The Bottom Line
Long time workout clocker Robert Kachur gives the racing fan a look at the corrupt world of morning workouts. Clockers, trainers, grooms, and racing officials all conspire to keep the public unaware.
Pros
- Good behind-the-scenes look at racing
- Exposes apparent corruption in the game
- Price is right, for now (free!)
Cons
- Can be overly opinionated, looking for trouble
- Author is not a professional writer
- Reading online may be difficult for some people
Description
- Horses are incorrectly identified and workout times are hidden or erroneously reported by trainers.
- Only those in the know, or paid for the priviledge, have the correct and complete data to make a bet
- Clockers like Kachur who rebelled against the conspiracy were denied gate sheets by the stewards.
- The conspiracy's objctive is to have their horses win at much higher odds than their form indicates.
- Kachur explains that owners in the conspiracy take turns winning at long odds, the "Turn System".
- After quitting his clocker job, Kachur worked in the stables as a night watchman.
- In that capacity he witnessed veterinarians under cover of darkness administering illegal drugs.
- Kachur dedicates an entire chapter on the increasing presence of slot machines at racetracks.
- He also presents the record of a court case involving a mobster who tampered with urine samples.
- Finally, he shows how Seattle Slew's first workout was never properly recorded.
