New: Fast Finisher indicators
They're pretty subtle; you'd be forgiven for missing them. Unless you had seen our twitter feed...
First full day of operation for our new 'go faster' stripes indicator, highlighting horses to have been marked up sectionally...
...and they flag a 43/1 exacta from just five runners on the day sporting the Fast Finisher badge! pic.twitter.com/0FLNIwztOu
— geegeez.co.uk (@geegeez_uk) September 15, 2022
https://twitter.com/geegeez_uk/status/1571149782768582659
That little 'go faster' stripe icon - which might have a colour change in coming days to make it 'pop' a touch more - indicates that a horse has finished quickly in one of its recent races. That, in turn, means it might be worth a second glance today. Specifically, it's highlighting a horse that appears on the Fast Finishers report for any of its most recent three runs. And, to be absolutely clear how horses appear on that report, the Fast Finishers (FF) report displays a list of those horses who finished more than 2.5% quicker than the race finishing time in the closing (C) section.
You do NOT need to know this - you only need to know that if they have the indicator they are capable of rattling home late under the right circumstances!
IMPORTANT NOTE: you need to opt in to viewing sectional data, which you can do in the 'Racecard Options' section of your My Geegeez page 👇
Without turning this into a sectional timing sermon, horses that close well have often performed better than their finishing position suggests, and can be value bets in upcoming races, assuming a similar race setup. Let's consider the case of Ayr Gold Cup winner and recent 'fast finisher', Summerghand. This is his form string (ignore the top line, which is the Ayr Gold Cup win).
Clicking the 'Show Sectionals' radio button top left presents a different perspective, with a number of things to pick out:
In the above visual, I've 'hovered' over the running line (the bit with 14 14 14 12 4) to reveal the race detail - jockey, position/field size, distance beaten, winner, odds, weight, headgear and, importantly, the in-running comment. "did well in the circumstances, 1st of 4 in group".
To the right of the running line is a little orange 'go faster stripe'. This means that not only was Summerghand a fast finisher, he was the fastest finisher in the race. As can be seen clearly from the first of the two form images above, he righted the injustice of Ripon's fast finish with a big field handicap win at York next time out. After that he was never nearer in a small field Listed race at Newmarket that wouldn't have played to his ability to finish in a truly run race, before doing just that to get the lot in the AGC.
It is important to note with all sectional data that, as is perfectly highlighted above, there are gaps in our knowledge. The gaps are due to the continued lack of availability of Course Track (Racing TV tracks) data. This is a source of ongoing deep frustration but it doesn't stop the subset we publish - for those tracks covered by Total Performance Data - shining a light on runners with the ability to 'do business' at the end of a race.
As we move to a time of year when all-weather racing will take place most days, TPD's sectional coverage at Lingfield, Newcastle, Southwell and Wolverhampton will provide us with many opportunities to back fast finishers when it looks like they'll get a similar race pace to aim at. For more on sectional timing, check out these posts.
Enjoy!
Matt
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Hi, great addition. Can I just clarify though please?
Is this “stripe” highlighting a set of horses that appear on the “Fast Finishers” report, but who also have a potentially favourable pace set up to maybe repeat that fast finish?
Or is it an icon to highlight any horse that appears on the fast finishers report?
Or possibly neither of the above?
Not picking fault at all, I like it and look forward to using it, but I do like to understand the origins of it that’s all
Thanks guys
Good question, Richard. It’s highlighting a horse that appears on the Fast Finishers report for any of its most recent three runs. I will make that clearer in the post, thanks.
Matt
A very helpful additional indicator, Matt. Thank you for this. Unobtrusive but noticeable enough to draw the eye.
As ever, Geegeez manages not only to be innovative but also manages to present data in just the right way.
I love the fact that Geegeez makes it easy to see if fast finishers came off a fast, even or slow pace. Allied to the pace maps for today’s race, this is super-powerful with minimal clicks needed on the part of the user. Wonderful stuff!
Thanks for making life so much easier!
All the best,
Russ
Hi Russ,
Thanks for your comment and kind words; and yes, that’s exactly how to use the indicators: check the pace shape of the race(s) where the FF indicator was earned, and then check the pace map today to see if it might mimic that kind of pace setup. Takes a bit of practice for newcomers but it’s well worth the effort. And, of course, we don’t need to bet them while we’re finding our feet/working out what’s what – just follow along on paper until happy to make a small wager 🙂
Matt
hi matt
when will sectional timing be available
for the other tracks.you did mention it before
it would be nice to have the whole picture not half
regards
steve
Agree entirely, Steve. Answer is, as soon as RMG (the owners of Racing TV, employed by Racing TV’s racecourses) sort themselves out. It’s been a loooooong time waiting. Believe me, if it was available we’d make every attempt to get it.
Matt
The information is useful but it’ll be a lot more useful if/when the data is there for RUK tracks as well as ATR/SSR. At the moment fast finishers at these courses are being missed.
Hi Jim, I 100% agree on both points. Useful now, but will be much more useful when all the data is available. Hopefully won’t be too long now; but I have been saying that for more than a year. Few things in life have the ability to drag their feet quite like racing’s myriad factions. Sigh.
Matt
Hi Matt
On the Fast finisher Report I notice a Very Fast box in red and a Very Fast box in Orange. or Q Fast in green and a Q Fast in yellow, Is there an article explaining what each colour means for Sectionals,
Hi snoots,
Yes, the color coding is a range from blue to red, but the text descriptive are a small handful. So that’s why you can see the same description on different colored blobs. Basically they are gradations of e.g. Very fast.
Some further detail is in the user guide though nothing specifically relating to this.
Hope the above adds some, erm, colour. Pardon the terrible pun.
Matt