I take it all back, boss: what I learned from my first season as a handicapper

The Racing Post's betting editor Keith Melrose gave a new task at the start of this Flat season. From Lincoln day all the way through to next month's November Handicap, I was to handicap the stayers alongside my colleague Graeme Rodway.

I have to admit to being a little wary at first, but Keith, I now take back everything I said about you at the time. The opportunity to work through form so rigorously has been invaluable and has transformed my outlook on race analysis.

As Keith said to me at the outset, everyone who works in racing thinks they know handicapping until they are asked to do it themselves. After six months, around 300 races and more or less that many crawls followed by rattling-quick finishes, it feels like a reasonable opportunity to take stock of some of the valuable lessons I have learned.