By Prakash Gosavi
We are thrilled—and pleasantly surprised—by the response to the Royal Western India Turf Club's special initiative of conducting Handicapping Classes for its core customer—the racing enthusiast who supports this wonderful sport with his passion and money!
In the first 24 hours after the announcement went on the web, batches of Nov 24, Dec 1 & 15 are aleady over 50-70% full, and bookings have come in for dates as distant as March 9 next year. What I find really touching is that even race lovers from Bangalore, Mysore and Hyderabad have enrolled!
It is difficult to adequately express gratitude for such overwhelming response with the help of mere words, so I, on behalf of the RWITC, will just resort to only two of them—THANK YOU!
I also take this opportunity to clear some queries/questions/doubts/misgivings about this project by running a small Q&A. Here goes:
Q: This is being talked as "Prakash Gosavi's handicapping classes'.....
A: WRONG. The Handicapping Classes is an initiative by the RWITC. The club is putting up all the money. I am only giving my time.
Q: Is there any fee to be paid?
A: NONE. The Classes are absolutely FREE. In fact, the club doesn't even want you to buy the race book on the day. Besides tea/refreshments, the participants will get a kit which will contain the day's race books, writing pad and pen for taking notes, study material, and FREE admission pass to the Members' Enclosure for the day's racing program. Of course, participants must be appropriately attired (the minimum is a full sleeve shirt tucked in trousers, with a necktie).
Q: How can I book my seat?
A: The dates and booking codes for the 15 sessions are as follows:
Q: How will I know my seat is confirmed?
A: Within 48 hours of your first SMS, you will receive a message informing that your seat is confirmed (or wait-listed as the case maybe). If wait-listed, you may opt to book for another date. If someone on the day cancels his or her booking for some reason, you will receive a call to find out if you would be interested to fill in.
Q: If I wish to cancel my booking, how can I do it?
A: Simply send SMS with the same info (name & code), adding "Cancel" at the end, and send to the same number 09322223710. You will receive SMS that your booking stands cancelled.Q: What is the duration of each session?
A: Each session will be two-and-a-half hours, with an added half hour for queries, if required. The session will start sharp at 9.30 am. Participants MUST present themselves before 9.15 am to avoid incovenience. They should report either at the Club's office in First Enclosure or directly at the Venue (Owners' Association Lounge in Members' Enclosure).
Q: Are all 15 sessions going to be identical in content?
A: Now, this question is a little tricky. The truthful answer is "NO".
As far as my speech is concerned, it is unplanned, unrehearsed and completely ex-tempore, so no two sessions are going to be the same—may not even be similar (barring certain basic things which newbies in the audience need to first grapple with). That is because these are interactive sessions—not monologues, the direction of the flow may sometimes be controlled by make up of the audience, their current understanding of the subject and sometimes their desire to discuss a particular topic.
However, as far as the content is concerned, in EVERY session, I am going to talk about the four key areas (how to study form, how to watch video, how to choose bets, and how to manage money), and offer numerous tips and tricks on how to quickly sift through the voluminous data for useful insights.
Q: Can one attend ALL the 15 sessions?
A: Technically, yes—if you don't mind repetition of the basic information and elementary principles which will be talked about in EVERY session for the benefit of FIRST-TIMERS.
Also, due to our classroom size (and also to ensure that each participant gets adequate attention), we have to restrict the number of participants per batch; and therefore, preference has to be given to newcomers over repeaters. Repeaters are welcome if a particular batch is less than full. Those repeaters who wish to come despite the batch being full are welcome too, but they should be prepared to put up with little inconvenince like a less-than-ideal, makeshift seating arrangement—because, we do not wish to dilute the experience of the first-timer, nor do we wish to turn away a repeater who is interested to know and learn more about this game.
Q: What can a participant expect from attending this class?
A: To understand what to expect from this class as a participant, please check out this interview.
