Patterns In The Sand....

Chapter Twelve: And finally, putting it all together

If there is one thing I have learned over the last 10 years or so betting on horses, it is that you are learning all the time, each and every day. Let me qualify that last statement a little further. You should be learning every day. Most punters fail to learn from their daily successes and failures. In my formative years I learned absolutely nothing, largely because I was relying almost exclusively upon the opinions of others.

Tipster services, the Racing Post Spotlight comments, Topspeed, Pricewise, even when using software programs to select horses, I was never making my own decisions, never following my own instincts. I was forever reliant on someone else to make my choices for me. Even if you decide to follow favourites, you are in effect still following the consensus opinion of the masses. But everything changed when I stumbled across Picking Winners in that charity shop, and discovered I could produce my own humble speed ratings.

More often than not I will run off the speed figures the day before racing. This means that if I see something that particularly stands out, I can make arrangements to visit the track. I must admit I do not spend as many days on course as I used to, which is down to laziness more than anything. I have promised myself I will make more of an effort to see the horses in the flesh, as I'm always so glad when I do venture out. Seeing a potential selection close up in the parade ring, and watching it stride to post, just gives that extra bit of confidence. Importantly being able to see your horse close up also affords you the chance to swerve the bet if any tell-tale negative signs are apparent.

One further advantage I have found when compiling my speed figures the evening before racing, is that I can draw up my shortlist of potential selections without any idea of the forecast prices. I've never been sure exactly why, but I much prefer to be oblivious to the price of the horse when forming my opinions. Prices can cloud my judgement.

If I find a stand out horse, and its a big price, I will still back it. The only time I will let the price of the horse deter me from betting, is when it is below the minimum 3/1 discussed in a previous chapter. On occasion if I really fancy the horse, I may bend the guidelines a little and back at 11/4 and even 5/2 but these really are the exceptions that make the rule.

The decision I made after taking that break in Andalucia, to focus my attention solely on the all weather racing, resulted in a profit of five thousand pounds during the 2002/3 winter season. But I also made a big mistake that season too. On a whim, and probably after an extra profitable week, I took Sarah off for a last-minute sunshine break only a few weeks after Christmas. A lovely romantic idea it may have been, but it was a poor business decision. My mistake was going away right in the middle of a good run of results, when the speed figures were at their most potent.

I thought the break would do me good, but in fact it took me two weeks to catch up on the figures when we returned, and at least another week or so to get back in the groove so to speak. I suffered a couple of costly losing runs, and I still think to this day it was no coincidence they occurred after I had taken my eye off the ball. Before I knew it, the end of the winter season was approaching. Sure, I made a profit that year, but I know in my heart of hearts I could have doubled my returns if I had acted more professionally. Still, it was a lesson learned, and a set of mistakes I shall not be making again.

When I look back, for me there were five significant milestones over seven years that saw me steer my betting activities towards finally making consistent profits. In chronological order, these were....

1995.... starting to keep records of all my bets

1998.... my decision to shun tipsters, and begin my self-education

1999.... discovering speed ratings (Andrew Beyer, Picking Winners)

2002.... my decision to focus on all weather racing

2002.... the end of betting tax

My mind set has changed in that I no longer feel like I have to be betting all the time, every day, every week, every month. I still bet on the horses on the turf and over the jumps, but on a deliberately scaled-down level, and if I'm honest its for pleasure rather than to make money. Beforehand I would have found it difficult to resist the temptation of having a major bet on something like the American football Super Bowl, and at the same stakes as a stand out bet on the horses. Now it does not bother me to have the same bet, but with just pocket money at stake.

I have made money for each of the last eight seasons on the all weather, and knowing that I can make profits from my specialist niche does wonders for the confidence! My energies are focused towards my betting from November to March. The rest of the year my betting activities tick over, but I am able to change tack and devote more time to writing, and producing content for my internet publishing business. These forever changing seasons help to keep my mind fresh and my creative batteries topped up. I think if I was forever chasing the dollar by betting, month in, and month out, I would find myself getting stale, and perhaps my enthusiasm would suffer.

As it happens, I now look forward to the Autumn and the approaching all weather season, and I cannot wait to get stuck in.

Making a profit has given me the discipline that I fear I was lacking in my first few years trying to make a success of betting. Deep down it could simply be that I do not want to give back recklessly what has taken me several years to gain. I am now quite happy to wait until November before getting serious about betting, and enjoying the opportunities to apply my energies in different areas of my life throughout the remainder of the year.

I am often drawn to Napoleon Hill's motivational book called Think And Grow Rich. He points out that a "Jack-of-all-trades is seldom a master at any...." and that successful people tend to focus their energies in a single direction rather than spreading themselves too thinly. It's a life lesson I'm glad I took notice of.

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