How do weather conditions affect horse races?
Buying and selling horses is a huge part of the equine world and something any keen rider will know about. For people who live the equestrian lifestyle though, there are also lots of other things to get involved with—from keeping up with the latest sector news to heading out to the best events/shows.
Horse racing is also something that plays a major role in the industry and remains one of the most popular sports in the UK. Whilst this involves huge numbers of people tuning into races online, watching them on TV, or catching them in person, it also sees lots bet on horse races.
Knowing what you are doing in advance is crucial and understanding how important weather conditions are to the outcome of races is vital.
Weather conditions and ante-post betting
Before we look at the finer details of how the weather can impact live or pre-race betting, weather conditions are worth considering with ante-post betting.
This type of wager involves placing a bet on a race well in advance and usually allows you to access better odds. The major thing to remember here is that betting weeks in advance of the race means you have no real idea of what the weather will be like on the day. These uncertain weather conditions make ante-post betting more unpredictable and harder to call.
How do weather conditions impact horse races?
Anyone involved in riding or training horses knows how crucial proper jump training is. For people who also like to bet pre-race or via live markets, the way weather conditions affect how things finish is common knowledge.
But how does this happen?
Affects the going
This term describes the state of the ground and how soft, firm, or heavy it is underfoot for horses. Weather conditions greatly affect the ‘going’ of a course and therefore influence how a race might pan out.
Most horses tend to favour certain types of ground and race better on some than others. If there has been a lot of rain before the off, for example, horses who run better on heavy ground should, in theory, do better. On the contrary, horses who prefer drier, firmer ground could struggle—even though they might be favourites
Impacts on the speed of race
In simple terms, a race should run faster on good, firm ground and slower on wet, heavy ground. This is due to firmer ground being easier for horses to travel over. Weather conditions can therefore affect the speed of a race and how quickly horses are able to travel on a course.
This can be worth considering when betting on races—especially if your strategy involves picking the fastest horse to back or those who might streak out into an unassailable lead on good ground. The impact of weather can also come into play when backing slower horses who have the stamina to last on heavy ground but could be run out of races on better ground.
Can affect the overall betting experience
Catching the latest equine news helps in staying updated with breaking stories in the sector, in much the same way as keeping up with the latest weather reports is useful for bettors.
As is the case for some other sports, weather can impact the overall betting experience for punters. A bright, sunny day, for example, should make it easy to see what is happening on the live stream of a race and simple to see how your bet is going. It can also make it easy to place in-play bets, based on what you can see is going on in a race.
Poor weather conditions have the opposite effect and make it hard to clearly see how a race is going or exactly where each horse is as the action unfolds. This can make it hard to make accurate in-play betting decisions or choose when is best to cash out.
Impacts the experience of attending live horse racing
Although lots of people in the UK like to watch horse racing online or on TV, many love going to racecourses in person. The weather conditions can have an influence on the overall experience of attending live racing and how awesome it feels.
A sunny, warm day generally leads to a more pleasant experience and one where you can fully enjoy wandering around the course. If it’s blowing a 10 on the Beaufort Wind Scale, it doesn’t quite feel the same and you may spend most of your time inside warming up. Although going to watch horse racing live is always great fun, it does tend to feel better when the sun is out.
Weather conditions key to horse racing
As the above shows, weather conditions play a major role in horse races and placing bets on them. From how wet weather can suit horses that like heavy ground to how good weather caters to horses who like fast speeds or a firmer going, this is not something to ignore. Taking what the weather is doing is therefore crucial when deciding which bets to make.