Week One Buy - Week Two Race - Week Three Sell

With the new sales system in full flow, it has been noticed that now it is a lot easier to buy/sell horses, that some stables (both old and new) are almost weekly buyers/sellers.

For example, a very well bred but sadly underperfoming colt was put up for sale by an established stable. The AR was published along with a side note explaining that the horse wouldnt be fully mature until their 4th year. One of the newer stables purchased the colt and duly entered it immediately. The horse did not win or place and has now been put back up for sale. The original sale price was relatively small, and the horse's ability and promise (or lack thereof) was never hidden from the market. So the purchasing stable was well aware of the horses future and I can only imagine what thoughts are going through the original stables mind.

This brings me onto the subject - what can you learn from running a horse once? The sales system is not in place (as far as I am personally aware) to be used instead of claiming races. Most of the longer established stables (lets called them VETS) are wise to the practice of running a horse at least 4 - 6 times over various surfaces and distances to establish the horses potential (or lack of). The new influx of stables seems to see the sales as a place to simply pick up a horse cheaply (after having moaned how poor they are) and then run a horse once and if it doesnt deliver a winning cheque to put it back out in the market at a higher price to try to offset their costs.

VETS will know that this practice simply isnt viable and you will not see many of them delving into the sale market to pick up any horse going - they will research as much as possible, look back at past records of both sire/dam/siblings if data is available and not rely on the AR as the "horses handbook".

NEWBIES this and last season have many many more opportunties open to them than players/stables who joined prior to that. There are past performances to go through (esp when buying horses with past racing records), questions posted on the forum are answered in detail and there are of course the new Starter Allowance and Allowance races.

So perhaps its time for some new rules re sales.

1. Every horse purchased must be kept by that stable for a minimum of one month.
2. No horse can be sold after less than 2 runs for its new stable.
3. If a stable appears to be buying/selling horses with increasing regularity then it will be banned from buying/selling for a period of one month.
4. No horse can be put up for sale WITHOUT the full AR being shown.

I hope that everyone reading this will see this in the spirit it is meant to be read. What can any player new or old learn from racing a horse once? How many players in the past have sold a horse they consider to be bad, only to see another stable turn it around with a bit of patience and understanding (ie varying the horses race either by surface or distance).

Will this post deter the new practice by some stables of buying and selling on a week in week out basis - probably not but then again how long will they last in the game if they buy high and sell low? So new stables - the VETS are still around becuase they have learnt the way to play by using patience and lots of it. NEWBIES dont keep moaning how hard you are having it, you are all damn lucky to get to pick your horses when you start - you should hear some of the horror stories by the earlier stables! And you get a lot more help than appears to be appre0icated by SOME new stables (not all just some and they know who they are) - including free breeds, discounted sales, special offers etc. I am not saying DONT offer new players special deals but perhaps with some conditions attached, ie if they buy a horse at a reduced rate but then turnaround and sell it for an inflated profit, the original vendor would be liable to say 50% of the profit? That might slow down this new buy em cheap sell em dear!