Post by S u N f r O s t ~ on Jun 28, 2016 15:27:51 GMT -5
Step Three: Racing
BEFORE YOU START - TIME LEGEND
RACE WEEKS
You've got horses in your barn now - yay! So what's the next step? Racing them! But before you do that, it's important to understand how time works on all three sites. In terms of racing, each month is broken down into four race weeks. There is one exception - March has a fifth week for the Stable Faceoff, hosted right here on GHF. You are able to enter races each week at all three sites, but you cannot enter the same horse at two/three different sites during the same week. For example, my horse Neigh Neigh is entered at GHF for March Week One. Neigh Neigh cannot enter at TW or BSD for March Week One as well, but could enter March Week Two at any of the three sites.
AGING
Whenever December Week Four concludes across all three sites, all horses age one year and we enter the next game year. There is no set time of year when this occurs - it depends on how quickly we get through race weeks throughout the year. It could take anywhere from six months to one year or even longer.
SEASONS
Seasons are not overly important for racing, mainly for breeding. Spring is January through March, Summer is April through June, Fall is July through September, Winter is October through December. Breeding can only take place during Spring and Summer. At the end of each season, GHF has a special Seasonal Cup (i.e. Spring Cup, Summer Cup) which is a lot of fun to enter and provides HoTY experience across all grades.
RACING BASICS
THE RACES THEMSELVES
Races do not run unless two horses are entered. The maximum amount of entries per race is fourteen. You are only allowed to enter two horses per race. Races are run by a judge - a member of our SIM community that volunteers to take the race and decide the placings. More on that later!
GRADING SYSTEM
Each race as a grade, which ranges from maiden to grade one. Maiden races are open to horses that have never won a race; grade five is for horses with 1-3 wins, grade 4 for 4-6 wins, grade 3 for 7-9 wins, grade 2 for 10-12 wins and grade 1 for 13+ wins. When your horse grades up, pat yourself on the back - that's an accomplishment! Once you hit grade one, you've hit the echelons of the sport. Your horse is officially a successful one!
HOW TO ENTER RACES
To enter races, copy the entries of the person above you (or the entry form in the initial post if you are the first to enter). Add your entries, put a Code tag around them and hit Reply. What do I mean by a code tag? Highlight all of your entries, then click on the button that is a white box with a C in the center (it's underneath the button Add Event).
PROSPECT RACES
As you browse the schedule, you may notice some races with the grade labeled as P. The P stands for "Prospect" and denotes Prospect Races - races you can enter your yearlings in. These races are just for fun and in no way affect how your horse will perform as a juvenile and onwards. They simply provide a way for you to engage with your yearlings while waiting for them to race. In addition, they also provide a way for your horses to gain exposure. Other members get to know your horse by judging them in a prospect race, and this could help your horse become renown before they even start racing! To sweeten the deal, there are a couple of awards for Prospects as well. They can be fun to win.
Any horse can enter a prospect race provided they are at least one year old (bred the year prior to that game year), but please note that prospect races are judged very differently from regular races. Pedigree is very heavily emphasized, while in actual races it will not be used as a factor very weightily, if at all. Thus, your created prospects may not do as well as SIM bred ones, at least in prospect races.
PICKING YOUR RACES
There is a Mastery Guide devoted to this topic - I would suggest reading that for very detailed tips on how to schedule your horse for races! There are also some tips mentioned in the Judging Guide, which is the fourth guide in this series. There are a couple basic things to keep in mind, though.
UNDERCARDS VS. HORSE OF THE YEAR (HOTY) RACES
Undercards are written like this sentence; normally. HoTY races are usually ALL IN CAPS and denoted with a star (*). For example, an undercard race would look like this: Undercard Stakes. Horse of the Year races look like this: I'M SCARY STAKES* or I'm Scary Stakes*. HoTY races attract the best competition across all three sites. If you enter a horse in a race like that, be prepared for the competition!
DISTANCE/SURFACE PREFERENCES
Make sure you enter your horse in races that fit their preferences. You want to enter your horse in races over a surface that they are Great on and in a distance within their range. For example, let's say my horse runs Great on dirt, Okay on turf and 6-9 furlongs. My horse can run in a race that's seven furlongs on the dirt, but if that race is seven furlongs on the turf or five furlongs on the dirt he or she will automatically lose. Don't make a silly mistake - check the distance and surface of the race!
OVERRACING
It is possible to overrace your horse - and you don't want to do that, because the judge may notice and place your horse lower than he or she normally would place on account of tiredness. Overracing is defined as racing three or more weeks in a row - for examples, if my horse raced May Week One, May Week Two and May Week Three. It is recommended that you race no more than two weeks in a row. After that second week, rest your horse for at least one week before racing again. It is possible and not considered overracing if you race three times in one month - you would have to race two weeks in a row, break for a week, then race again.
Acceptable: Race May Week One, May Week Two, May Week Four
Unacceptable: Race May Week Two, May Week Three, May Week Four
THE FRUITS OF WINNING
RACE SERIES
We have a lot of race series spread over all three sites - the Triple Crown, Turf Triple Crown, Triple Tiara, etc. A full list of the race series at all sites can be found HERE (eventually). Try and aim for these series! It gives you something to plan for, and it can be lots of fun to go through the series with other horses and see who will get the win that time around. Winning or doing well in a series also increases your horse's prestige and value.
HOTY RACES AND AWARDS
For every HoTY race your horse wins, the horse earns one point. It is very important to keep track of these points, because in order to go for awards at the end of the season you need to have a certain number. The more HoTY points your horse has, the more likely other people are to vote for your horse to get an award. In terms of awards - at the end of each season, award nominations are posted in the Hall Of Fame board on GHF. Go to the nominations, find a category you would like to nominate your horse for, make sure they meet the HoTY Point requirement for the award, then fill out the form and post a reply. Congratulations, your horse is nominated! At the end of the nominating period, staff will put up a poll with all of the horses names, and members will vote on which horse should get the award. Members may not vote for their own horses, but must vote in the poll. In the event of a tie, a tiebreaker poll will be held. All award winners are announced by the end of January of the new game year.
PURSES FOR RACES
Race purses can be found in the monetary system on TW here. Note that special HoTY races have different purses from regular races - make sure to check and see what the purse for your race is!
HORSE OF THE MONTH
Horse of the Month has been brought back! Sammy has brought this back and is running it again. To nominate your horse for Horse of the Month, go here.
HALL OF FAME
Once your horse retires, it is possible that you feel their accomplishments merit an induction in the Hall Of Fame. Awesome! If you feel this way, post a poll in the Hall Of Fame board. Check past polls for formatting of your poll and what you should include. Your horse needs a minimum of seven votes on its poll before a decision is rendered regarding whether they are in the Hall or not. To be voted in as a Hall of Fame inductee is an incredibly high honor, and you should be proud of this achievement!
THE WIRE CHAMPION HALL OF FAME
Have a horse that did really well at The Wire? Well, you might have a Wire Champion on your hands. The nominating and voting process for a Wire Champion is the same as for the Hall Of Fame, but while a Hall Of Fame nomination is for all three tracks, the Wire Champion Hall of Fame honors horses that did especially well at The Wire.
Read on to Guide Number Four: Judging!
