Frequently Asked Questions

If you cant find an answer to your question, please contact me.

Membership for new accounts is £25 per month for a Recreational account, there is an enhanced account (more slots etc) for an extra £10 per month

There are two levels of account, the first Recreational should suit the vast majority of casual punters, the second Enhanced offers increased storage facilities and data limits in places of the site where a significant cost is associated with maintaining and implementation of the feature. Below are the current figures by account type.

The results of every horse race from UK and Ireland since 1st January 1997 are stored in the database. Please note at present I do not have French, US form etc or point to point races.

There used to be a forum on the site, but I removed it due to spamming and endless issues, which took up a lot of time. I do hope to one day add another, at the moment there are a number of HRB users plus a dedicated HRB area on the UK Betting Forum. Membership is free and Kevin from UK Betting Forum told me this - "We do not look to make any money from our members, there are no membership costs and we do not sell mailing lists etc. We do not promote tipsters or system sellers and do not carry affiliate links. We have a number of long term users of HRB who are happy to help out with any queries from any new users etc".

Due to the type of code used for maximum efficiency, speed and security the back button does not work on many of the pages where variables are being passed behind the scenes. In many cases there will be a HorseRaceBase button to take you back within features, otherwise you can use the link menus at the top of the page to navigate around the site.

Please use the lost details form.

Once you have logged in to the site there is a change password option within the My Settings Page.

Payment via Sage Pay is immediate. With Paypal, I update manually just as quickly as I can - please make sure to advise if you have a different Paypal email address than used on HRB.

There are three main update stages.

1. Approx 3.30pm - The next days (and any 48 hour declaration) cards and data are loaded.
2. Overnight - Confirmed results and any updates to cards/data is loaded.
3. From 10am - A number of live feeds are used to update changes to cards and live results etc.

The primary aim of the analysis tools is to give an immediate snapshot providing invaluable insight into the factors most likely to affect the outcome of the race. These tools are most useful when you want to find something out fast. For example, you may want to quickly identify which trainer in the race has the best strike rate, which horse's have won over a greater distance or look for horse's who have previously won at a big price.

This a function exclusive to horseracebase.com, simply by clicking the follow button when viewing any race result you can view the subsequent performance of horses who ran in the race. This can be an extremely useful facility when studying form.

Most searches you will find extremely simple but in some cases you may not find what you are looking for if you have the wrong spelling or alternatively if the horse/jockey/trainer/stallion has never had a run under rules in UK/Ireland.

Go to Track Stats and choose an appropriate track stats link. In the section 'included data' select With Run Today.

The odds forecast comes from the Press Association. The price taken is the one supplied the day before at approximately 2.30pm. This has been the case over the years and is the figure stored in the System Builder etc.

The lists are kept to a manageable size using a criteria otherwise they would be unmanageable (as there are thousands). The criteria uses the last entry date and total number of previous entries. There are a couple of ways round it. 1 is to go to the individual record and load from there, the other is to pick a criteria that would include them and do a breakdown (example if they had ran at Stratford you could set this as the criteria).

You can click the Winners option within the Quals tab or you could also use the category Placing (settled) and set as First to just include the winners

The Ratings Machine V2 lets members create their own ratings. The HRB Standard ratings are available to all, they are an example of the Ratings Machine process. In terms of the HRB Standard rating - although popular, these and the other communal sets (the older sets use less settings as they were added in the later version) were designed to help people who wanted a start point when creating their own ratings using the Ratings Machine. They are purely an example of what can be done with the Ratings Machine.

To see exactly how an example set works and the settings in use you can go to the Ratings Machine and do the below.
1) Choose Create new ratings based on a template.
2) Give your ratings a name and choose from the available ratings sets dropdown and click Go
3) You will automatically be editing your new ratings set and can view/edit as you wish. There are help links on each setting

You can run queries on any ratings set by transferring from the builder to the Ratings Machine or from within the Ratings Machine itself and using the backtest option, but at present there is a limit in place, the reason being that ratings are calculated in real time (as members can have several different sets of rating settings etc). If you wanted to use any set of ratings in combination with any system, you can do so using the feature 'Merge Systems & Ratings' that is on the My Qualifiers page. For example if you wanted to get qualifiers that are top of HRB Standard and also track winners and top OR rated (that is purely an example) you could set up that criteria, save the system and when fetching qualifiers, use that merge option to specify top rated of whatever ratings settings you wish to use. A lot of users do this.

