighted, or you can go to a building that has the number of the horse that each newspaper will think will win, and these are from the experts so it has alot of impact on the race. Than you can also look inside your packet, or brochure to see the numbers the trainers or the horses, and even what the Köln tip says who will win placing them. In that there are three possible horses that could win, or be in the first three horses to place. Finally if you are done looking at that you can look onto the screen where the favorite picked horses number flashes, and than you can see the amount you will receive back for each euro you bet. Usually the favorite hores amount is less, and than the least is the most, these numbers also have alot of affect because if you want more money back than you will pick the horse that could possibly win and has a higher amount of money that can be returned per euro. Finally you pick up your betting ticket and you have to mark what race you betting on, the amount of money you are betting, and what type of bet such as this horse will be first, or it will be in the first three, or combonation bets such the horse being either first or in the first three.. and so on. Than you bet on the number of the horse you think will win, and than you can either watch the race, or some people go into another room where they can do all of that and just watch the race of the TV screen. After the race allo the horses go into the circle, and the winner comes in last. No one will shake the winners hand though until after they are weighed in. That is another thing you can look at when betting is how much the rider weighs so you will know how much the horse must carry. There are also what is called a handycap race where all the horses have an equal chance to win because everything is the same in that race. Although this makes it harder to bet on, the money is higher in this race. Finally if the jockey passed the weigh in then they are called the winner of the race, and only after all of this is runned in can you return you bidding ticket and recieve you cash back. There are alot of things people consider when they are betting, or some just go with the first choice of the newspaper, or the favorite horse for the race.

The race itself was also very interesting, they had different races that had seperate lenghts, or different starts, and the starting gate was actually just a little movable box. All the horses had to be trained to get into this box because they had a time limit and if the horse did not go in they would be fined and disqualified because the horse was not trained enough. They were also only allowed to whip their horse 7 times. Another rule was that if the rider did not try all they can to win they were also fined and suspended. There were also tests on the horses to make sure that they were not given any drugs and the jockeys were tested as well. The horse also had to be trained enough to withstand the racing or the rider could not race for 3 weeks until the horse was once again up to raceing stamina. Overall I had a great time at the Horse Race, and I even got to see how the upper class live their lives on the track. I would love to go to another horse race, and I will never forget this experience.