Throughout the centuries, there has perhaps never been a sport as exciting for people all over the world than horse racing. The locale might have gone from the Norse mythology to Rome’s Circus Maximus, and to modern-day racetracks, but the blood rush that people watching live horse races feel always gives way to an exhilarating feeling that keeps them going back to watch more races. All over the world today, horse racing is one of the best forms of entertainment around. Part of the fun is the wagering involved in most horse races today. However, even if you do not bet, horse racing online can be exciting.
The earliest race horses were held in Greece. These races often involved both mounted horse races and chariot races. When the Roman Empire fell, horse breeding and horse racing in the West likewise died with it. It was not until the time King Henry I of England imported an Arabian stallion to breed, train, and race, when the sport of horse racing came back to life. Purebred mounts soon raced at the Smithfield Track in London, the first racetrack ever to be built after the fall of the Roman Empire. Even English fairs took interest in featuring horse races. Due to its roots, horse racing has been accorded the label the “Sport of Kings.”
In the mid-1600s, the first American racetrack was built in Long Island, New York. The Newmarket, as this racetrack was named, was the site of the earliest horse races in the Northern American region. More and more purebred British mares and stallions were sought after by Americans for breeding and training horseracing steeds. Those who have taken interest in the sport started organizing themselves into clubs that standardized practices in horse breeding, training, and racing. Huge amounts of money were poured into the sport. Not a few people have also made money betting in the races. The American Jockey Club was formed late in the 19th century in order to standardize the ethics in horse racing. The responsibility for maintaining the American Stud Book, the rule book for horse racing all over the United States, was soon taken over by the American Jockey Club. Later on, the Thoroughbred Racing Associations of the United States was established in Chicago.
Watching live horse races, fans claim, cannot be paralleled in entertainment value. Being one with other fellow horse racing fans standing along the racetracks’ sidelines to feel the horses rush by is a feeling that cannot be equaled. Add betting successfully and you have something that is even more enjoyable. Understanding the game first before you go on betting on your choice of horses could help you plan out your bets.
The types of races that you can bet on vary. Your choice of races and horses to bet on would differ depending on how much money you would like to bet and what kind of odds you are willing to risk. Horse race gambling rules are also varied from state to state. Wagering in horse races involves pari-mutuel betting. This basically entails pooling the bets together and then dividing the money among the winners after the appropriate taxes and racetrack expenses have been deducted from it. Such betting in thoroughbred horse racing made the sport flourish. In the United States, horse racing enthusiasts get all fired up in betting in the Triple Crown races composed of the three top horse races – the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes, and the Preakness.
