How to Play
Gallop currently offers two separate contests. One is the Road to the Roses, or "RTTR" the other is the Road to the Breeders' Cup or "RTTBC".
RTTR runs from January into May, and RTTBC runs from June into November. Players can participate in either/or/both of the contests. One contest doesn't have any dependency on the other.
These contests function like traditional fantasy sports (as opposed to daily fantasy sports). The focus here is on a season-long competition with weekly scoring events. These contests work best when you can participate and compete amongst family and friends.
Please find specific details on each contest below.
Kentucky Derby
The scope of the RTTR contest will be all of the Kentucky Derby Prep Races (America circuit) beginning after the 1st week in January, amounting to ~25 races.
In mid-January, you'll draft five horses, two trainers, and two jockeys who you think have a good chance at winning the Kentucky Derby.
Data below current as of RTTR 151.
There will be six races late-January / early-February where you can earn points. Then the additional Drafts are broken out as follows:
Draft | Date | Horses | Races Following Draft |
---|---|---|---|
2 | mid-Feb | 5 | 11 |
3 | late-Mar* | 0-5 | 6 |
4 | early-May | 0-5 | 1 |
*The draft at the end of March is variable, meaning you can take anywhere from 0-5 horses. The week of the Derby, you can use any of those 0-5 horse selections that you didn't use at the end of March to complete your stable. |
By Derby Day, each stable will have fifteen horses, two trainers, and two jockeys.
The top finishers in each race will earn horse points. Only the winning horse will earn trainer and jockey points.
For additional information, please visit our Strategies section.
The table below provides a summary of how the RTTR scoring works.
RTTR Scoring
W | P | S | 4th | 5th | *Tr./ Jock |
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Derby | 200 | 120 | 80 | 40 | 20 | 160 |
Tier 1 | 100 | 50 | 25 | 15 | 10 | 70 |
Tier 2 | 50 | 25 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 35 |
Tier 3 | 20 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 14 |
Tier 4 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
*Trainer/Jockey Points are only for the Win Horse. | ||||||
For any "Championship Series" Races: Races with 5 entries will earn 75% of points. Races with <=4 entries will earn 50% of points. |
Breeders' Cup
(7 Dirt Divisions)
The scope of the RTTBC contest will be all of the Graded Stakes races on Dirt in the United States, starting with the Belmont Stakes Saturday in June and ending before the BC Pre-Entry Deadline in mid-late October, amounting to ~110 races.
The races spread out amongst various tracks (subject to change pending final schedule):
Data below current as of RTTBC '24.
- Saratoga (27)*
- Del Mar (19), including the 7 Breeders' Cup races
- Belmont at Aqueduct (11)*
- Churchill Downs (10)
- Santa Anita (7)**
- Keeneland (7)
- Monmouth (6)
- Parx (4)
- Four tracks with two races (CT, DEL, IND, MNR)
- Five tracks with one race (GP, LRC, PRM, RP, TDN)
*Most "Belmont" races will be run at Aqueduct due to ongoing renovations at Belmont Park. The exception will be Belmont Stakes Weekend, which will take place in Saratoga.
**Was initially 8 races before the Tokyo City Cup-G3 was cancelled after there were not enough entries.
In early June, you'll draft seven horses, two trainers, two jockeys, and two sires whom you think have a good chance of succeeding in the seven Breeders' Cup Dirt Divisions, which include:
Division | Age | Gender | Distance |
---|---|---|---|
Classic | 3YO and up | Open | 10 Furlongs |
Distaff | 3YO and up | Female | 9 Furlongs |
Dirt Mile | 3YO and up | Open | 8 Furlongs |
Sprint | 3YO and up | Open | 6 Furlongs |
Filly & Mare Sprint | 3YO and up | Female | 7 Furlongs |
Juvenile | 2-Year-Olds | Open | 8.5 Furlongs |
Juvenile Fillies | 2-Year-Olds | Female | 8.5 Furlongs |
There will be twelve races in June where you can earn points. Then the additional drafts are broken out as follows:
Data below current as of RTTBC '24.
Draft | Date | Horses | Races Following Draft |
---|---|---|---|
2 | late-Jun | 5 | 13 |
3 | mid-Jul | 5 | 17 |
4 | mid-Aug | 5 | 17 |
5 | early-Sep | 5* | 18 |
6 | early-Oct | 5 | 22 |
7 | early-Nov | 3 | 7 |
*You will also add one trainer, one jockey, and one sire during Draft #5. |
By Breeders' Cup weekend, each stable will have thirty-five horses, three trainers, three jockeys, and three sires.
The top three finishers in each race will earn horse points. Only the winning horse will earn trainer, jockey, and sire points.
For additional information, please visit our Strategies section.
The table below provides a summary of how the RTTBC scoring works.
RTTBC Scoring
Win | Place | Show | *Sire | *Tr./ Jock |
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BC Race | 20 | 12 | 8 | 8 | 14 |
Grade 1 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 7 |
Grade 2 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Grade 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
*Trainer/Jockey/Sire Points are only for the Win Horse. |
All Contests
Stables can have the same horses, trainers, and jockeys as other players' stables. The opportunity to separate comes with the "Power Picks" you select each week. Those horses will earn you 2x points.
All horses, trainers, jockeys, and sires (RTTBC only) in your stable are eligible to score points every week. There is no "starting" or "sitting/benching" of entries in your stable.
Race "Nominations" are typically published two weeks before a race. Nominations contain a list of horses eligible to enter a race (pending any "late" nominees). Race "Entries" are then published the week of the race, typically no less than three days before the race. Both Nominations and Entries will be made available on the contest page. You may also go directly to Equibase.com to find these.
All additonal drafting periods are planned around the Nominations schedule to ensure that participants have as much advanced access as possible to potential runners in a future race.
As the contest goes on, the races are worth more points. So even if you stumble out of the gate, you can make up a lot of ground down the stretch!