Horse Racing

[torbs]

Can somebody give me information on what you need to do in order to buy a horse for the races? Specifically:

 

How much do they cost?

Do you have to decorate?

How much do you win if the horse comes in?

 

Thanks

[negc]

Can somebody give me information on what you need to do in order to buy a horse for the races? Specifically:

 

How much do they cost?

Do you have to decorate?

How much do you win if the horse comes in?

 

Thanks

The cost depends upon the number of people bidding to purchase the horses. We were on Jewel of the Seas last October and the lowest price horse went for $400 - there were a lot of groups onboard so the per person cost for some groups was only about $10 or $15 a head. On other cruises the average cost was $200 or less. It really depends on the passengers who are onboard.

They provide the owners with decorative supplies and usually the horses are lavishly decorated and paraded around the ship on the days leading up to the owners' derby. If you purchase a horse, you aren't obligated to decorate it, but the decorations are part of the overall charm (?) of the whole thing.

The winning horse usually pays the owners the total purse collected in the auction. On our cruise, the winners (unfortunately not our group) collected over $2400.

There is also pari-mutuel style betting on this and the other horse races for any interested passengers to wager on.

Whether or not there is horse racing on a particular cruise is apparently a decision made by the cruise director, and sometimes his or her decision reflects the amount of interest and participation exhibited on the previous weeks' cruises. We convinced our cruise director, who had indicated that on the previous few cruises there was only limited interest in horse racing, to hold a auction and it was clearly very popular. However, I also understand that on the Jewel cruise which followed ours, there was little or no interest and participation in horse racing.

[superjerryw]

I was just on the Voyager and I don't recall there being any horse racing. As a matter of fact, I thought I saw a couple of threads that said it had been discontinued.

[negc]

I was just on the Voyager and I don't recall there being any horse racing. As a matter of fact, I thought I saw a couple of threads that said it had been discontinued.

There have been several such threads on both the RCI and Princess boards but they were in error. Horse racing is one of those activities controlled by the cruise director and some CDs are apparently less enthusiastic about it than others. On Mariner this past May (May 15th) horse racing was alive and well. :)

[suzw]

Does Ken Rush do horse racing? He is the CD on our next trip in two weeks

thanks

Suzanne

[quiltsnh]

We were on Explorer in APril and there were no horse races . We all came prepared to decorate and were disappointed...

[mdmourges]

They had it on AOS when we were on it in March '05. Getting married 8/13 and my fiance and I (and 28 family and friends) are on the 8/14 Mariner. We are really hoping they have the horse race cuz "And down the stretch they come with Wedding Party in the lead!". It would suck if they didn't have the races. We will not be outbid!!! lololo

 

Mark & jANET

[laurasue]

We had it on the Sovereign in late May. :D Bidding varied based on which race you were bidding on. The amount won is based on the odds (which is calculated based on how many people bet on that horse). There wasn't any horse decorating.

[frankponcherelo]

When Ken Rush was on the Voyager he did the horse racing for us. It was a lot of fun.

[MszKitty]

We had it on the Sovereign in late May. :D Bidding varied based on which race you were bidding on. The amount won is based on the odds (which is calculated based on how many people bet on that horse). There wasn't any horse decorating.

 

That explanation is the horse race in general. Thats not the same as "purchasing" a horse.

[macbasset]

Can anyone explain just what horse racing is? I understand you are betting on this and there is some decorating, but what is it exactly?

[pltag]

Horse Racing Basics - Poolside Betting Game "Track" is piece of carpet with 10 - 12 lines. It is a dice game, so there are six horses. Three dice are tossed in cage and horses advance based on result. 2-3 races the first day that anyone can place a wager on any horse. Final odds are based on monies wagered and all high school statistics students out there know that the odds on each horse wining are the same.

 

Owner's Race - At the end of the first day of races (the first Sea Day), the horses are auctioned off. The amount bid equals the amount that can be won during the Owner's Stakes Race at the end of the second day of racing (the second / last sea day). The owners are given some supplies for decorating (plastic leis, etc.) but most are owned by groups that have specific plans for their horse. For instance, we cruised during Super Bowl Week last year and a group from Boston owned and WON with a horse named "Patriot Pride".

 

Horse Racing is great fun for group and it is unfortunate that some CD's are no longer doing it.

[laurasue]

That explanation is the horse race in general. Thats not the same as "purchasing" a horse.

I see... we only had one sea day (the last day) which explains why none of the horses were auctioned off I guess. :)

[MszKitty]

I see... we only had one sea day (the last day) which explains why none of the horses were auctioned off I guess. :)

 

Ahhaaa....that very well could be the reason. :)