I obviously love all things Slew, so I pay attention to just that line in terms of pedigree. Beyond that, I look at what the horse has actually done. It just so happens that two of the top horses are Slews, so it is rewarding for me personally; it is not rewarding financially, however. What can I collect on Bernardini and Lava Man!:D

LOL, so you probably play the jockeys...to that i say BULLCRAP, LOL.

The best thing about pedigree as a factor is that it is not used by the masses, so spot plays can bring better prices.

Yes, I use it, especially for unraced/lightly raced and turf and off-tracks.

I pay as much attention to broodmare stats as sire stats. Youbet.com has a pretty nice package on this. I find it useful.

So, here's a question -- and it might be a stupid one. Why is it that in the harness game, breeding/pedigree (and the related stats) has nothing to do with gambling on two year old races, first time starters, etc.?

Now harness racing of course has a universal race distance. But you never hear a harness handicapper say "Well, Artsplace offspring win at 15% first time out" or something along those lines. I have heard people say that a particular stallion throws speed, his two year olds get going early, etc. but it has much less meaning.

Thank you.

Eric

Aside from a fairly infrequent drunken venture into Pompano Park when I have mistaken it for either a hospital Emergency Room or a Taco Bell, I don't follow harness racing very much. But I do know all the horses must run qualifying races. So, there is some "form" behind a harness horse the first time it's entered. Maybe that's why. I would guess, even so, that the first starters of a successful stallion are, all things equal, more attratcive and shorter-priced than those of less fashionablr sires.