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How To Fix A Horse Race (II): The Corrupt Trainer's Dream Scam
- By Thomas Belvedere
- Published 07/8/2009
- Local Politics
- Unrated
Thomas Belvedere
Thomas Belvedere is the pseudonym of a top consultant to senators, representatives, governors, and the media. An accredited expert witness in federal court, he has a Ph.D. in political science. He authored "The Source of Terrorism: Middle Class Rebellion" available at http://www.booklocker.com/.
http://lebelvedere.weebly.com
"Drugs are a very small part of it."
So said THE SOURCE, a veteran trainer and owner of horses. Eventually, he wrote off horseracing, and retired. "I got fed up with the drugs and the corruption." After some soul-searching, he decided to talk.
Generally, drugs are not as important in horseracing as the media claim. The big exception, THE SOURCE said, is quarter horse racing. "We're looking at 14-18 seconds of flat-out speed."
In thoroughbred racing, other means of fixing a race are more prevalent:
1. The jockey.
How are jockeys fixed? "That's pretty obvious."
Because the track stewards are watching, "the jockey has to make it look like he's trying." The best way to spot fixed jockeys is with the racetrack's camera. "The finish-line photo catches them standing up early."
Jockeys can cheat in the opposite direction. "The box" is an electrical charger concealed on the jockey. "He shocks the horse in a close race to get him moving." How to spot the box: do not look at a jockey, but watch the horse. If he "rings his tail" -- the tail moves in full circle -- the horse is being shocked.
Where to get a box of your very own: look behind a fence. That is where the jockeys toss them whenever there is a shakedown.
2. Bribe the header.
The header is the man inside the starting gate with the horse. The header is "supposed to point the horse toward the front and get him properly aligned."
Unfortunately, "you can influence headers easily. They work for the track, and don't get paid much." Trainers and jockeys can "tip the header" to hold onto the horse too long, or to point the horse toward the rail. "I've seen horses come out of the starting gate literally sideways."
3. Miscellaneous.
The most common fix in this category is "to load a horse down." Leave a water bucket in the stall, and let nature take its course.
To repeat, drugs turn out to be only one piece in the fix picture puzzle. In fact, THE SOURCE says "the corrupt trainer's dream" involves no drugs whatsoever.
"Here's the way you can make a bundle":
Step 1. "Have a friend who is a groom at one of the top horse farms." The friend gets a sperm sample from a proved sire, such as Native Dancer.
Step 2. Impregnate your horse with the sample. To "cover" the champion sire, list an average stallion.
Step 3. Let two years go by. During that period, enter the horse in races but hold him back to raise the odds.
When the odds get up to 20 or 30 to 1, proceed to
Step 4. Enter the horse in another race. Have a stash of cash ready. Do not bet at the track; instead, place off-track bets -- in Las Vegas, for example. "Spread the money around, so it doesn't change the odds."
A side benefit to side betting: since your money is made off-track, "you don't have to claim it on your income taxes."
Step 5. "Let the horse go.
"
Several ways horseracing can clean up its act are simple, obvious:
1. Crack down on the "suspension" trick. Corrupt trainers mix drugs with other substances to delay the entrance of the drugs into the horse's bladder until after the urine test is finished. This fraud is easily derailed: make the horses wait before being tested.
2. THE SOURCE strongly emphasized that headers "should be paid a responsible salary for a day's work."
3. Prohibit a trainer from racing his own horse against his clients' horses. THE SOURCE knew of a race "won by the horse owned by the trainer against five horses of his clients."
Ultimately, any reform must come face-to-face with who is fixing races. "Most of the time," THE SOURCE said, "the owners have no idea of what's going on* . . . The trainer is the conductor that orchestrates this whole deal."
Which means, like the bettors, horse owners sometimes are had. One common con could be titled, "How To Make Money At Horseracing Without Really Trying":
Trainers often will take on 15 to 20 horses. It takes 60 hours per month to train a racehorse properly, but unscrupulous trainers would just as soon not bother with training or racing. They haul the horses around from one track to another, constantly explaining away to the owner a horse's inactivity: "He's sore," etc., etc., ad nauseum.
Such trainers do not seek to be in the winner's circle, to reap fame and fortune. Rather, their goal is to collect from the owner the small potatoes per diem -- $30 or so -- per horse.
To conclude THE SOURCE'S story:
If you want to know a person, the best place to start is not by interviewing him or people who know him, much less by reading his biography or resume. Instead, watch how he treats animals.
Across the centuries, horseracing has been called The Sport of Kings. Where are the humans in that picture? Kings, we know about.
FOOTNOTES
*A case study:
WILMINGTON, Del. -- A small sponge was inserted in the nostril of a horse at Delaware Park in an attempt to fix a race in October, State Police said.
Detectives are investigating the incident in which a small sponge was found in the nostril of 2-year-old filly Marens Meadow, Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh, a state police spokesman, said Wednesday. The sponge would hamper a horse's breathing, thus affecting how well the horse ran.
The filly is owned by Sandra Rasmussen of Des Moines, Iowa.
"This is just a terrible thing to do and is so inhumane," Rasmussen said. "I'm just a little person from Iowa. Why would someone want to do this to me and this poor horse?"
