Things I ought to know... Vol. I

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by dean smith

I'm embarrassed to ask these things, but I have to admit I'm kind of foggy on some things relating to the start of the race.

In the "Comments" section of the PPs, what does "Off bit slow" mean? Is it different than "Off slow"? And what exactly are "Bobbled at start" and "Steadied at start"? I understand they are rough starts, but what exactly is going on and which is more severe? Finally, what is "Waited bit 1/4" or "Waited 1/4"?

Can somebody please help a brother out?

You have nothing to be embarrassed about at all. There are people on here with far more experience than you that don't know what they are saying or doing.

To the point though. Off slow and Off a bit slow is pretty much just an arbitrary choice of wording by the chartmaker.

Steadied at start usually would involve horses colliding, while bobbling at the start would best be described as a self caused stumble. Usually it's nothing overly damaging to the chances of the horse running, unless maybe it's a speedball in a sprint.

If you'd like an example of a small bobble, watch Einstein at the start of the Foster, from post 3.