Then comes the end of a month where Camden's poker earnings lacked consistency on a daily basis, but he managed to make enough money playing poker to at least pay for his gambling expenses. Namely, his fuel bills. And any extra income from gambling would then go towards saving up for the quarter horse season opener. On top of that, the salary bump was only partially used to increase his bankrolls.
The Sunday before the quarter horse season opener, on the other hand, he hastily did groceries before returning home from a Sunday spent at the casino. Upon returning home, his wife confronts him about errands:
"What took you so long to get the groceries done?" Brittany confronts him about the errand at the supermarket that took much longer than she expected.
"I needed to double-check nutritional data against what's healthy for everyone, as well as against our budget!" Camden retorts, with his experience of playing poker on the regular allowing him to fool other people more convincingly than before. "As I said earlier, we need to save money for two purposes: college for the kids, and our retirement"
"You seem a little tight with money, something's not right, so what about you cook for tonight, with the kids in the kitchen?"
"Fine, I guess, I made my bed, I must sleep in it" he sighs, while being reminded of how little time he spent with the kids over the past few months because of his involvement in poker at Coushatta.
-------------------
The following day, he checks on the mail with a heavy heart early in the morning. My ownership license should be in the mail by now, or its denial, but, from what I heard about ownership licensing, licenses are usually denied because of failed background checks, or misrepresentation, I really hope that all these efforts at the casino will be worth it for the season opener, he makes a mental running count of how much he can have for a bankroll at the season opener.
However, he leaves the remainder of the mail on the dining table before returning to his room before going to work. He then takes the envelope from the Louisiana Racing Commission with him in the car, and slowly opens it.
"Woohoo! My ownership license! Time to look for potential partnerships for race horse ownership!" an overjoyed Camden shouts in the car, with the windows shut so the rest of the family doesn't hear anything. He then tucks the license in the glove box.
For tonight, no designated driver duty, no errands, I only have 3 days to secure a partnership for the season. Here's my chance to spend some time with the kids tonight, but only after doing homework, Camden then goes to work, obsessing over getting a partnership for racehorse ownership. About making sure that he doesn't get too much of a stake on it, since he feels like investing too much in a racehorse is going to interfere with his other gambling activities. And saving up for the family's future. Especially since he is reminded of how he'd need to be sharing in not only the winnings of a racehorse, but also in its expenses.
Speaking of expenses of horse ownership, that night, he gathers the kids around and have them calculate the cost of the ownership.
"It's very expensive!" Jacob comments upon seeing the total costs of owning a racehorse, broken down into a neatly organized list, coming in at $4,000 per month.
"We can't afford to wholly own a racehorse. The question then becomes how much of a horse we can afford" the dad points out to his children.
"Really? You can own part of a horse?" Myriam asks her dad.
"Only from a financial point of view. When you own part of a horse, you're responsible for footing your part of its bills. Which is a function of how much of it you own"
Camden spares the children the more technical details of which partnership to enter, such as the horse's pedigree, the farrier, vet, jockey and trainer. I think it will detract from what the kids will get out of the budgeting process. Besides, I am new to racehorse ownership, so I am willing to defer to more experience partners regarding staffing, he then asks a question about how much of a stake they think they can afford.
"After we save up for your college education and our retirement, and other living expenses, we can spare about five hundred dollars per month. Knowing that shares of partnerships formed for the purposes of horse racing are issued in tenths, how many shares can we own?" he asks his children.
"One" Myriam answers in a flash.
"Why one?" Jacob asks his older sister.
How much can we afford to pay upfront for one-tenth of a quarter horse? Camden starts thinking while Myriam explains to Jacob why dad can afford only 1/10 of a quarter horse without causing any significant financial distress to the family. I can always present the purchase of a 1/10 stake in a quarter horse as a business investment. If we were able to afford 2/10s of a horse, then I would have done 1/10 each on a thoroughbred and a quarter horse. That way I would have the joy of ownership during both racing seasons. Or perhaps if I earned $300-400 more per month in poker, after-tax, but anyone deriving any semblance of income from poker will tell you, poker is an unreliable source of income. He then proceeds to teach them how to read a bank statement as well as a credit card statement.
-------------------
The following day, he returns home early so that he can pick up his family. Before they begin the long drive to the racetrack, hoping to arrive in time for the first race, he announces the following to the family:
"I have been approached by a parent of a student at Lacassine to invest in a new business in the region. So I will have a meeting with the business partners at the racetrack about this new business" Camden solemnly affirms what they would be doing there.
"Really?" a surprised Brittany gasps, while Camden turns to the kids.
"Same deal as last year; you will be given twenty dollars each to bet on horse races. Any gains and losses will be taken against your allowance" He then takes the driver's seat.
