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Race Notes

Introduction to Race Notes

The notes that appear in results will tell you what adjustments you need to make to help your horse earn higher performance ratings (PR) and/or avoid injury. You may see race notes relating to equipment needs as well as notes that indicate problems with surface, distance, energy, condition, risk, morale, or consistency. You'll also see race notes when a horse is injured in a race.

A horse can have most of their race notes cleared within a couple of races (DQ and injury being the exception) once you know what notes mean. If you're having constant problems with notes or injuries, you might want to visit the Forum or Discord and ask for advice.

As already mentioned, race notes can point out problems that can cause injuries. In the guide below, any section with in it indicates a problem that can result in injuries. These are things you will want to pay special attention to when entering.

Equipment-Related Race Notes

The most common reason for receiving race notes is having the wrong equipment (tack) on a horse - this includes not using necessary equipment or using equipment a horse does not need. These notes can indicate significant confidence or respect problems. If your horse has notes that are related to equipment, you'll want to evaluate what type of equipment will help them perform better. The Tack Shop has a list of equipment and what problems each piece will fix. The list below tells which specific notes are related to which pieces of equipment.

Equipment	Note to Add	Note to Remove
Australian Cheeker	Fractious	Fought restraint
Blinkers	Inattentive	Rushed from gate
Ear Plugs	Uneasy	Lost enthusiasm
Shadow Roll	Skittish	Tossed head
Tongue Tie	Slipped bit	Gaping mouth
Whip	Lazy	Shied at whip

General Race Notes

Distance

Horses in a race that is too long for them will fade out toward the end of the race, and may even drop back significantly. Horses in a race that is too short for them will never have time to kick in, and will likely finish behind.

Notes affiliated with distance include: Evenly, Flattened, Best stride late, In pursuit, Never threatened, Weakened, Retreated, and Distanced.

To avoid injury due to distance problems, ensure your horse is trained to at least 75% (

) for a distance before entering a race at that distance.

Surface

Some horses run equally well on both surfaces, but some have a very strong preference for one or the other. If a horse has never been trained on a surface, they may not be much of a factor in the race.

Notes affiliated with surface include: Lost action and Disliked track.

To avoid injury due to surface problems, make sure your horse is trained to at least 75% ( sweet sixteen

) for the surface they will be racing on.

Energy

Horses who are low on energy will tire during the race, regardless of the length or difficulty of the race. Low energy can hugely impact PR and is also one of the main contributors to injury.

Notes affilated with energy include: Just lasted and Empty.

To avoid injury due to low energy and earn the highest possible PR, avoid entering a horse with less than 100% energy.

Condition

Horses who are not fit enough to race will be much more strained than horses who are well Conditioned. Lack of Condition can lower PRs and lead to injury.

Notes affilated with Condition include: Fully extended (< 80%) and Showed little (< 50%).

Any horse with less than 100% Condition is at risk for injury and suffers PR penalties. However, racing with at least 80% Condition is generally considered "safe enough" and will not significantly reduce PR.

Risk

Horses with high risk are accident prone and are very likely to be injured in races. Risk is predetermined at birth, based loosely on Conformation genes, but can increase or decrease during a horse's life based on how they are cared for, trained, and raced.

Notes affilated with high risk include: Delicately and Very unsteady.

Morale

Horses with low Morale are disinterested in racing and will perform very poorly in races. This is one of the most significant reasons for lower-than-expected PRs in races.

Notes affiliated with low Morale include: Sulked and No threat.

To run higher PRs, horses should be entered with the best Morale possible. Although horses can still run fine with slightly lower Morale, look for a green star if you want to ensure your horse is performing at or near their best.

Rest

Horses with low Rest are fatigued, whether mentally or physically, and will not run as sharp. This is one of the most significant reasons for lower-than-expected PRs in races.

Notes affiliated with low Rest include: Dull and No rally.

To achieve the highest PR, horses should be entered with the best Rest possible. Although horses can race reasonably well with lower Rest, it's best to try to enter when they have green, or at least yellow, Rest levels.

Consistency

Horses who severely misbehave in a race may be DQ (disqualified). In addition to getting a DQ for the race, they'll have a brief note about why they were DQ. These notes, unlike many, are unavoidable. However, horses with higher consistency will be DQ less frequently.

Consistency disqualification notes include: Refused to load, Erratic, Blew the turn, Bumped rival, Bore in, Bore out, Threw jockey, and Blew up.

Downgrading

Downgrading a horse is, first and foremost, against FFH rules. To avoid unfair races, horses entered into lower grades have handicapped PRs and will also earn you less money/points than they're capable of earning. It's always in your best interest to enter a horse in the highest grade they're capable of running.

Horses who have been entered in too low of a grade will have the note Handily and will receive an artificially reduced PR. This note indicates that the PR you see is not a representation of the horse's performance. Any time a horse receives this note, they should move up in grade immediately.

Injury-Related Race Notes

Returned Sore

A horse who returns sore from a race is one who is exhibiting signs of lameness or other minor problems. This note indicates that a horse has a minor injury, the extent of which will not be known until they are examined by the veterinarian.

Pulled Up

A horse who is pulled up was injured so severely they were unable to finish the race. They will receive a DNF (did not finish) for the race and will not be placed or awarded any points or earnings. This note means that a horse suffered a major injury, which will likely require stall rest and prolonged rehabilitation after being examined by the veterinarian. In extreme cases, this may result in a horse being retired or euthanized.

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