Distance Switch Debate

By: Ray Taulbot

Every trainer knows thatwhen his horse is capable of leading or running close to the pace by the time the

field reaches the pre-stretch or stretch call, the horse is razor sharp. However, he also knows that frequently

 such an effort takes a great deal out of the horse. Therefore, the smart trainer gives the horse an easy race

following the race where it was leading or pressing the pace.

In some instances, the trainer hikes the horse in class in the race following the outing where it was leading or

 pressing the pace. Yetthis is not always the case. Some trainers do not follow this procedure; they simply

givethe horse an easy race in the same company as the race in which the horse demonstrated its sharp

 condition.

Remember, there are few trainers — if any— who"ll drop their horse in class in order to give it an

 easy race following a good effort. Remember, too, that the easy race is for the purpose of replacing the

 energy the horse expended in its previous race. So if the horse was not moved up in class for the

 "breather" race, you should make sure that the next-to-last race was run within the past 30 days.

If the trainer waits more than 30 days (35 daysfor non-claimers) to start the horse following a race where

 it had the lead at the stretchcall, the delay in re-entering the horse may mean that the horse has gone

wrong since turning in a race that indicates sharp condition.

However, if the horse has been working regularlysince its next-to-last race, then we are safe in assuming

 that the trainer has taken great care in choosing his slot. This is only natural, because if the race that is

 chosen is notthe right one, all the trainer's work is wasted. Horsemen learn this early and, as aresult, you

will seldom see a trainer — particularly in the mornings — without a dog-eared condition book sticking

 out of his back pocket.

Generally, conditions books are issued every two weeks by the track"s racing secretary, listing all the

 races to be run over the course ofthe next two weeks. A trainer with a good horse which has just

 come to hand as one condition book ended may be disappointed to find out that the new book contains

 no racethat suits his horse as to distance and conditions. So he"ll opt to keep the horse sharp

with workouts while awaiting the next condition book, which is sure to have something for

his charge.

All this brings us to a highly effective angle,which often will point out a good investment at odds well

above the profitable point. This angle revels not only hidden form, but the trainer's intention as well. Don't

confuse this angle with the change in distance angle. The latter angle has very little winning power compared

to the strength of the switch in distance device.

Let's look at two examples as a means for makingclear the exact meaning of a switch in distance. First

 let's look at a change indistance. A horse ran, say, six furlongs last start and today is entered in a

route race.In other words, it is changing distance.

The switch in distance is entirely different.Suppose a horse ran six furlongs in its next-to-last race, ran in

a route race last start,and today the horse is entered in a sprint race. In other words, it changed distances

 last start and today is switching back to a sprint race.

The same move might be in reverse to the above.The horse ran a route race in its next-to-last start,

changed to a sprint distance last start and is switching back to a route today.

The reader may wonder what the trainer hopes to accomplish by this move. If the horse ran a sprint distance

 in its next-to-last race and switched to a route last start, the change in distance was in fact a means

of legging-upthe animal's stamina so that it is not likely to be short next start in a sprintrace.

When the situation is reversed, that is, whenthe horse ran in a route race in its next-to-last start and

changed to a sprint laststart, the change in distance was made in order to sharpen up the router's

speed, whichwill of course contribute to its effort next start in a route race.

It is this latter application with which we shall concern ourselves this month.

There is nothing mysterious about theswitch-in-distance angle; it is simply a part of the training

 procedure. Yet the payoffson many qualified angle horses are as big as those hung up by much more

complicated "hidden form" angle horses.

A mistake commonly made by some fans when considering the switch-in-distance angle has to do

with the time factor. When the switchis from a sprint to a route, and then back to a sprint, the final

time in which the route race is run has little meaning. We all know that the pace of a sprint race over

a fasttrack usually results in a faster early pace than does a route race run under the same conditions.

This is not true in those instances where the switch involved a change from a route to a sprint and then

 back to a route. In such instance the time factor is important; this is because a gain of a length or two

through the stretch run has real meaning only when the time for the sprint race was reasonably fast.

Following are the mechanical rules which will point out these angle horses:

 

1. Horse"s most recent race must have been run within 10 days for claimers, 20 days for non-claimers.

2. Its previous race must have been run within the past 30 days for claimers, 35 days for non-claimers.

3. The horse must have been leading or running within one length of the leader at the pre-stretch or

stretch call of its next-to-last race.

4. The horse"s most recent race must have beenan easy effort.

5. The horse"s next-to-last race must have beena route and its last race a sprint; today it must

 be returning to a route distance.

6. Horses which have not raced in the past 10days (non-claimers) must have had at least one workout

since their most recent race.

7. Where two or more qualify, play the horse going off at the highest odds today.

NOTE: For the purposes of this angle, races ofone mile or less are sprints, and races of more than one mile

 are routes.