I never offer specific advice to anyone regarding how to build systems, what to back or any other aspect. It has always been my philosophy to just supply as many tools as I can to help people form their own opinions and help them create, finetune and manage their own strategies etc.

Previous days qualifiers are normally available around 10am this is because there are a lot of data checks required and also additional data such as Betfair SP that needs gathered.

Yes 5% commission is applied, you can change this in the settings area for V4 (customise calculations)

When you save a system there is a warning not to use apostrophes or other special characters as they cause the software all kinds of issue, mainly due to potential sql injection attacks. Some areas will handle but some will not. So if you go to My Systems and remove the apostrophe this will rectify

The notes for all systems can be viewed and edited by going to My Systems (v4)

If you go to calculations help section there are descriptions

You can change the calculations in use in the V4 Setup area

Use the Qualifier Check tool to see what they fail on. If you believe there is an issue contact me.

To check the date last loaded in the Builder you can check here.

The builder does not have the capacity to specify OR - it is too long-winded and with the wrong query would grind the site to a halt. Therefore the best option is to create separate systems

The exact calculation used to create the CHI figure is rather complicated, however here it is

count(*)*power(sum(wins)-sum(ae),2) / (sum(ae) * (count(*)-sum(ae)))

AE is the actual v expected and that calculation (for each individual run) is

1-(odds_numerical/(odds_numerical+1))

The only way to get more than 100 systems is to have a second account. I can arrange a discount if you contact me.

You can view some information regarding longest losing runs in the V4 builder. Stats tab and then select Performance

Yes. If you go to the Set Up area of v4 you can add in additional download categories

The exact calculation used is (sum(if(bfsp>0,if(wins=1,bfsplayexcom,$commission),0))/(sum(bfsp)-sum(if(bfsp>0,1,0))))*100

Odds (BFSP) are only known after the race. You cant save a system with Odds (BFSP) as it is not known until the off.

Odds as a criteria is basically bit of a nightmare unless you can check close to the race start time, hence the reason many people use the Odds (forecast) category - as it is static. However due to non runners and many many other factors it can be wildly different to the start price.

There is no all in one answer to this. Sometimes people backfit systems and this can lead to disappointment (but not always as can stumble on to something meaningful). Example if I choose a category and then go in and just tick every profitable one and then keep doing the same with other categories, it may well look very impressive - but is it logical? You could do the same thing with random lottery numbers based on previous draws. So basically I would say if you have systems that you feel make common sense, you may well be on to something, if they are just purely backfitted I would be honest and say probably not (in my opinion).

If you have a look at the help section here, you will see the dates BFSP came into play. So anything before those dates would not have a BFSP.

Set criteria as favourites, then choose Breakdown and select tracks and you will see stats by track.

ROI stands for return on investment. This is a common figure used by some people to determine whether a system is worthwhile in the long term.

Yes to set a system to Active or Not Active you go to the page My Systems (v4) and it is in the section Categorise.

The BF commission is a setting you can apply in the V4 Set Up area (calculations section). It is set at 5% unless changed.

The bf prices can at times be wild when looking at big outsiders, important to note that getting on at that price may be hard! Also though important to note that laying brings its own huge risks

Settled qualifiers are all based on the runners at the off and the finalised data.

It is almost certainly down to 'non-static' criteria and you can read more - in the help pages here

The NOW tab of the builder is meant to show all upcoming qualifiers, today/tomorrow and 48hr that match the criteria you have set

The rules are as follows.

• bfsp<=0.5 - Stake = 0.8
• bfsp<=0.8 - Stake = 0.9
• bfsp<=1 - Stake = 1
• bfsp<=2 - Stake = 0.8
• bfsp<=3 - Stake = 0.6
• bfsp<=5.4 - Stake = 0.5
• bfsp<=7 - Stake = 0.4
• bfsp<=8.6 - Stake = 0.3
• bfsp>=8.61 - Stake = 0.25
• For each selection stake = (runningbalance*Stake)/100

If you go into the V4 Set Up area you can add Place Exchange Odds as an extra column for the download

1. Go to V4 and choose customise (from Set Up and Help)
2. Choose the option 'Download categories'
3. Add in Race Distance and Class
4. Save

You can do this in the system builder by setting the month and then breaking down by trainer. Alternatively there is a statistics section that does allow very simple queries by month. Here is a direct link for April as an example.