Remember: a racehorse's career doesn't last very long, Camden tries to think of what this "business investment" opportunity really mean. Especially considering that a racehorse of the kind the partnership Camden plans on joining would cost a pretty penny. And his share would run around $5-6k for 10% of the horse they plan on buying. Upon arriving at Delta Downs...
"Before we begin this meeting, everyone, make sure you placed your bets for the first race" Alan, the would-be managing partner, warns the other prospective partners, before turning to Camden. "I wagered months ago that you would have loved to be a racehorse owner, now I'm paying for your owner's license" He then hands over $100.
But before Camden actually wagers the $100, which he sees as merely the first step in his bankroll for the night, he asks for Myriam's assistance. Especially since time is short and, for some reason, Myriam is beaming with confidence at her wager and is willing to bet her entire $20 bankroll on an exacta combination.
That's completely unlike her! She always had questions about so-and-so aspect of horse racing, and last year, she was a conservative bettor. But, if she's so confident in her wager, I'm willing to bet the price of my license on the same combination, a bewildered father seems to share in the enthusiasm of his daughter as his turn comes to bet. Jacob, on the other hand, prefers to use $2 on a show bet on another horse at random.
But once the wager ends, the kids return to their mother, while their father resumes the meeting of prospective partners.
Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
"Let's go over the terms of this partnership, who is responsible for what, and so on" Alan then starts listing the terms of the partnership.
"When is the initial payment due?" Brianna, a parent of a Lacassine student, asks him, also buying a 10% share in the partnership.
"By May thirty-first. So I promised the previous owner that I would be paying seventy percent of the bill for the horse today, and another thirty percent in a month. Monthly payments are due starting on July first" Alan lists the schedule of payments.
"As for me, I'll pay for my share of the horse right away" Diego, the final partner, writes a check for $2500.
The would-be partners look closely at the homestretch and the horses in the opening race of the night are fiercely competing. And the horses Myriam had him bet her entire bankroll, as well as the cost of his horse ownership license, are neck-and-neck. Come on, the order of finish must remain that way for a few more seconds, or else that's $120 down the drain! He furiously thinks, fingers crossed. And Myriam is doing the same from a first-row seat. Maybe she's a better horse player than I initially believed. Maybe she just got lucky, he then jumps for joy after realizing that Myriam won him $4200, of which $700 is for Myriam's use.
"I just need some time to check on my daughter" a euphoric Camden signals to the other partners. "She can get a little too excited sometimes"
When Camden returns to Myriam at the end of the race, he gives his instructions to her:
"Myriam, stop wagering on horses for tonight. You won seven hundred dollars, which is a lot for a person your age, so the meal for tonight will be paid out of your winnings, and the rest will be given to you in twenty-dollar weekly installments"
"Why stop?" Myriam asks him in a whiny voice. "It was only the first race for tonight! I only come here once a year"
"Think of how long you're going to have a twenty-dollar allowance per week! You don't want to wreck your allowance, do you?"
Yet, the would-be partners seem to be taking turns making their own bets for the next race before the meeting can resume.
"Of course not. You are welcome to use it on future trips to the racetrack, but, as I said, for today, no more betting for you tonight. In fact, here's the plan for the next six years: I will let you play the horses on Saturdays going forward, but promise me that you will try out for both the math team and the quiz bowl team in August"
"Promise" Myriam then nods, before Camden's turn to place bets arrives.
But I still hold ultimate control over the kids' bankrolls because they can't independently place bets until they are 18, Camden is about to walk away, while he is intrigued by a new type of wager, the omni, which is new this season at Delta Downs. For this race, I feel like horse #5 is the clear winner, but can't quite tell who could finish second or third, so I may as well place two omni wagers, here 5/3 and 5/9, $10 each, so I can be comfortable losing $20 if neither 3 nor 9 makes it to the top 3. However, I only need one of 3 or 9 going in second or third to win, and another $10 on a win bet on #5.
When he has finished betting, he returns to the meeting, where they iron out the smaller details of the contingencies. What happens when someone wants out of the partnership, and what happens when a partner doesn't fulfill their obligations to the partnership. Once that is clearly understood, Alan pulls out 2 copies of the partnership registration form.
"Now that we can all agree on the terms of this partnership agreement, I will email you all the documents, so please give me your email addresses, and once you have done so, please fill out your part of the partnership registration form" Alan then have the partners fill out their personal information on the forms to be signed and then submitted.
"I'll pay whatever I can at the end of the night" Camden then realizes something is wrong. "So while you already paid seventy percent of the price of this horse, and given us some information as to the horse's pedigree, trainer and workouts, you never told us what the horse we're sharing expenses for is called!"
"Damn it! You're right, I'll need to add that info on the partnership registration form" Alan stands corrected, while Camden enters his personal information, as well as his ownership license number, and then signs the paperwork.
