MARCH 2018
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Saturday 31 March 2018 |
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Having
abandoned plans to attend Lambourn Open Day, which
was decimated due to heavy rain (apart from Nicky Henderson’s yard which
opened), I headed out to Berkshire to visit Jamie Snowden’s yard this
morning. Pride Of Pemberley
is currently out at grass, recovering from tendonitis, but EPDS Racing’s Our
Reward is back in training and it’s hoped that he’ll be able to run before
the end of the season, ground dependent.
Jamie with Our Reward It is
quite a trek to Lambourn; a 160 miles round trip!!! Smad Place has relocated
to Lambourn; he spent a few days at AP’s yard,
presumably before moving to his forever home with Charlotte Burke. Charlotte’s husband works at Warren Greatrex’s yard, also in Lambourn. I wonder if Smad
will be spotted out and about in the village shortly. Also, Sam
Thomas is leaving Lambourn; he will be moving to
Wales to become Dai Walters’ salaried trainer. Christian Williams moved on from the
premises in February. We saw Sam and his
string today; he was riding one of his charges. Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest, at Haydock Park: Awesome
Rosie (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 4th and Peggies
Venture (Alan King/Tom Cannon) finished 12th in the Mares’ Hurdle Series
Final Handicap Hurdle (13 ran). Tara View
(Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) was withdrawn from the Stayers’
Hurdle Series Final Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 6 furlongs & 177 yards] There are no runners of interest tomorrow! |
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Friday 30 March 2018 |
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Here are
yesterday’s results for my runners of interest: Towcester: Lady Vitesse (Harry
Stock/Martin Keighley) finished 6th in the Mares’ Maiden Hurdle (11 ran). Dontminddboys (Robin Dickin/Jack Quinlan/EPDS Racing) won the Handicap Chase [3
miles & 102 yards] (8 ran); it was an excellent ride, with Jack taking
his mount wide to benefit from the better ground – he also carried top weight
of 11 stone 12 lbs – the runner-up carried only 9 stone 9 lbs! Undisputed (Noel Williams/Harry Teal) finished
3rd in the Handicap Hurdle [1 mile 7 furlongs & 151 yards] (10 ran). Yesandno (Alan King/Kevin
Dowling) finsished 3rd and Chequered View (Martin
Keighley/Harry Stock) was a non-runner and Pomme De
Nuit (Martin Keighley/Mr A Hark) was also a
non-runner in the Maiden NH Flat Race (Conditionals and Amateur Riders) (11
ran). Wetherby: Pirate Look (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) finished 2nd in the Juvenile Maiden Hurdle (6
ran). Here is a recording of Dontminddboys’
race: http://www.attheraces.com/racecard/Towcester/29-March-2018/1445 Jamie Moore is now free to ride at Aintree, he
and Kerry Lee having won their recent appeals against accusations of not
trying at Chepstow last week: It looks like Choc has caught the ‘Homes under the Hammer’ bug! https://twitter.com/Choc_Thornton/status/978600468556537856 Freddie Keighley
and his pony Bubbles finished 2nd in a race at Cheltenham, marking his pony
racing debut: https://mobile.twitter.com/martinkeighley7/status/979698797411557377/photo/1 A book
titled ‘Cue Card – A tribute to a
special horse’ by Lee Mottershead and Andrew
Pennington will be published in June.
Both the Racing Post and Amazon have the book available to pre-order. Nicky
Henderson finally got his hands on the ‘Best
Turned Out Yard’ trophy at today’s Lambourn
Open Day ... after 28 years of trying ... LOL ... you have to give him a lot
of credit for being the only yard which managed to open, the area having
experienced so much rainfall in recent days. https://mobile.twitter.com/LambournOpenDay/status/979700229825024001/photo/1 Today I’ve
been knitting whilst transferring Cheltenham Festival recordings to DVD; I now
have a copy of the Day 2 highlights, thanks to RUK repeating all of the
meeting’s highlights programmes today.