1. Click V4 tab on race card.
2. Tick Track, Hcap Type, Trainers and press Transfer
3. Click Add tab. Choose horse Age and Set as 3
4. Click Breakdown tab and choose Trainer - You will be presented with stats for each trainer

Set criteria as desired then do a breakdown on Trainer and sort by profit/loss

Yes the category is called Track Direction

The way I classify it is by marking as the first of these

• First race at 11.55am or earlier = Morning
• First race at 3pm or earlier = Afternoon
• First race at 5pm or earlier - Twilight
• First later than 5pm - Evening

There are many categories based around the horses win and placed rates in various tests. These all start with H-Runs, H-Wins, H-Win% etc. Example H-Win% (NH Race Type) could be set combined with Hurdles to get horses with a certain win percentage in hurdles.

As no class system is in place, categories in the Builder that include Irish races use the following (they do have Listed, and Group/Grade races so they are the same). Note these values are after converting the prize money to sterling.

• Prize money to winner <5000 = UK Class 6
• Prize money to winner <7000 = UK Class 5
• Prize money to winner <10000 = UK Class 4
• Prize money to winner <14000 = UK Class 3
• Prize money to winner >14000 = UK Class 2

Yes in the Builder you could use the Compare v LR catgeory and Class is listed in there A more specific way you can use Class and (LR) Class categories

Yes there is a category in V4 called Race Distance (tick)

you can use the category 'Placing (settled)' to get this. It cant be saved as a system as obviously the finising position can not be a criteria for a future race

You can achieve gelded 1st run by using the categories Sex of Horse and (LR) Sex of Horse

Basically every trainer travels a certain number of miles from their yard to the track, the pos miles travelled is the ordered range, so a trainer travelling 1 mile would be first and one coming from abroad would be last etc. Pos Miles Travelled in plain english means the ordered miles travelled of each trainer in the race with furthest travelled being Clear or Joint Top and closest traveller being Clear or Joint Bottom. Reason furthest travelled is Joint Top is that in the System Builder category people are normally interested in the horses travelling a long way.

The SP based odds categories will fetch qualifiers using whatever price is known at the time you look. It is an extreme non static category.

The Stalls Analyser score was originally requested by a user. The score is based on a process which is round((winstrike-totalwinstrike)*2,0) to a maximim/minimum of 10. In other words comparing the strike rate of that stall versus the strike rate of all stalls.

Use the category Date (Last x days). Another way to get exact dates is to use the categories 'Date Range Min' and 'Date Range Max'

Use the category '(LWIN) Days Since Run'

Set Headgear as blinkers and H-Runs (Headgear) as exactly 1 and you will get horses who are wearing blinkers for the second time

The place odds used on the site are the Betfair SP Place prices

The category is in the Horses Last Race section. (LR) Days Since Run

• Handicap/Non - Handicap
• NH Race Type - Chase
• H-Run (Hcap NH) - Exactly 0

• Handicap/Non - Handicap
• H-Run (Hcap/Non) - Exactly 0

• (LR) Placing - NOT First
• (LR) Favouritism Status - Favourites, Co Favs, J-Favs

Compare v LR - Jockey - Different

• H-Runs (Career) > 0
• H-Runs (Trainer) = 0

Compare v LR - Trainer = Different

• NH Race Type = Chase
• H-Runs (NH Race Type) = 0

• Headgear = Blinkers
• H-Runs (Headgear) = 0

• Headgear = Cheekpieces
• H-Runs (Headgear) = Exactly 2

• Placing (Settled) = First
• (LR) Placing = Pulled Up

On every race card there is a H2H tab for direct head to heads. There is also a daily report showing all. There is a Collateral Form tool. Enter any two horses and find links using any third horse they have both competed against.

The opening odds are normally about 10 minutes before the race starts - this is the live market from the track

Be careful to check what dates are in use. For example the Profiler goes back to 1997, the builder 2003 (except trends).

