.
CHAPTER TWELVE

.
FINALLY

.

The one thing I’ve learned in the years I have been gambling is, that it is never too late to learn.
For twenty five years I learned absolutely nothing. Every selection I made was based on someone else’s opinion. Newspaper tipsters, postdata, topspeed and there is always somebody who knows someone who’s heard something. By simply backing favourites you are exploiting the opinions of the on course punters. Everything changed once I had been introduced to the humble speed rating.
I usually run off the figures the day before, that way if anything exciting crops up I can go to the track. The added advantage is that I can sort through the horses and draw up a short list without any idea of the tissue prices. I do not know why but if I know which horses are fancied before hand it seems to cloud my judgement. It is a bit like those court room scenes on TV where the prosecution divulge damming information about the defendant and the judge instructs the jury to disregard what has been said. If a stand out horse is a big price I will still back it, the only time I let the price put me off is if it is under 2/1. I do stretch the point if a horse is a real stand out and have backed at 15/8 and 7/4 but that is the exception and not the rule.
The decision I made in Calla Millor to concentrate on the all weather for the 2002/03 winter season resulted in a profit of £5K. But it could have been so much better and another important lesson was learned. The second week in January I booked a last minute flight to Futurventura. I had promised to take Gill away after Christmas and thought the break would do me good. I was wrong. For a start the weather was abysmal, the worst they’d had for 16 years. Even worse was the disastrous effect it had on the entire season. It was a big mistake interrupting a run of good results and going away while the speed figures were at their best.
When I got back it took me two weeks to catch up on the ratings and get back into the groove. During this time I had a run of eight consecutive losing days which cost me £2.2K. By the time I was back on an even keel it was mid February and the turf horses were beginning to appear. Before I knew it the season was over. Without this set back I am convinced the profits would have been nearer £10K. It was a lesson well learnt and a mistake I will not be making again.
There were four major events over 7 years that put my gambling operation into profit. In the order that they occurred they were :-

.

1. Keeping a book
2. Speed Ratings (Mordin on Time)
3. The abolition of betting shop tax.
4. The decision to concentrate on the all weather

.

On the whole it was a successful first winter AW season and I cannot wait until November to get started again. It does seem strange not betting on the turf like I used to. When I go for a drink in the afternoon people are dashing in and out to the bookies next door. This time last year I would have been with them in pole position. There is no way I could have resisted the temptation to have a bet, but now it does not bother me at all. Making a profit seems to have given me a discipline I have never had before. I suppose I just don’t want to give them the money back. I am quite happy to wait until November before getting involved again. You could say, ‘I have retired to the side lines while the game I know is no longer being played.’

.
THE END