1. Regular workouts, every five or six days, with at least
one recent workout completed in sharp time, preferably
at five furlongs or longer. Faster, longer workouts are preferred, as virtually all nicely bred, relatively sound, mature maidens can deliver fanciful clockings for three or four furlongs. The longer workouts are most impressive at racetracks outside of New York or southern California. A blowout in rapid time a day or two before the debut is meaningless. And a prerace training regimen extending beyond ten to fifteen workouts is problematic.
2. Mounted by a leading jockey, or hot apprentice, or
regular stable rider. Jockey agents scramble furiously for the "live" maidens on the grounds. If maidens can run fast but top riders are absent, presumably neither the jockey agents nor clockers nor anyone else knows it yet. when the first-starters cakewalk to the wire in dazzling time, the insiders will be just as surprised as local handicappers.
3. Not adorned in long front-leg bandages.
4. Certain trainers specialize in winning with first-starters. If a maiden's trainer triumphs with 20 percent or thereabouts of his first-starters, his beginners might be supported, but the odds should be 4-1 minimum.
5. Similar standards attach to sires whose progeny win approximately 20 percent of their first starts. The odds must overcompensate for the statistical risk, a 4-1 minimum. If the sire wins with 20 percent of its first-starters, but the trainer performs poorly in the category, forget the maidens. If the trainer scores with 20 percent of his first-starters but the sire performs poorly, accept the horses as contenders. Training usually beats breeding, in these circumstances as well.
6. Troubled trips of maidens should never be readily excused, especially if the problems occurred in the gate or on the turns. If a maiden has been tardy out of the gate, however, and will be adding blinkers today, the equipment change normally moves them up. If the change to "blinkers on" has resulted in a much improved effort, the improvement should continue. The next start, second with blinkers on, regularly ends in victory.
7. Older maidens that appear on the grass, either against other maidens or nonwinners allowance horses, are invariably bred for turf. Stables intend to press whatever advantages the grass pedigrees afford them. If dirt form has been dull, and the odds sparkling, say 10-1, handicappers should give prudent consideration to accepting the risks. Form reversals on the turf among horses bred for grass are commonplace in major-league racing. Several of the reversals each season will be accounted for by three-year-old maidens of spring and summer.