|
|
|
|
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Act in the dip
To put on a spurt at the dip in the ground at Newmarket, after which the track rises to the winning post.
Aids
Signals used by a rider to pass instructions to his mount. Artificial aids include the whip and spurs. Natural aids include hands, legs, voice cues and weight cues.
Apprentice jockey
Young jockey contracted annually to a specific trainer, compensated by a weight allowance when riding against professional jockeys.
Back end
The last few weeks of the Flat racing season; sometimes offering late-maturing horses a chance to win a race
Bay
Deep reddish-brown coloured horse. Has black mane/tail and legs.
Below the distance
Before the end of the race; see 'Distance, the'
Blaze
A white mark covering much of the horse's face
Bleeder
A horse which tends to break blood vessels during a race
Boils
Same as suffering from boils in humans
Broodmare
Mare kept at stud for breeding, and not usually raced, although likely to have done so when younger
Bumping and boring
Interference in which one horse collides with another
By a neck
The third shortest winning distance after short-head and head.
Champion National Hunt Jockey
Jockey with the greatest number of NH wins in a season
Champion owner
The owner whose horses have won the most prize-money in a season
Champion sire
The animal who has sired horses earning the most prize money in a season. Has sometimes been calculated in terms of number of wins.
Champion trainer
Trainer whose horses have won the most prize money in a season
Chaser
A horse which takes part in steeplechase races
Chief Apprentice
The apprentice jockey with the greatest number of wins in a season
Classic
A Classic race is one of the five tests for three year olds on the flat - the One Thousand Guineas, the Two Thousand Guineas, the Derby, the Oaks, and the St Leger.
Conformation
The shape and relative proportions of a horse
Crack amateur
A non-professional, top-class jockey
Cup races
Long distance races on the flat. A cup horse is one capable of running in top company in such races (a mile and three-quarters and more).
Dam
The mother of a foal
Dead heat
To come equal first. This was much more common before the days of photo-finishes. A horse which has won 10 1/2 races has won 10 and dead-heated one.
Distance, A
Officially, a measure in excess of 30 lengths (see 'Length')
Distance, the
An undentified spot 240 yards (ie just over a furlong) from the winning post. This derives from match races where a horse finishing more than 240 yards behind the horse in front was disqualified from further heats, so that riders were discouraged from giving their horse an easy race in order to keep it fresh for later heats; a 'distance judge' was placed 240 yards from the finish.
Entire horse
An ungelded horse
Ewe neck
Where the neck looks as if it has been put on upside down
Favourite
The horse on which most money has been wagered
Featherweight
The lightest weight a horse can carry in an handicap race, or a jockey able to do this weight
Fetlock
The lowest joint in a horse's leg.
Field
The number of horses in a race; in betting, all of them except the favourite
Fillies' Triple Crown
The One Thousand Guineas, the Oaks and the St Leger, for three-year-olds
Fired forelegs
Legs to which hot irons have been applied to increase the blood flow and healing. No longer allowed in England
First jockey
The Stable's first choice; usually paid a retainer to ensure availability
Frog
V-shaped area found on bottom of horses' hooves.
Furlong
220 yards (one eighth of a mile). The numbered posts on British racecourses count the furlongs back from the winning post.
Gassy
Highly strung and 'silly' with it
General Stud Book
Register of all genuine Thoroughbred horses, maintained by Weatherbys
Guineas
Either the One Thousand Guineas or the Two Thousand Guineas; a guinea was one pound one shilling (£1.05) and the name reflects the prize money irrespective of the number of subscribers. Bloodstock sales at Tattersalls are still conducted in guineas.
Hack canter
In a hack canter means easily; a hack is any horse used for ordinary riding so the horse is not at full racing pace because it is so far ahead of its rivals
Half brother
Half brothers or sisters share the same dam (mother)
Handicap
In a handicap race, each horse carries a weight dependent on the handicapper's assessment of its ability, usually based on previous form
Hanging
Veering to one side in a race rather than keeping in a straight line; probably used because the horse's head tends to hang to one side. Some courses (famously Epsom) have a camber which causes horses to hang towards the rails, or it can be caused by tiredness.
Hard mouthed
With little sensitivity in the mouth, so hard to restrain
Hock
The joint in the horse's leg between the knee and the fetlock, corresponding to the human ankle
Hurdler
A horse that races over hurdles, which are lighter and lower than fences. Many ex-Flat racers take to hurdling, but they do not have to be thus bred to excel.
Jocked off
When a fashionable jockey takes the already booked mount of a lesser rider
Juvenile
A two-year-old racehorse
Length
The unit of measurement for the winning margin; the measurement of a horse from head to tail
Level weights, at
All carrying the same weight
Lop eared
With long ears, which sometimes flop sideways. Horses with lop ears are usually honest and good-natured.
Maiden
A horse which has never won a race; maiden races are for such horses
Navicular disease
Degeneration of the bone behind the horse's heel causing acute lameness. Incurable.
Nomination
A breeding right to have your mare covered by a stallion at stud; the paperwork associated with this
Odds-against
The backer wins more than their stake, eg 6/4
Odds-on
With an odds-on bet the backer stands to win less than the amount staked (plus the stake as well), eg 4/6, which is 'six-to-four on'.
Outsider
Long priced animal in the betting, viewed as unlikely to win
Own sister
Filly with the same sire and dam as another
Pacemaker
A stable companion put into a contest to set the pace for another
Pastern
The part of the horse's leg between the fetlock and just above the hoof
Pick up the bit
Take an interest in the race
Pink eye
Conjunctivitis in horses
Placed
Finished in the first three
Pulled
A horse which is pulled is deliberately restrained, either to fool the handicapper or to avoid winning as a result of a bribe! Now of course results in horrible recriminations from The Jockey Club.
Putting up overweight
Carrying more weight than that allocated by the handicapper
Quarters
The hind parts of a horse, specifically between flank and tail
Racing plate
A light-weight horseshoe used for racing, as opposed to the heavier iron work plate. Now made of aluminium.
Roarer
A horse which makes a noise when it gallops because of a problem with its wind or breathing; a tracheotomy may cure the problem
Second String
The Stable's second choice from two runners in a race; a string is the Trainer's horses
Selling plater
A horse which is entered in a selling plate (see below) because it is not expected to win in any higher grade, or because it can do well against moderate opposition, which may result in a betting coup
Selling plates
Selling Plates are races in which the winner is offered at auction afterwards; other horses in the race may be claimed for a fixed sum. If the winning stable buys back its own horse it is said to be 'bought in'. Racecourse put on these races because they receive a percentage of the selling price of each horse.
Shelly feet
Slightly concave and brittle hooves. Se Crepello's foot in the Museum
Short-priced
A price which comes in for example from 3/1 to 2/1. The favourite will be short-priced
Splints
A bony growth on the tendon
Stayer
A horse which succeeds over a long distance appropriate to its age
Sway back
Long, weak back
Tap root mare
A mare who is ancestor on the female side of many winners.
Triple Crown
For colts, the Two Thousand Guineas, the Derby and the St Leger; for fillies, the One Thousand or Two Thousand Guineas, the Oaks or Derby and the St Leger.
A winner of the appropriate three Classic races for three year olds is a hero or heroine of the Turf.
Tucked up
Tightly drawn up around the abdomen, possibly having passed its peak for the season
Welter burdens
Weight carried in a handicap race
Wind infirmity
Breathing difficulties
Work rider
An employee, not necessarily a licenced jockey but good enough to ride a horse being tested or prepared on the gallops
Wrong in the wind
With breathing difficulties
|
|
|
|
|
|
