Any old-time pro gamblers looking in?

Maximum respect to anyone who could survive betting that way.

You think of the tools the modern-day punter has - video analysis, speed figures, stats, lifetime form at the click of  mouse - yet it's still a tough game to make pay.

Some of the comments below regarding backing a 14YO: "Nearly old enough to smoke".

Someone asked in the comments below which racecourse is it, but didn't get a reply.

Looks like Newbury, but not totally sure.

Cheers screaming.

It can't be Newbury because they stay against the far rail crossing the finish line.

The nice thing is that Newton Abbot still looks much the same, other than most of the railway goods sheds and sidings having disappeared from the back straight these days

That's right. A pair of bins, and a determination to use them to see as much of as possible of every race, were enough to put you well ahead of the game.

Similarly, compiling your own ratings or speed figures. It was difficult in those days, and very few people knew how it was done, particularly speed figures. But the very difficulty made the work worthwhile.

I Knew Alan very well in the 90s.

Incredible the people he knew from jockeys, trainers and the odd premiership manager.
Remember playing poker with him and he'd get phone calls from trainers including
Martin Pipe.

Another day we'd be in the bookies and his very close friend Harry Redknapp would pop in to speak with him.

Introduced him to spread betting and his first bet was a very modest £10 a length match bet
The horse won pulling away and Alan later said that the jockey had told him that
he was thinking of him as he rode the finish.

I'm not signed up to Twitter but can still see it .

Correct!

For anyone who enjoys watching those rare old clips, the twitter account is called History Of Horse Racing @horsevault

Another one here of Terry Ramsden being interviewed by Jonathan Powell in 1986 and not denying that he'd paid 6-figures for Mr Snugfit.

https://twitter.com/horsevault/status/1595104393397145600

Thanks, ged

that account is worth a follow

I doubt if Alan was a pro gambler.
He was more a buisness man who also made a few quid backing horses.

When I knew him he had an agreement with Ladbrokes where they would lay him Sporting Life prices
for modest stakes.

Thanks for posting George most interesting , funny how we are always willing to gave a old horse another chance...I loved N.Abbot as a track , I was in Haydock on Sat and got the impression its on a downward spiral for some reason ,my visit to Cheltenham on the other hand was of the opposite it seems to be getting better each time I visit..

I hope Alan wouldn't have minded me posting this. I found it in a programme for a Jewish service. I thought some might find it of interest (I did). I've left out some of the family and Jewish stuff...

Alan Argeband...
"I was born in London in 1931 to Mark
and Pearl Argeband. My father was in
the dress business and my mother was a
professional violinist in a ladies Jazz band.
During the Second World War my family
and I were evacuated to Aberystwyth in
Wales and I believe that I was the only
boy to have had a Bar Mitzvah there
during the war.
Aged 14, I left school to start work as a
trainee at Denham Film Studios. I then
moved to Pinewood Studios where I
became a third assistant director and
worked on many well-known films.
In those days it was compulsory to serve
for our country and at the age of 20, I was
duly called up to serve in the army thus
leaving a career that I would have loved
to have stayed in.
Nevertheless, I made the most of my
new life in the army and enjoyed playing
cricket for my battalion. In 1952 I was put
on embarkation leave to serve in Korea
but sadly my beloved father passed
away and I was released from service
on compassionate grounds to be with
my mother and younger sister who had
already moved to Bournemouth with my
late father.
Shortly afterwards, my mother and I
formed a textile business and managed
to secure stalls in various local markets.
Trade was good and things were looking
up!
In 1956, I met my wife Cynthia whilst she
was holidaying at the Cumberland Hotel,
one of Bournemouth’s Jewish hotels at the
time. We married the following year at The
Bayswater Road Synagogue in London.
We expanded our business, Alan’s Fabrics,
and went on to open several fabric shops
in Bournemouth and Poole where we
successfully traded for many years.
My hobbies have always revolved around
sports. I played for the 5705 table tennis
team and Captained the 5705 cricket team
with whom we toured Israel twice. I am an
avid Arsenal supporter and have also been
known to play a ‘mean’ hand at poker and
have a wager or two on the horses!"

It would seem he owned horses in his wife, Cynthia's, name. I can find runners in her name as far back as 1965, and as recent as 1993. One ran in the Hound Tor selling hurdle, on the 1973 card at Netwon Abbot, equivalent to the one in the film linked to in the opening post on this thread.

I found a link to a Jerusalem Post article, which mentions one of his 5705 cricket tours - it was the first time an English cricket team toured Israel.

Very  interesting  read thanks for posting
I do wonder how many pro.gamblers do not have any other form of income though.

What a crowd for a gloomy Tuesday in February.

Conky Loveless, the Pittard family, Ivor Perry t/a Frank Angliss, Bob Bulman trying to keep Ivor out of trouble ("How's the book doing, Robert?" "The book's doing all right, Ivor, but that's not the question, is it?"), Ashley trying to keep Eddie Avalon out of trouble, Badger trading badges in the car park beforehand, that fresh fish stall that used to be behind the Silver Ring stand during the holiday season ...

Just what I was thinking re the crowd screaming.

screaming,Adge still going strong,i see or speak to him most weeks.He does his own hcap specialising in 2 mile hurdlers.
He did work on the boats,the ferry crossing from Torquay to Brixham...was still doing a few days a week up until last year.I was a young clerk late seventies early eighties..and used to be in awe of Dodger Argeband and alike.
One day i asked Dodger what the secret was...he said "put the effort in because the bookmakers are lazy".

Bookmakers still lazy but this place does it all for them.