Futurity Force. A name I'd do well to remember, now that the registration form is duly completed, Camden muses, as he watches race #2 unfold before him. A little warmup before the bigger and more exciting races of the night happens. In the end, only 2 out of his 3 wagers end up winning because horse #9 ends up, well, ninth. He then returns to the family:
"Before the investment in Futurity Force can be finalized, we need to discuss it with you. For ten percent of the business, we'll need to invest twenty-five hundred dollars up front, and then, in the beginning, pay ten percent of the business's net bills until it becomes profitable" Camden announces to the family.
"Do you have an estimate of the expected monthly expenses? I get that businesses aren't profitable early in their lives, but I want to know what we're getting into" Brittany seems to question what the true aim of the "business" is.
"At this point, it's about four hundred bucks per month"
"Does it have to do with racehorses?" Myriam asks him, suspecting the meeting has to do with racehorses.
"No, or at least not directly. It's an event planning business, which could include some trips to the racetrack. However, I used racehorse ownership budgeting as an exercise to help you review math concepts"
I guess, I can carry on betting, just without any input from Myriam or Jacob, since Jacob didn't ask me to place any bet, Camden reviews the race form report as provided by an app on his phone for the next one. And he will be emboldened to bet more than just $10 per combination.
For the next bet, he feels like the omni lacks the excitement of even a quinella (the top 2 horses in any order), so he decides to bet $50 on a 7/10 quinella. And quinellas are also new to Delta Downs for this season. However, he seems to be doing this only out of confusion, because he's still trying to understand the exact scope of his responsibility.
I really hope Futurity Force wins something throughout his career. Every dollar he wins over his career means more money for betting and so on, so forth, he starts ruminating, while furiously watching his phone for the result of race #3, while seated at a restaurant for dinner. And... he lost that bet.
"Shoot! I lost my bet since horse number ten finished third!" a frustrated Camden's face goes red. "I get, I can't always win when playing horses, which is why I had Myriam stop playing the ponies for tonight. However, just a bit of patience"
"What do you mean, just a bit of patience?" Brittany asks him, before he storms off to the betting machine.
"I need to place a bet on the fourth race"
"Just come back here quick!"
Once at the wager booth, since Futurity Force is entered into race #4, naturally, he is going to wager more on him. But not solely on him, since he is going for two exacta combinations at $100 each. All it takes is one winning combination and I will have earned back the last wager, plus the sums I bet on Futurity Force, horse number 4, he starts thinking of betting on Futurity Force's race. 4/2 and 4/8 being the combinations.
He then goes to the stands and then watch the race on which he bet $200, of which he knows at least $100 will be on a losing wager.
"Come on, Futurity Force!" he hollers while Futurity Force is locked in a 3-way race to the top against horses 2 and 8, amid large amounts of noise.
That race keeps him on his toes as the 3 horses dash down the homestretch. There's a lead to defend here! he starts crossing his fingers as well as sweat. Especially when horses 2 and 8 both threaten to overtake Futurity Force. His body shakes more and more as all 3 horses get closer to the finish line.
Stay on target... stay on target! he starts to think as the end draws near. And, hopefully, the time he spent reviewing what was on offer to get in on a partnership for racehorse ownership would pay off. All that matters now is Futurity Force winning. There's one length separating third place from whoever's in fourth. And the lead pack is less than a length away [from the finish line].
Yet at every step, every fraction of second, he can feel the threat intensifying. His fingers are crossed more tightly. And it seems like the steward is forced to use photo-finish to determine a winner.
I would then stand to win thousands of dollars if Futurity Force wins. If Futurity Force loses, I lose $200, and this means I would need to wager either on longer shots or more money to make back $250, Camden then returns to his family's table at the restaurant just as the food order has been served.
"I really hope that this business doesn't mean that you will play the horses more" Brittany scolds Camden, believing there's a chance he will use this to play the horses more. "However, good thing you made Myriam stop playing the horses"
"After review of the photo-finish, the winner of race number four is..." the steward announces on the racetrack's PA system. "Moonlight Sparkle!" the steward shouts.
I may as well cash in my winnings from races 1 and 2, and then pay my share immediately, Camden texts Alan to signal that he is ready to pay before race #5. Oh crap, I lost $200, so for the next race, I need to bet on combinations that will yield me $250 plus the amount I will wager, his mind keeps racing while he goes to the teller to cash in the winnings of the race, and then place new bets.
He then bets $125 each on two exacta combinations since he feels the next race is a situation where the winner is pretty much a given, but second place isn't. After that, he pays the $2500 to Alan. Now that's excitement as I could never have gotten it out of playing the horses! Life on the fast lane, I'm still ahead $500, let's make this season opener a memorable one!
One of those 2 exacta combinations ends up being the last win he scored for the day. Especially since maiden races (i.e races between horses that never raced before) are more unpredictable. However, while he lost his bets in 5 races in a row, he still won thousands due to the high payout of the two exactas he won.