It’s been a foul weather day in many areas,
including Hertfordshire; it’s not even been fit for a dog to go out in! Here are
tomorrow’s runners of interest, at Haydock Park: 15:50
Awesome Rosie (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) & Peggies
Venture (Alan King/Tom Cannon) – Mares’ Hurdle Series Final Handicap Hurdle 16:25 Tara View (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Stayers’ Hurdle Series Final Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 6
furlongs & 177 yards] |
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Wednesday 28 March 2018 |
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Having
continued to rain heavily, there’s another update regarding Friday’s Lambourn Open Day, with Nicky Henderson now the sole trainer
able to open his Seven Barrows yard to the public. He’s promised that everyone will be able to
get in and out of the car park ... even if they have to be assisted to do
so! Altior, Buveur D’Air, Might Bite, My
Tent Or Yours and Bobs Worth will be paraded every hour from 09:00. http://www.lambournopenday.com/ Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest: Warwick: Sammylou (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) was pulled up in the Maiden Hurdle (9 ran). Harefield (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) fell at the last when being eased and Fields Of Fortune (Alan
King/Tom Cannon) finished 4th in the Novices’ Hurdle (8 ran). Paddys Runner (Graeme
McPherson/Kielan Woods) was a non-runner and
Galactic Power (Robin Dickin/Jack Quinlan/EPDS Twitterati Racing Club) finished 3rd in the Handicap
Hurdle [2 miles 5 furlongs] (10 ran); that’s more prize money in the New
Beginnings’ kitty! Newcastle (AW): Single Estate (Simon Waugh/Rhona
Pindar/raised by Apple Tree Stud) finished 7th in the Apprentice Handicap [1
mile & 5 yards] (9 ran). Zabeel Star (Karen McLintock/Connor Murtagh)
finished 2nd in the Handicap [1 miles & 5 yards] (4 ran). Here are tomorrow’s
runners of interest: Towcester: 14:10 Lady Vitesse
(Harry Stock/Martin Keighley) – Mares’ Maiden Hurdle 14:45 Dontminddboys
(Robin Dickin/Jack Quinlan/EPDS Racing) – Handicap
Chase [3 miles & 102 yards] 15:20 Undisputed (Noel Williams/Harry Teal) –
Handicap Hurdle [1 mile 7 furlongs & 151 yards] 17:25 Yesandno (Alan
King/Kevin Dowling) & Chequered View (Martin Keighley/Harry Stock) & Pomme De Nuit (Martin
Keighley/Mr A Hark) – Maiden NH Flat Race (Conditionals and Amateur Riders) Wetherby: 14:00 Pirate Look (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) – Juvenile Maiden Hurdle Another
old timer has passed away – the 1996 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Klairon Davis; he was 29.
RIP As it’s Wednesday, there’s a new column from Alan King in
this week’s Weekender. He reports that
Sceau Royal is only 50-50 to run again this season,
with Aintree coming too soon. However,
if he does run, then it will be at Sandown Park on the final day of the
season. The trainer has a new recruit,
also owned by Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, named Full Glass; the horse may make his debut
for the yard at Aintree. No
decision has been made regarding Yanworth going to
Aintree; Alan think his charge had a very hard race at Cheltenham so may be
put away for the season instead. As
expected, Alan was delighted with Hotter Than Hell’s runner-up placing in
Newbury’s Goffs Sales bumper on Saturday; evidently
she had a bout of ringworm two months ago and was only just ready to run! Sego
Success has been retired, following his run last Sunday; Alan says he’ll make
someone a lovely hunter, although he is always sad to see the old boys leave
the yard. And
finally, Smad Place has a new home – Alan’s PA,
Charlotte Burke, is going to give the very popular grey a forever home; she
had the retired Crystal D’Ainay prior to the horse
passing away last December due to the dreaded colic. There’s unfortunate news regarding Irish
flat-race jockey, Pat Smullen. Having suffered symptoms which suggested a
gallstone problem, he underwent tests; sadly a tumour was discovered and he
will be sidelined for the foreseeable future.
Very best wishes and get well soon Pat. |
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Tuesday 27 March 2018 |
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Firstly,
due to the recent wet weather, the afternoon events planned for the Lambourn Open Day have been cancelled. The yards will still be open to visit
during the morning as per usual, from 08:30, with Nicky Henderson parading
his stable stars once an hour. That means
my Good Friday plans have now been cancelled.
