Somehow, sports seem to bring out the superstitious nature in people, and we hear lots of strange stories about ritual acts people perform to try and get results to go their way.
Whether it’s the dreaded “Nelson” in cricket, not walking on lines in tennis, or the winning horse looking you in the eye in horse racing, there are all kinds of different beliefs out there in sport.
With millions and millions of people following horse racing around the world, it’s no surprise many different superstitions are flying around from jockeys, owners, and punters.
Whether they work, well you’ll have to be the judge, but there are at least some fun ones out there.
Big Ears and Wrinkles
One old wives’ tale you often hear flying around is that a horse with big ears is a genuine horse and has a good racing attitude: therefore, it’s likely to be a good pick.
Whether there’s any truth to this, we can’t say, but when it comes to choosing our picks on form or ear size, we’re likely to go with the former. Another look-based superstition that will baffle the average racegoer is the number of wrinkles a horse has underneath its eyes. The more wrinkles beneath the eyes, the better jumper the horse will be.
So, when you’re checking out the Grand National odds, will you be looking and ears and wrinkles?
How Many Socks Has It Got?
You’ll see many horses that have colourings that look like white socks on their feet. The more socks the horse has, the worse it’s supposedly likely to be.
Again, it’s another wives’ tale that’s well worth taking with a pinch of salt. Frankel, one of the most successful horses in recent British racing history, famously had four white socks, so you’d have lost many bets if you refused to bet on him because of his socks.
What Pocket Does Your Betting Slip Go In?
For every superstition about which horse to pick, there’s another one for how you place the bet. Many of them centre around what you do with your betting slip once you’ve placed your bet.
Lots of people say you should put your betting slip in the same pocket as your money because money attracts money, thus helping your bet come in. Others say that you keep your betting slip in the same pocket until you lose, then you start putting them in a different pocket.
So, what happens if you’ve not got any pockets?
Have You Seen Any Signs on the Way to the Course?
Its’ not just when you’re at the course that you should be looking for signs. There’s plenty of vital information to be had while you’re driving to the course too.
Some people live by the rule that you always back the horse from the stable of the first horsebox you see on the journey. How this works, we’re not quite sure, but perhaps fate bought your paths together so that the horse would win the race and you would win some money.
