Guide to the Racing Daily

[stolenhart©]

The Beginner’s Guide to A Kingly Sport

Hello and Welcome to The Racing Daily, or as we call it King. I am Zi, or stolenhart, the founder and admin of the site. First I want to thank you for being interested in my site, it has been the work of several years and I appreciate you stopping by for a look. Secondly, if you decide to join, which I hope you do, please do not be afraid to ask questions, bug me or the other members, and dive into the site. None of us bite and we all want you to enjoy the time you spend on the site. And don’t let King overwhelm you, it gets easier after the first day, I promise. Below you can find a path to what you need to do in order to successfully join us. And Good Luck on the Track!

General Rules

Be courteous to everyone. No rudeness. This is not an rp site, per se, so you can't even be rude in posts. No isms, sexism, racism, heightism, none.

This site requires very little of your time, be active! You don't have to rp but check in and sign your horses up for races, breedings, auctions, etc.

If for any reason you miss two race weeks without notifying the admin, your barn is subject to being sold and/or given to new members. Should you come back, your game will be restarted.

NO BREEDING FARMS. This is a horse-RACING site. It's a sim, what's the fun in just breeding horses?

No BOARDING STABLES. You own your own stable so you shouldn't have to board your horses anywhere else.

These are general guidelines and the foundation of the site, subject to change at any time.

Table of Contents

1). The Horses
2). Money
3). Employees
4). Racing
5). Breeding
6). Training

[stolenhart©]

Meet the Horses

As a Race Horse....

Each horse has been given three sets of randomly generated set of numbers, one of which covers a variety of physical and personality characteristics a racehorse will possess. The second set of numbers reflects how they react to variables in their off track environment. The third set of numbers is their reaction to their trainer and jockey, this set of numbers is randomly changed every few months to reflect a horse’s attitude towards these two people. Horses are also given a genetic stat which indicates how well their pedigree influences their racing potential.

When races are run, horses are judged on the above statistics and then given a fourth set of numbers. This fourth set reflects how well the given race meets the horse’s preferences for weather, surface type and distance of race. All four sets are added together and a final number is generated. Whichever horse has the highest number wins. In the event of a tie, the winner is at the discretion of the race manager.

As a Breeding Horse....

The numbers assigned for a race horse are converted to a new set of numbers for a breeding horse. A genetic potential is randomly assigned to a retiring horse which indicates how much of an individual horse’s potential goes into their offspring, and how much of an offspring’s potential is left to random chance. Every horse is created different, but some horses make more consistent breeders than others.

**Events can temporarily or permanently influence the assigned numbers and are randomly generated throughout the week and applied to each horse. **

[stolenhart©]

Money, Money, Money

The Basics

Everything is this game costs money, from the necessary acreage and stalls to the employees at the track to the horses themselves. Like in real life you have to spend money to make money.

All new barns start the game with $250,000. This is so they can buy the necessary track employees and enter races.

Every time you are purchasing an item, or posting your race entries, you need to put the total amount of money you are spending. The admin responsible for money will then deduct the total from your bank account, and place it where it needs to go, and put PAID in your post. Unless you have permission from stolenhart, you are not allowed to put paid in your own posts. Once PAID as been put in your post, you will need to make a new post, instead of editing the old one. If you are making a payment to another barn, please put where the payment is going.

Taxation

During January of every month, you will be required to pay a flat rate tax of 50% of your year's end total. This tax pays: 15% race earnings tax, 20% farm employee salaries, and 15% farm and horse upkeep.

Collecting Money

When money is owed to you, you should post in the bank thread. Please put the amount you are owed, as well as who is paying the amount to you in the thread. An admin will put PAID and add the money to your account.

When you are collecting winnings from races, please list the horse and the amount of money that particular horse won that day. To make things easier, wait until the Saturday results are posted to collect your earnings. Please note, you will have two weeks from Saturday to collect your winnings for a given week. Failure to due so will result in lost of those earnings.

Debt

Should you go into debt, you will be given a grace period of two weeks to get out of debt. Anything costing money will still be charged to your account, so please take note of that. Should you fail to come out of debt in that period, your horses will be assessed for value so that you may sell to recoup your losses. After two weeks, you may also declare bankruptcy. If you do, you will lose your entire farm and start over with the original $250,000.

Everything is for Sale

King will happily buy back any horse of racing age for $25,000, any breeding horse for $50,000 and any under age horse for $12,500. King will do as they please with these horses, including retirement, racing and reselling the horse.

King will host auctions and sales at four times through the year. January's sale is for yearlings. April's sale is for unraced two year olds. July's sale is for any and all age of horses. October's sale is for breeding stock. You may be asked to give up horses for these sales, depending on the number of stock you currently own. If you do, will be paid a fair value for the horse.

Farms may sell up to two horses in private to another farm. If the farm wishes to sell three or more horses, they must hold a public sale. The rules and prices of a sale hosted by a farm is up to the farm owner.

Please remember, the seller of the horse must post in the bank in order to receive their payment. The name of the buyer, the horse's name and the amount to be deducted and added to the necessary accounts should also be posted in a sale claim.

[stolenhart©]

Employees

Farm Employees

It is not necessary to have individual farm employees. Just remember that 20% of your yearly taxes goes to paying the individuals which work at your farm. Please read the Events section in order to see a caveat about this.

Trainers

In order to race your horses you must hire a trainer. Trainers can have ten horses in their string at one time. You will pay your trainer a yearly salary in June of each year. Trainers hired between January and June will charge half a year's salary, at all other times a farm will pay the full year's salary. Trainers charge based on their levels of experience, the more experienced the better the horses react to them. There are only a limited number of trainers in each level.

