Trakus Study at Woodbine Interesting

[Round Pen]

I found this through the Woodbine Web site and it is kind of interesting here is the link.

http://www.followhorseracing.com/en/...e-at-woodbine/

Heres the 1st couple paragraphs of it

Horse racing is a game of inches, or potentially shorter depending on the margin of victory or defeat that may have impacted your bet. When Trakus compares performances within a race, it can sound meaningful to some and trivial to others.

While one could suggest that a horse traveling 40 feet more than another within the same race could be a significant difference, in some cases, that could be exactly what one would expect. As we explain below, a horse that breaks from gate two at Woodbine going 1 1/16 miles on the synthetic Polytrack surface is projected to cover 39 feet less than a horse breaking from gate ten in the same race. The post-position draw serves, effectively, as a handicap. Trakus, reviewing all the races run at the distance from the 2011 season at the suburban-Toronto track, has simply quantified the expected impact of wider draws.

Considering the data, we are not simply tracking how far a horse traveled in a race, but also, how the jockey steered that horse through the race – choosing an inside or outside path, covering varying amounts of ground. Their split-second decisions impact the final statistics we consume after the race.