There’s more rain on the way between now and Friday, so I’d remain
concerned that my car might get stuck in a muddy car park had I decided to
go. L But now,
I guess, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that I could get my teeth
stuck into the first of my Cheltenham diaries instead! Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest: Hereford: Three Ways (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) finished
3rd in the Novices’ Chase (4 ran). Madame Fiona (Martin Keighley/Harry Stock)
finished 4th in the Novices’ Hurdle (8 ran). Dahills Hill (Graeme
McPherson/Kielan Woods) fell 3 out in the Mares’
Handicap Hurdle (10 ran). Cup of Ambition (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) was pulled up in the Handicap Hurdle Div II [2
miles 3 furlongs & 147 yards] (9 ran). Newcastle (AW): Sam Missile (Jamie Osborne/Daniel Tudhope/formerly owned by Apple Tree Stud) finished 4th
and Jamacho (Brian Ellison/Ben Robinson/raised by
Apple Tree Stud) finished 7th in the Handicap [1 miles 4 furlongs & 98
yards] (9 ran). Here are tomorrow’s runners of interest: Warwick: 14:10 Sammylou (Graeme
McPherson/Kielan Woods) – Maiden Hurdle 14:40 Harefield (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) & Fields Of Fortune (Alan King/Tom Cannon) –
Novices’ Hurdle 16:55 Paddys Runner
(Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) & Galactic Power
(Robin Dickin/Jack Quinlan/EPDS Twitterati
Racing Club) – Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 5 furlongs] Newcastle (AW): 18:15 Single Estate (Simon Waugh/Rhona Pindar/raised by Apple Tree Stud) – Apprentice
Handicap [1 mile & 5 yards] 18:45 Zabeel Star
(Karen McLintock/Connor Murtagh)
– Handicap [1 miles & 5 yards] The 1998 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Cool Dawn,
has passed away at the grand old age of 30.
RIP. https://mobile.twitter.com/RacingPost/status/978669225018515458/photo/1 Sadly, Ben Pauling lost a horse at Huntingdon
yesterday – Bally Gilbert during the Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase. RIP But lovely news regarding Presenting Lisa; she
has a filly foal: https://mobile.twitter.com/HannahBishop79/status/978646541786341376/photo/1 And such an unusual ‘eclipse’ marking on her forehead too. Foodpad’s owners, Simon Muir
and Isaac Souede, have requested that their Arkle winner is re-routed to Aintree, where he would
contest the Grade 1 Maghull Novices’ Chase. He had been the favourite for Sunday’s Ryanair Gold Cup at Fairyhouse. |
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Monday 26 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest: Huntingdon: Presenting
Pearl (Jamie
Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) won the Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (16 ran); Jamie’s 30th
winner of the
season. Havisham (Jamie Snowden/Gavin
Sheehan) finished 10th and Passing Call (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished
2nd in the Maiden Hurdle Div I (11 ran). Hey Bill
(Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) finished 2nd in the
Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (9 ran). Giveaway
Glance (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 10th in the Handicap Hurdle [1
mile 7 furlongs & 171 yards] (13 ran). Red
Admirable (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) finished
7th in the Handicap Hurdle [3 miles 1 furlong & 10 yards] (12 ran); the
race was won by Mrs Prowting’s Minella
Whisper, trained by Richard Phillips. Some Day
Soon (Jamie Snowden/Miss Page Fuller) finished 2nd and Breaking Waves (Noel Williams/Harry
Teal) won the Standard NH Flat
Race (for Conditional Jockeys and Amateur Riders) (18 ran); Noel’s 7th winner of the season. Market Rasen: Tyrell (Micky Hammond/Joe Colliver/formerly
owned by Apple Tree Stud) finished 4th in the Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 7
furlongs & 16 yards] (9 ran). Here are tomorrow’s runners of interest: Hereford: 14:45 Three Ways (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) –
Novices’ Chase 15:15 Madame Fiona (Martin Keighley/Harry Stock)
– Novices’ Hurdle 16:15 Dahills Hill
(Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) – Mares’ Handicap
Hurdle 17:15 Cup of Ambition (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) – Handicap Hurdle Div II [2 miles 3 furlongs
& 147 yards] Newcastle (AW): 18:10 Sam Missile (Jamie Osborne/Daniel Tudhope/formerly owned by Apple Tree Stud) & Jamacho (Brian Ellison/Ben Robinson/raised by Apple Tree
