Horse Statistics- For Stats Class?

Question

For Statistics class, I have to write a paper about one topic in which stats are used. I decided to do horse statistics. Anyone know about horse racing and can explain to me what stats betters know and what they are? Like do they know how many races a horse has been in and is there an 'average' speed of the horse and stuff? I'm kinda in over my head on this since I know nothing about horse racing. Anything will be appreciated!

Answer 1

Depends on how hardcore the bettor is. If he's really into racing, he'll read the Daily Racing Form, and do plenty of reseach on the horse online. Some of the stats that people keep track of:

how many races, what place he finished, the time in which the race was completed, length of race, condition of track (fast, sloppy, etc.), recent workout times, number of lengths he won or lost the race.

I'm probably missing something, I'm just remembering this off the top of my head. You could try looking at the sites below, they should have horse stats that you can browse through.

Answer 2

Get a hold of the American  thoroughbred racing manuals

They have every thing you need all stats on stallions mares races won lost etc,, Jockeys Owners  

I have only one from 1981

I give you stats from the yrs before that But not after !!

Answer 3

There are a number of ways statistics can be used in horse race handicapping. There are literally hundreds of variables and by far the best use of stats is to find the way these variables perform. for example, What is the average winning time for a given class of horse at a given fast track, how does this average time change when the track is muddy, what % of races are won by the horse with the best speed rating in his last race, how often are they in the money, what is the win % of the horse with the best early speed rating? etc. What is the average return on investment on these horses (R.O.I.) Another important stat is Impact Value. If 50% of horses show a certain charecteristic (such as a recent race) and 50% of them win, they have an Impact Value of 1.00  - meaning they win their share of races. If the number of horses with a charecteristic is 20% and they win 40% of races, they have an Impact Value of 2.00. Impact value is also valuable to see if horses starting from a given post postion win more or less than their share of races at a given track. I couild go on and on.

William Quirin, a college professor, did a computor study and statistical analysis of many of racing's variables published in a book called, "Winning At The Races".

Just pick a variable (or charecteristic) of horses that interests you and go to town with any statistical test you're familiar with. Who knows, you may find a combination of variables that are profitable for you should you want to venture a bet.

Good luck