Marens Meadow was the 4-5 betting favorite in the eighth race on Oct. 16, but finished third of five in the six-furlong race, which had a $42,000 purse.
Author not identified, "Horse race fixing alleged at Delaware Park," AP, December 6, 2007. Article is at: sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section-horse&id=3143618.
So said THE SOURCE, a veteran trainer and owner of horses. Eventually, he wrote off horseracing, and retired. "I got fed up with the drugs and the corruption." After some soul-searching, he decided to talk.
Generally, drugs are not as important in horseracing as the media claim. The big exception, THE SOURCE said, is quarter horse racing. "We're looking at 14-18 seconds of flat-out speed."
In thoroughbred racing, other means of fixing a race are more prevalent:
1. The jockey.
How are jockeys fixed? "That's pretty obvious."
Because the track stewards are watching, "the jockey has to make it look like he's trying." The best way to spot fixed jockeys is with the racetrack's camera. "The finish-line photo catches them standing up early."
Jockeys can cheat in the opposite direction. "The box" is an electrical charger concealed on the jockey. "He shocks the horse in a close race to get him moving." How to spot the box: do not look at a jockey, but watch the horse. If he "rings his tail" -- the tail moves in full circle -- the horse is being shocked.
Where to get a box of your very own: look behind a fence. That is where the jockeys toss them whenever there is a shakedown.
2. Bribe the header.
The header is the man inside the starting gate with the horse. The header is "supposed to point the horse toward the front and get him properly aligned."
Unfortunately, "you can influence headers easily. They work for the track, and don't get paid much." Trainers and jockeys can "tip the header" to hold onto the horse too long, or to point the horse toward the rail. "I've seen horses come out of the starting gate literally sideways."
3. Miscellaneous.
The most common fix in this category is "to load a horse down." Leave a water bucket in the stall, and let nature take its course.
To repeat, drugs turn out to be only one piece in the fix picture puzzle. In fact, THE SOURCE says "the corrupt trainer's dream" involves no drugs whatsoever.
"Here's the way you can make a bundle":
Step 1. "Have a friend who is a groom at one of the top horse farms." The friend gets a sperm sample from a proved sire, such as Native Dancer.
Step 2. Impregnate your horse with the sample. To "cover" the champion sire, list an average stallion.
Step 3. Let two years go by. During that period, enter the horse in races but hold him back to raise the odds.
When the odds get up to 20 or 30 to 1, proceed to
Step 4. Enter the horse in another race. Have a stash of cash ready. Do not bet at the track; instead, place off-track bets -- in Las Vegas, for example. "Spread the money around, so it doesn't change the odds."
A side benefit to side betting: since your money is made off-track, "you don't have to claim it on your income taxes."
Step 5. "Let the horse go.
Several ways horseracing can clean up its act are simple, obvious:
1. Crack down on the "suspension" trick. Corrupt trainers mix drugs with other substances to delay the entrance of the drugs into the horse's bladder until after the urine test is finished. This fraud is easily derailed: make the horses wait before being tested.
2. THE SOURCE strongly emphasized that headers "should be paid a responsible salary for a day's work."
3. Prohibit a trainer from racing his own horse against his clients' horses. THE SOURCE knew of a race "won by the horse owned by the trainer against five horses of his clients."
Ultimately, any reform must come face-to-face with who is fixing races. "Most of the time," THE SOURCE said, "the owners have no idea of what's going on* . . . The trainer is the conductor that orchestrates this whole deal."
Which means, like the bettors, horse owners sometimes are had. One common con could be titled, "How To Make Money At Horseracing Without Really Trying":
Trainers often will take on 15 to 20 horses. It takes 60 hours per month to train a racehorse properly, but unscrupulous trainers would just as soon not bother with training or racing. They haul the horses around from one track to another, constantly explaining away to the owner a horse's inactivity: "He's sore," etc., etc., ad nauseum.
Such trainers do not seek to be in the winner's circle, to reap fame and fortune. Rather, their goal is to collect from the owner the small potatoes per diem -- $30 or so -- per horse.
To conclude THE SOURCE'S story:
If you want to know a person, the best place to start is not by interviewing him or people who know him, much less by reading his biography or resume. Instead, watch how he treats animals.
Across the centuries, horseracing has been called The Sport of Kings. Where are the humans in that picture? Kings, we know about.
FOOTNOTES
*A case study:
WILMINGTON, Del. -- A small sponge was inserted in the nostril of a horse at Delaware Park in an attempt to fix a race in October, State Police said.
Detectives are investigating the incident in which a small sponge was found in the nostril of 2-year-old filly Marens Meadow, Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh, a state police spokesman, said Wednesday. The sponge would hamper a horse's breathing, thus affecting how well the horse ran.
The filly is owned by Sandra Rasmussen of Des Moines, Iowa.
"This is just a terrible thing to do and is so inhumane," Rasmussen said. "I'm just a little person from Iowa. Why would someone want to do this to me and this poor horse?"
Marens Meadow was the 4-5 betting favorite in the eighth race on Oct. 16, but finished third of five in the six-furlong race, which had a $42,000 purse.
Author not identified, "Horse race fixing alleged at Delaware Park," AP, December 6, 2007. Article is at: sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section-horse&id=3143618.