Stud) – Handicap [1 miles 4 furlongs & 98 yards] Having mulled over the choice of Aintree or
Sandown Park for Cue Card’s final race outing before retirement, connections
have decided upon Sandown Park; he will run in the race won on every occasion
since its inception by the now retired Menorah. http://www.attheraces.com/news/2018/March/26/sandown-swansong-earmarked-for-popular-chaser-cue-card |
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Sunday 25 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s results for my runners of interest,
at Ascot: Voie Dans
Voie (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 3rd in
the Maiden Hurdle (7 ran). City Dreamer (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson)
finished 6th in the Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (9 ran). Sego Success (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson)
finished 7th in the Veteran’s Handicap Chase (8 ran). Salmanazar (Alan King/Charlie
Deutsch) finished 2nd in the Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle (9 ran);
the race had a very controversial start and Charlie was almost unseated. And that followed on from an issue with the
actual starting gate ... the starter’s podium was in the wrong place
initially! Midnight Cowboy, formerly trained by Alan King,
finished 3rd in the hunter chase, for new connections (8 ran). And there was a runner of interest at Doncaster too: Pacific Fleet (David O’Meara/Shane Gray/Apple
Tree Stud) finished 3rd in the Novice Stakes for 3-year-olds (13 ran); he was
formerly trained in Lambourn by Archie Watson. Here are
tomorrow’s runners of interest: Huntingdon: 13:30
Presenting Pearl (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) – Mares’ Novices’ Handicap
Hurdle 14:00 Havisham (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) & Passing Call
(Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Maiden Hurdle Div I 15:05 Hey
Bill (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) – Novices’
Limited Handicap Chase 15:35 Giveaway
Glance (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Handicap Hurdle [1 mile 7 furlongs
& 171 yards] 16:10 Red
Admirable (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) –
Handicap Hurdle [3 miles 1 furlong & 10 yards] 17:10 Some
Day Soon (Jamie Snowden/Miss Page Fuller) & Breaking Waves (Noel
Williams/Harry Teal) – Standard NH Flat Race (for Conditional Jockeys and
Amateur Riders) Market Rasen: 15:45
Tyrell (Micky Hammond/Joe Colliver/formerly
owned by Apple Tree Stud) – Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 7 furlongs & 16
yards] This is interesting;
it’s an all-time list of winning-most jockeys at the Cheltenham Festival,
prior to 2018. Choc is listed at
number 10. Admittedly though, there
were fewer races in the ‘olden’
days; that means there were fewer opportunities to clock up said winners! Davy Russell has added 4 this Festival, Barry Geraghty 2, Ruby Walsh 2 and Richard Johnson 1. This confirms that Willie Mullins has overtaken
Nicky Henderson as the winning-most Cheltenham Festival trainer following
this year’s Festival; Nicky now has 60 winners, compared to Willie’s 61. Nicky had held the record for six years: Very sad news following yesterday’s
Bangor-on-Dee’s fixture in which the Donald McCain-trained Waterlord took a crashing fall. He appeared to be fine, having been led
back by jockey Brian Hughes, but must have sustained a serious injury as the
trainer reported they’d subsequently lost him. L RIP Jumbo. https://mobile.twitter.com/mccain_abbie17/status/977630031777320962/photo/1 Unfortunately there was another fatality at
Carlisle this afternoon, when the Philip Kirby-trained Allmyown
pulled up injured on the flat during the Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase. L RIP I’ve spent
this afternoon working on my Cheltenham diaries and, although I think there
is a little more work to be done, I’m in a much better place with them than I
was at the start of this weekend! J |
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Saturday 24 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest, at Newbury: Sensulano (Noel Williams/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 10th, Kalahari Queen (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan)
finished 2nd and Lostnfound (Jamie Snowden/MG
Nolan) was pulled up in the Mares’ NH Novices’ Hurdle Finale (Limited
Handicap) (Grade 2) (16 ran). Brigade Of Guards (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson)
