America's Best Racing. The Jockey Club.

A Thoroughbred racing saddle is the lightest saddle used, weighing less than two pounds.

A cotton cloth which goes under the saddle to absorb sweat. It usually has the horse's program number and sometimes, in major races, its name.

A piece of felt, sheepskin, or more usually, foam rubber, used as a base for the saddle.

To be taken out of a race before it starts. Trainers usually request to scratch horses due to adverse track conditions or a horse's adverse health. A veterinarian can request to scratch a horse at any time. Final approval for the scratch comes from the stewards.

A sealed track is a dirt track that has been packed down. Dry tracks are sealed so that water runs off the track, reducing the amount of precipitation absorbed into the surface. Wet tracks are sealed to provide a safe and even racing surface.

Rope or strap attached to a halter or bridle by which a horse is led. Also called a lead rope.

Jacket and cap worn by jockeys.

Father of a foal.

Uncastrated male horse.

A stallion used for breeding.

A foal who is still nursing.

A piece of equipment, usually made of sheepskin or a synthetic material, that is attached to the noseband of a horse's bridle. Shadow rolls make it less likely that a horse will spook at shadows on the track or try to jump them.

A white marking running down a horse's face, starting under an imaginary line connecting the tops of the eyes.

Final straight portion of the racetrack to the finish.

Bend of track into the final straightaway.

Solid white markings extending from the top of the hoof to the knee or hock.

Partitioned mechanical device having stalls in which the horses are confined until the starter releases the confined front doors of each stall to begin the race.

1) Any of a number of white markings on the forehead. (The forehead is defined as being above an imaginary line connecting the tops of the eyes.) 2) A type of credit a horse receives from the racing secretary if it is excluded from an over-filled race, giving it priority in entering future races.

Thick cotton wraps used during shipping and while in the stall to prevent swelling and/or injury.

A metric that rates a horse’s performance in a race, which is determined by a combination of the horse’s performance and the level of competition he/she competed against. The higher the number for most speed figures, the better the horse’s accomplishment.

A handicapping tool assigning a numerical value to each race run by a horse to enable different horses running at different racetracks to be objectively compared.

Three-year-old horses. Called sophomores because age three is the second year of racing eligibility.

A race for which the owner usually must pay a fee to run a horse. The fees can be for nominating, maintaining eligibility, entering and starting, to which the track adds more money to make up the total purse. Some stakes races are by invitation and require no payment or fee.

Races are classified as STAKES races when the meet two basic criteria, 1) They have money added to the base purse of the race in the form of nomination, entry and or starter fees paid by owners; 2) Nominations for a STAKES race must close at least 72 hours prior to its running. Stakes races can be under allowance conditions (weight off allowed based upon number of wins or money won); handicap conditions (Racing Secretary or Handicapper assigns weight based upon past performances with the goal of giving each horse an equal chance to win the race) or weight for age conditions, (each horse carries equal weights based upon their age and sex).

Starter allowance races are identical to starter handicap races with the only difference that horses competing in this race are weighted through allowance conditions (i.e. number of races or money won).

This category is reserved for horses that have been running in inferior claiming company, but have improved to the point that they would not be risked being sold in a claiming race. In effect this race is an allowance race restricted to horses that have previously run in a claiming race at a specific level (e.g. starters for a claiming price of $5,000). In a starter handicap race, horses are weighted similar to a handicap race.

An allowance or handicap race restricted to horses that have started for a specific claiming price or less.

Officials of the race meeting responsible for enforcing the rules of racing.

Manner of going. Also, distance covered between successive imprints of the same hoof.