• Rookies
• Experienced
• Veterans

Jockeys

Another necessity for racing is a jockey. As a farm, you should have at least two jockeys on your payroll, but only one is required for your horses to race. Jockeys are also paid on a yearly salary, except they are paid in March. Jockeys hired from October to March will only charge half a year's pay while farms will pay a full year's salary after March. Jockeys also charge based on the their levels of experience, and like trainers there are a limited number of jockeys.

• Apprentice
• Contract
• Licensed

You may fire and hire trainers or jockeys at any time during the year, however this will affect how your horses race, either in negatively or positively.

Trainers and Jockey salaries decrease by $10,000 each year you have them on your payroll. Every $30,000 decrease will advance the employee up a level and reset their salary by $60,000.

[stolenhart©]

The Rules of the Races

The Basics

Each horse has been randomly created with a set of statistics which determine how well they race. Some of these stats are physical and mental features of the horse which are, for the most part, permanent and unchangeable. Other stats are reactive and will fluctuate with each and every race.

Horses must win a Maiden or a Claimer race in order to advance to a higher level, unless they are a two year old which may enter any level of race. Horses which have won a race may not enter in a strictly Maiden race. Maiden horses are denoted by an 'M' at the beginning of their name and lose the 'M' once they have won their race.

Horses can race as often as possible though penalties are applied for racing back to back. However, horses have a limit to how many races they may enter in a given year.

• Two Year Olds
• Three Year Olds
• Four Year Olds and Older

Fines for racing above the limit, will be added to the year's taxes in January.

The Races Themselves

There are four types of races on King, each type has a specific payment based on the length of the race. Any race, except stakes races, can be a Maiden race.

Claimers are the lowest level of races and any horse entered at this level can be claimed for the listed purse amount.
Optional Claimers are the most common level of races. Horses entered at this level should have a (no) in parantheses in order to avoid being available for claiming. Failure to add a (no) means your horse can be claimed.
Allowances are the mid level races. Horses are not available for claiming and should have won at least one race before entering this level.
Stakes races are the highest level of races and the most profitable.

You may enter two horses in the same stakes race, up to 14 entries total. And you may enter three horses in the same lower level race up to 20 entries total.

If you do not sign up for a race week, your horses are prone to being entered that week without permission. You will not be charged their entry fee, unless you wish to collect their earnings. You will be fined however if they do go over their race limit, so it is your responsibility to keep track.

Any race with less than five entries is subject to being cancelled and no refunds will be issued. Admin tries to fill all races up to five entries, but asks that each farm attempt to fill races first.

Please leave the entry fee in your race entry post so that admin can add up and deduct the amount from your bank account. You will be fined $10,000 every time you fail to do so. If you are feeling helpful you may add your fees in a total for the admin.

Nominations

In our world, there are two times when a horse must be 'nominated' in order to enter a race.

The first time is the Kentucky Derby. In order to be eligible to race in the Derby, a horse must be a 3YO and have won either a Derby prep race or $300,000 by April B of their 3YO year. A 'nomination' fee will be added to the entry fee for the Kentucky Derby for any horse who seeks to be entered. Admin will make sure the requirements have been met before allowing entry.

The second is any of the Breeders' Cup races. In order to be 'nominated' horses must be the offspring of a horse who won a BC race, or has raced in two BC races during their career. Horses may also be 'nominated' if they win a Breeders' Cup Challenge race during the year prior to the BC races. The final way a horse may be 'nominated' for the BC championship, is if they are 'nominated' at birth. The owner must pay an fee at the foals birth for BC nomination.

[stolenhart©]

Breeding Champions

The Basics of It

Horses may retire to the breeding barn at the age of four and they must be retired by the age of ten. Once retired a horse will not return to the track, and all horses must be officially retired before they can be bred.

Breeding season is from January B to May A, while foaling season is from January A to April B, give or take. When a mare is bred, you will be given the expected due date of the foal which can change depending on the whims of fate. Mares can be rebred a month and a half (three race weeks) after they have foaled.

Mares may have five foals in their lifetime before they are permanently retired from the game. These foals do not have to be back to back, and you may keep a mare in the breeding barn until she is twelve years old. You may purchase a sixth foal for $200,000. Stallions may stand at stud until they have 30 lifetime foals or reach twelve years old.

Public stallions are free to be used by anyone, up to their yearly foal limit. Private stallions stand at the discretion of their owners.

[stolenhart©]

Training

Getting Started

Once you've gotten your new horses and your bankroll, you will be required to buy a trainer before you can train or race your horses. Once your trainer has been hired you may then enter in a race or begin training.

There will be various training opportunities available throughout the year, it will be your responsibility to enroll your horse in each session as it becomes available to you. Training opportunities cannot be made up. Training can either help a horse, hinder a horse or do nothing for a horse and the training notes may not be entirely factual. You do not have to follow the suggestions of the trainer. Use your judgement and your gut instinct.

Weanling Training

This type of training helps lay the groundwork for the adult horse. During this time, horses are taught basic manners with the variety of people they will come in contact with during the lifetime. This training hints as to how a given horse will deal with people and the notes will give the owner hints on the horse's responses to trainers and jockeys.

Yearling Training

As a yearling, you will design a short workout for your horse. Notes will be given to the owner based on the horse's performance during this workout. Yearling training will only hint at a horse's preference for weather and surface type, though be warned that hints may not be fact.

Two Year Old Training

Prior to the start of the 2YO season, another workout will be designed for your horse using the notes from previous training. This workout will help the owner figure out what distance the horse likes to race over, as well as hint at what running strategy a jockey should use during a race.

Older Race Horse Training

Open year round, each horse may have once session every six months. This will help an owner fine tune a horse (or figure out what is going on with said horse). These sessions will be used to gauge a horse's current race profile and help the owner figure out what changes need to be made.