finished 9th, Mr Pumblechook (Alan King/Tom Cannon)
finished 6th and Hotter Than Hell (Alan King/Brendan Powell Jr) finished 2nd in the Goffs
UK Spring Sales Bumper (Standard Open NH Flat Race) (11 ran). Alan’s filly wins £9,840 for completing as
runner-up. Alan will be very pleased with the filly’s run
as, according to his Weekender column, he writes “Hotter Than Hell is at a disadvantage as she’s unraced and it’s hard
to make your debut in a race like this, but she’s a likeable filly and her
owners have paid all the entry and acceptance fees. She’s ready to run and needs to start
somewhere.” And a reminder of my runners of interest
tomorrow, at Ascot: 14:00 Voie Dans Voie (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) – Maiden Hurdle 14:35 City Dreamer (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) –
Juvenile Handicap Hurdle 16:20 Sego Success (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) –
Veteran’s Handicap Chase 16:55 Salmanazar (Alan
King/Charlie Deutsch) – Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle I notice that Midnight Cowboy is now a hunter
chaser; he runs in the 17:30 race for new connections. Here is a link to results from the Tattersalls Ireland Cheltenham Festival sale; Highflyer
Bloodstock and Tom Malone were able to secure two horses for Alan King – The
Glancing Queen and Kootenay River.
Both cost £80,000 and, not
having realised the results at the time, of the 14 lots I saw, I was very
taken by the flashy 4-year-old The Glancing Queen: http://www.tattersalls.ie/ascot-cheltenham/sales/cheltenham-festival-sale/4DCGI/Sale/CFS%2018/Main Kincora Fort’s injury isn’t
life threatening, but it is worrying as he’s injured the same leg on a
previous occasion. I’ve set up the four templates for my Cheltenham
2018 diaries, ready to expand the topping and tailing (which I commenced in
my blogs), but have subsequently succumbed to the discomfort of the aching
pain in my pelvis. L |
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Friday 23 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest, at Newbury: Kincora Fort (Noel
Williams/Wayne Hutchinson/EPDS Racing) finished 5th in the Handicap Chase [2
miles 6 furlongs & 93 yards] (11 ran); he also finished lame. L Somewhere To Be (Martin Keighley/Aidan Coleman)
was pulled up in the Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (6 ran); he also
succumbed to lameness. L Solstice Star (Martin Keighley/Tom Bellamy)
finished 4th in the Handicap Hurdle [2 miles & 69 yards] (7 ran). Here is Kincora Fort
(aka Brian) safe, although not sound, at home this evening: https://mobile.twitter.com/BenjoEvans/status/977223485226405889/photo/1 Fingers crossed for ‘Brian’ and also for Somewhere To Be; I’ll report back when
there’s further news. There are a number of runners of interest
tomorrow, at Newbury: 15:15 Sensulano (Noel
Williams/Wayne Hutchinson) & Kalahari Queen (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan)
& Lostnfound (Jamie Snowden/MG Nolan) – Mares’
NH Novices’ Hurdle Finale (Limited Handicap) (Grade 2) 17:00 Brigade Of Guards (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) & Mr Pumblechook (Alan King/Tom
Cannon) & Hotter Than Hell (Alan King/Brendan Powell Jr)
– Goffs UK Spring Sales Bumper (Standard Open NH
Flat Race) Then on Sunday, at Ascot: 14:00 Voie Dans Voie (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) – Maiden Hurdle 14:35 City Dreamer (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) –
Juvenile Handicap Hurdle 16:20 Sego Success (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) –
Veteran’s Handicap Chase 16:55 Salmanazar (Alan
King/Charlie Deutsch) – Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle I notice that Midnight Cowboy is now a hunter
chaser; he runs in the 17:30 race for new connections. I guess
this weekend will be spent topping and tailing my full Cheltenham
diaries! There’s still no news regarding the x-ray; I
walked home again this evening, via the slightly longer scenic route. |
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Thursday 22 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s
results for my runners of interest: Ludlow: Dans Le Vent (Jamie
Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) finished 2nd in the Novices’ Hurdle (7 ran). Chelmsford: Cecilator (Noel Williams/Megan
Nicholls/EPDS Racing) finished 10th in the Handicap [1 mile 2 furlongs] (11
ran). There are three runners of interest tomorrow, at Newbury: 14:30 Kincora Fort