It starts checking for a price at 8am but not always available that early for all races

The exact yards are provided by the course. The distance is always rounded to the nearest half furlong for bracketing etc. It is also important to be aware of rail movements. All race cards and results show this info

There are a few update times.

• Live racing is updated as it happens.
• The cards marked as tomorrow become today at midnight (process can take a few minutes).
• Results are available from as soon as race over but the full process is finalised the next morning after several data checks etc - this is loaded to the site (and to the builder) at around 10am.
• Next days cards and 48 hour declarations go on as soon as possible at around 2.30 to 3pm (can be slower if large quantity/complex)

An outright favourite is when there is only one horse at that price. Example the favourite is 2/1 and the second favourite is 3/1 When 2 horses are the market leaders at the same price they are described as Joint Favs, if there are 3 or more then it is called Co-Favs Example there are 4 horses at 7/1 leading the market and the next horse (5th favourite) is 8/1. The 4 at 7/1 are co-favourites as there is no outright favourite in the market.

The places paid in traditional bookmakers are

• Less than 5 runners. Winner Only.
• 5,6 or 7 runners. Quarter Odds - Two Places.
• Handicaps with between 8 and 15 runners. Quarter odds - 3 places.
• Handicaps with 16 or more runners. Quarter odds - 4 places.
• All other races. Fifth odds - 3 places.

Sometimes the exchange markets use different places paid.

To clarify, points movement refers to the odds table as shown here. 1/40 to 1/50 is a 1 point move and so is 500/1 to 1000/1. Therefore a 5 point move is for example Evens to 8/11 or 5/1 to 3/1

The calculation is round(((number_of_runners-placing)*100)/(number_of_runners-1),0);

The tool has many potential angles. An example of how it could be used. If you saw some stats you liked the look of you could click into the race, click on Form Follow. Imagine first, third, fourth in a maiden had since all ran and won. The horse finishing second is now out and its form has clearly been given a boost (hence the term hot race). Similarly imagine a race won by a horse but all competitors have since came out and been trounced (cold race).

To add a horse to My Horses you navigate to that particular horse and then click Notify Me in the options. Once you have successfully added a horse to My Horses, every time it is due to run, it will appear in the My Qualifiers area.

I put up the 48 hour declarations just after I confirm the next days cards - so around 3pm.

On the Shortcuts page in the Jockey section. It just shows any horses where there has been a change to jockey from between card originally being loaded and time viewing page. Here is a direct link

This particular column shows the number of runs the horse has had this season. Hovering over many of the columns on the site gives more details.

My Daily Picks is actually the name of a feature. You can tick the + at the end of any row to add that horse to 'My Daily Picks'. The way it works is people go through each of the tabs and add in/remove as they go with the orange highlighting making them stand out.

There is a download report called Daily Form Report, it lists the last 5 pieces of form, plus todays info, for every horse running today. It is limited to 5 lines of form by horse because some horses have ran a huge number of times and on a day such as bixing day, it could become huge if it listed all

Each report has its own inclusions. For example the OR and Weight reports are code specific whereas the Last 10 report includes all races.

There is a report each day called the Official Ratings report, it includes a lot of information about ORs for each horse and as it is in excel format an be manipulated for further research.

This is because downloading data 'on the fly' is extremely tricky with .xlsx reports so .xls is used - there are a couple of the reports that are .xlsx but they are ones that do not change.

I am sorry but other than the last 1 weeks results at a time, it is only by day.

Clicking the ADVANCED button on any result will show info including the 30 day stats for Jockey and Trainer

Example the Distance columns in Stat Attack Extra can be replicated in the Builder using columns H- Runs (Distance), H- Wins (Distance) etc

To build go to Big Race Trends (Research menu) then find Chester Cup. Then click Query tab and select V4. It will load all races since 1997 into the Builder as a criteria

When you are analysing a big race trend, it relates only to that 1 specific race and is only ran once a year therefore any system you save relating to it will only produce qualifiers (providing of course they meet the requirements of the system when the race is due to be run) in the My Qualifiers area once a year and the rest of the time have no impact on the database etc.

1. Day before a forecast is used (from the Press Association) until....
2. From approximately 9am on the race day a live feed is taken from the bookmakers and updated live until...
3. At approximately 10 minutes pre race the live market opens on the course and is updated live until...
4. At the race start the official start price is recorded

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