The GoingStick explained: what the readings mean

How does the GoingStick measure the ground?

The GoingStick is pushed into the turf to a set depth, then levered back. It records the force needed to penetrate the ground and the force needed to shear it, and combines the two into one reading.

The two measures capture different things. Penetration shows how firm the surface is, which is what a hoof feels as it lands. Shear shows how well the turf holds together as a hoof pushes off, which is what decides whether ground cuts up or gives way under a horse. Combining them gives a single number that tracks how the ground will ride better than either measure alone.

Ground staff take readings at many points around the course, and the published figure is an average of those readings. Because it is an average, it can hide differences between parts of the track, such as a softer home straight, which is why the clerk's going description may add qualifiers such as good in places.

How do you read the GoingStick scale from 0 to 15?

Higher GoingStick readings mean firmer ground and lower readings mean softer ground. Most readings fall between about 5 and 10, but no reading converts directly into a going description.

The table sums up what the scale means. Each course has its own soil, grass cover and drainage, so the same reading can go with good ground at one course and good to soft at another. Use the number to track change at the courses you follow rather than as a conversion chart.

Why do GoingStick readings differ between courses?

GoingStick readings differ between courses because soil type, grass cover, drainage and watering all change how the probe behaves. The same number can describe different ground at two tracks.

A sandy, free-draining course and a heavy clay course can give the same reading on ground that rides very differently. That is why clerks and form students compare readings at the same course over time rather than across courses, and why a fall of a point or more overnight matters more than the absolute number.

Why can the official going disagree with the GoingStick reading?

The clerk of the course uses GoingStick readings as one piece of evidence alongside a walk of the course, rainfall, the forecast and knowledge of the track. The declared going reflects that overall judgement.

A reading is an average, and it can hide a soft patch in the home straight or a firmer strip on the back straight. Clerks may also keep a description unchanged until they see how the ground rides in the first race. After racing, jockeys' comments and race times sometimes lead to the going being changed, which a reading taken in the morning cannot capture. That is why the description can change during an afternoon even when no new reading has been published.

• Heavy rain after the morning readings
• Drying wind or sun during the afternoon
• Uneven watering on one part of the track
• A soft patch hidden inside a course average
• Jockeys reporting the ground quicker or slower than declared

How do GoingStick readings compare with race times?

Race times are the final test of how the ground rode. When times are much slower or faster than standard, the ground rode differently from what the description and reading suggested.

Speed figure makers work out a going allowance from the times on each card, which is often a better guide to the ground than either the description or the GoingStick. A card where every race is run several seconds slower than standard on ground declared good points to ground that was riding on the soft side, whatever the morning reading said.

Do Irish racecourses use the GoingStick?

Irish racecourses have not adopted the GoingStick in the way British courses have, so Irish going is judged mainly from the clerk of the course's declared description on the Irish scale, which includes yielding.

When reading Irish form, match the declared description on the Irish scale with the times on the day. A British reading cannot be used to judge Irish ground, and even British readings are best compared at one course over time, so the clerk's description and the clock remain the main guide.

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