(Noel Williams/Wayne Hutchinson/EPDS Racing) – Handicap Chase [2 miles 6
furlongs & 93 yards] 15:40 Somewhere To Be (Martin Keighley/Aidan
Coleman) – Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase 16:10 Solstice Star (Martin Keighley/Tom Bellamy)
– Handicap Hurdle [2 miles & 69 yards] I saw Paddy Brennan’s selfies
on twitter yesterday and here is the story behind the missing teeth: And this looks back on an old story in the Racing
Post, from last year, regarding Native River’s roots in Ireland: Once
again, there’s no news regarding the x-ray ... but I was told that the result
is on its way! I actually decided to walk home from work today,
rather than catch a bus; it probably wasn’t a particularly good idea. My mind is willing, but still my body is
not. I’ve been feeling a little bit ‘unsteady’ on my feet this evening as a
result, although the dull ache has been absent. |
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Wednesday 21 March 2018 |
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Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest, at Haydock Park: Touch Of Velvett (Graeme McPherson/Kielan
Woods) finished last in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (5 ran). Hogan’s
Height (Jamie
Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) won the Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (5 ran); Jamie’s 28th
winner of the season. Shockingtimes (Jamie Snowden/Tom
O’Brien) won the Veterans’ Handicap Chase (9 ran); Jamie’s 29th
winner of the
season. Hollywood
All Star (Graeme McPherson/Conor Shoemark) was a non-runner in the Handicap Hurdle
(Qualifier) [2 miles 6 furlongs & 177
yards] And is a
photo of today’s winning horses: https://mobile.twitter.com/jamiesnowden/status/976539151523831813/photo/1 Hopefully this is the video link to Hogan’s
Height’s victory: https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/976480513568382977 This is one of the Racing Post’s ‘old’ interviews series ... from 2016
with the owners of Native River; it’s always interesting to look back: https://www.racingpost.com/news/more-to-read/2016-interview-with-the-owners-of-cheltenham-gold-cup-hero-native-river/269636 Here is
the news report regarding the diagnosis of Ruby’s new injury: Sadly I still don’t have an x-ray diagnosis for
my injury ... I’ll call the doctor’s surgery again tomorrow. Alan reports that Dusky Legend has run her last
race; she was due to retire at the end of this season regardless, but she
fractured her knee when falling during the Coral Cup. The trainer thinks she will be okay for
stud. It wasn’t the Kelvin-Hughes’
Festival – their Lisp fell during the Fred Winter and they also lost North
Hill Harvey during the Grand Annual. They were unfortunate last year also,
having lost Hadrian’s Approach during the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir. There are
two runners of interest tomorrow: Ludlow: 15:35 Dans Le Vent (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) – Novices’
Hurdle Chelmsford: 18:15 Cecilator (Noel
Williams/Megan Nicholls/EPDS Racing) – Handicap [1 mile 2 furlongs] |
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Tuesday 20 March 2018 |
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There were
two runners of interest yesterday, at Lingfield Park: Cliffs Of Dover (Paul Nicholls/Megan Nicholls) won and Ardamir
(Laura Mongan/Paddy Bradley) finished 3rd in the
Handicap [1 mile 7 furlongs & 169 yards] (7 ran). And a number
of runners of interest tomorrow, at Haydock Park: 14:40
Touch Of Velvett (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) – Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle 15:15
Hogan’s Height (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) – Novices’ Limited Handicap
Chase 16:20 Shockingtimes (Jamie Snowden/Tom O’Brien) – Veterans’
Handicap Chase 16:55
Hollywood All Star (Graeme McPherson/Conor Shoemark) – Handicap Hurdle (Qualifier) [2 miles 6
furlongs & 177 yards] I
understand from John of EPDS Racing, that Jack Quinlan loves to ride our Twitterati Racing Club horse, Galactic Power. Jack is Kalashnikov’s regular pilot. It must be the way that GP can sit at the
back of the field until the closing stages and then pick off his rivals one
by one ... and hopefully win too! It was
reported at the weekend that Rich Ricci has a horse in training with Nicky
Henderson; it’s called Palixandre. As you know, I’m all in favour of the big
owners distributing their horses between yards and in different countries
