Dog Racing Tips - Track Secrets That Pick Winners

At my local greyhound track, I usually sit right on the finish line so I can see for myself whether my dogs win or not. One day last week, a man sat down next to me and started to tell me all about the race track I've been going to for decades.

At first, I was prepared to be bored and thought about moving so that I could go over my program one more time in peace. But as the man went on, I realized that moving would be a big mistake. Rather than a bore, my new friend was a gift. Here's what he told me.

He said that he'd noticed over the years that the track had changed. When he started going in the 70's, breakers and speed dogs won almost every race. But gradually, maybe because of changes to the track surface and maintenance, breakers began to get out just as well, but fade in the stretch.

Closers started to win and still did, which was why he looked for a good closer in a race with several breakers. He said it had made him money, knowing that, and he knew other things too. For instance, he told me that a certain kennel had kennel cough and that's why their dogs weren't doing as well as expected.

I was interested to hear this, because one of that kennel's dogs was circled on my program and I had intended to play it in a quiniela box with two other dogs. Then he told me about the recent budget cutting measures that the track had put in.

He said that the slow economy was cutting down on attendance and wagering, so the track's owners were getting chintzy. No more free coffee to seniors. No more half-price hot dogs on Friday. And had I noticed that the coffee cups had gotten smaller and the servings of fries and onion rings had shrunk too?

I had noticed that it seemed that the servings were smaller, but I put it down to my lousy memory and getting old and thinking that everything was better in the good old days. Well, he said a lot more about trainers that were cutting corners with cheaper food and which dogs were likely to win and why that day.

I sit near this man every chance I get now and have shared some handicapping tips with him. I think it's only fair. After all, he told me enough about that track to help me hit quite a few more bets than I would have otherwise.

Next time you're at the track and someone starts talking to you, think twice before you move away or ignore them. True, they may be just someone who likes to talk. But if you're lucky, they'll be someone who actually has something to say that you can use to make money.