Racing Glossary 'A'

An alphabet of racing terms

 

We hope you find this glossary useful and informative. With this knowledge we hope you find that you can pick winners that little bit easier.

Acceptor: 'big race acceptors' this is an heading seen in the newspapers, below this you will find a list horses remaining in a big race after a forfeit stage.

Added Money: monies added by racecourse executives and/or sponsors to the prize money

Age: All racehorses share the same birthday irrespective of the exact date of birth. This is fixed to facilitate the framing of races according to age groups, this date is 1 January in the Northern Hemisphere and 1 August in the Southern Hemisphere. (the majority of flat races are for 2 year olds only or 3 year olds a horse before it's first birthday is known as a foal, between that date and it's next birthday a yearling.)

Aged: a term that refers to horse who are past the age of 6 years. Most racehorses have finished their careers by the time they are 5 though some horses continue way past this.

All Weather: A term that describes racing on synthetic surfaces at Lingfield, Southwell and Wolverhampton, while Lingfield uses a surface called polytrack while Southwell and Wolverhampton use Fibresand, further courses intend to use all weather tracks.

Ante Post Betting: Normally this term is used to describe a bet placed at least the day before the race and sometimes several weeks before.

Apprentice Allowance: an allowance in weight to offset the inexperience of apprentice jockeys, the weight is subtracted from the weight the horse was due to carry. there is a set scale 7lbs until the apprentice has won 20 recognised races, 5lb until they have won 50 such races thereafter 3lb up to a limit of 95 winning races. No apprentice are allowed under the age of 16 and over the age of 24.

At The Post: refers to when horses have arrived at the point from which a race is to be started.

Auction Race: Specifically for 2 yo horses which have never before won and were bought as yearlings at specified public auctions

Autumn Double: refers to the Cambridgeshire Handicap 1mile 1 furlong and the Cesarewitch 2miles 2 furlongs both these races were first run at Newmarket in 1839 taking place at an interval of about two weeks in October. Both these races attract big fields and an attempt to nominate the winner of both races bringing about the term autumn double.