too, provided that includes within GB! There’s still no news regarding my x-ray result
... I need to phone again tomorrow; hopefully it will be third time
lucky! Having completed my Cheltenham blogs, I can now
relax until the weekend. J |
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Sunday 18 March 2018 |
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Who’d have
thought the snow would return for one last fling before Spring ... although
it’s already the meteorological Spring; there was no racing in GB or Ireland
today as a result. https://www.racinguk.com/news/blank-day-in-britain-as-snow-causes-more-havoc It now
seems that the Cheltenham Festival was extremely lucky to find a window of
opportunity this year! Alan King
admits his disappointment in Yanworth’s run at the Festival
but is hopeful his charge may be able to take up an engagement at Aintree,
where he won the Grade 1 Stayers’ Hurdle last year: https://www.racinguk.com/news/king-left-disappointed-in-yanworth Ruby Walsh is still waiting to find out the
extent of his injury: https://www.racinguk.com/news/walsh-still-waiting-to-find-out-more And James Willoughby presents statistics on RUK,
following the Cheltenham Festival: https://www.racinguk.com/videos/watch/ondemand/10436 I turned
in at 21:00 yesterday evening, and was up before 07:00 this morning ... but I
guess that almost 10 hours sleep is enough for anyone! Today has been productive, as I’ve completed Day
1 and Day 4 of my Cheltenham-related blogs.
But still no opportunity to clean my filthy car! |
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Saturday 17 March 2018 |
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Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River trained by Colin Tizzard and ridden by Richard Johnson I’m back in harness and it’s time to catch up
with my daily blog … my specific Cheltenham blog will take a little longer to
complete; I’ve not started it yet! On the whole, I enjoyed the Cheltenham Festival,
despite the mud and the proliferation of Irish-trained winners. And I love it when a horse I particularly like
wins the Gold Cup. As you may know, I’ve
had a soft spot for Native River ever since I saw him run (and fall
unfortunately) in a hurdle race at Cheltenham in January 2015. The Gold Cup hero is unlikely to run again this
season, but plans are afoot for next year provided, of course, Native River
remains injury free: Local fans welcome home Native River: Fred Winter will be demoted from the title of
next season’s Juvenile Handicap Hurdle … sponsorship money talks … although
I’m old enough to remember Fred Winter, very vaguely as a jockey, mainly as a
trainer: It’s also interesting to find out who the most
successful sires were are this year’s Festival: Here’s a video of Choc’s
son Wolfie endeavouring to ride their family dog
Moose! https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/974699669296173056 Here are the non-Cheltenham
results for my runners of interest these past few days: Tuesday 13
March Sedgefield: Lostnfound (Jamie Snowden/Gavin
Sheehan) finished 2nd in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (Qualifier) (7 ran). Wednesday
14 March Huntingdon: Undisputed (Noel Williams/Harry Teal) finished
4th in the Mares’ Handicap Hurdle (14 ran). Pirate Look (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) finished 2nd in the Maiden Hurdle (15 ran). Thursday
15 March Towcester: Oscar Star (Jamie Snowden/Miss Page Fuller)
finished last in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (7 ran). And a quick run through of the Cheltenham Festival results, bearing
in mind I’ll be doing a dedicated blog and a diary in due course: Cheltenham: Tuesday Elgin
(Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 5th in the Champion Hurdle (Grade 1)
(11 ran); the only GB-based horse to beat him home was the winner Buveur D’Air. Midnight
Tour (Alan King/Davy Russell) finished 2nd in the OLBG Mares’ Hurdle (Grade
1) (9 ran); that was a complete surprise, as she beat Apple’s Jade into 3rd
place and was a 33-1 shot! Wednesday: River
Frost (Alan King/Barry Geraghty) finished 15th,
Dusky Legend (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) fell at the 2nd and Bastien (Alan King/Tom Cannon) finished 17th in the Coral
Cup Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) [2 miles 5 furlongs & 26 yards] (26 ran). Lisp (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) fell at the 3rd flight in the Fred Winter Juvenile
Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) (22 ran).
Although he departed independently, I wonder if the horse lost
concentration because Knight Destroyer had already ended up on the deck at
this flight. Thebannerkingrebel (Jamie Snowden/Gavin
Sheehan) was pulled up in the Champion Bumper (Grade 1) (23 ran); the trainer
reported that he had a breathing issue.
He was my sole bet of the Festival … oops! Thursday: Terrefort (Nicky Henderson/Daryl
Jacob) finished 2nd in the JLT Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) (9 ran). Who Dares Wins (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson)
finished 5th in the Pertemps Final Handicap Hurdle
[3 miles] (23 ran). Yanworth (Alan King/Barry Geraghty) finished 6th in the Stayers’
Hurdle (Grade 1) [3 miles] (15 ran).
Evidently Yanworth finished distressed,
which has never happened previously.
Tests could find no reason for this, although Alan is uncertain
whether his charge will be able to take up any engagements at Aintree. Friday: Redicean (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 6th in the Triumph Hurdle (Grade 1) (9 ran); Alan hopes
to take his charge to Aintree, where the ground should be far more suitable. William H Bonney (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 12th in the County Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3)
[2 miles & 1 furlong] (24 ran). Talkischeap (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) was pulled up in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
(20 ran). Native
River (Colin Tizzard/Richard Johnson) won the Cheltenham Gold Cup (Grade 1) (15 ran). Brillare Momento
(Martin Keighley/Harry Stock) finished 8th in the Martin Pipe Conditional
Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle (23 ran). Valdez (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) unseated his
jockey at the 3rd fence and Theinval (Nicky
Henderson/Jeremiah McGrath) finished 4th in the Grand Annual Handicap Chase
(Grade 3) [2 miles & 62 yards] (23 ran). Unfortunately Alan King failed to gain a winner
at this year’s Festival but, with the Irish trainers dominating … or at least
Gordon Elliott and Willie Mullins did, it’s getting more and more difficult
for the ‘home team’. But at least the GB-based horses did better
than last year, with two additional winners – 11 to the GB, and a mere 17 to
the opposition. L The presentations became
extremely monotonous, with Michael ‘Ryanair’ O’Leary dominating the leading owners’
table. Oh well, Alan seems to be more
successful at Aintree these days so, hopefully, he’ll find success in a few
weeks’ time. Having fallen or been unseated on three
occasions, Wayne Hutchinson had a dire Festival. Sadly, once again, a number of horses lost their
lives in the pursuit of glory; it was six this Festival, including three in
the Grand Annual. Admittedly the final
race of the Festival provides an exciting climax, but the stakes are too
high, with participants even more eager than usual to make the most of their
final chance to ride a winner. Speed
kills as they say. The six casualties were the Gordon
Elliott-trained Mossback in the 4-mile National Hunt Novices’ Chase, the Evan
Williams-trained Report to Base in the Close Brothers Novices’ Handicap
Chase, and the Willie Mullins-trained Sandsend who
broke a leg before the final flight during the County Hurdle. The Grand Annual fatalities were the Henry
Oliver-trained Dresden, the Dan Skelton-trained North Hill Harvey, and the
Henry de Bromhead-trained Some Plan. The latter was a late notification; he
appeared to fall having been almost stopped in his tracks when the rider-less
Valdez jumped to the right, as he frequently does, in order to negotiate the
final fence. RIP beautiful horses. The BHA will launch a safety review as a result: I also have very sad news to report regarding
Doctor Bartolo; his injury was discovered to be far
more serious than was at first suspected.
Therefore despite the best veterinary care, the damage proved to be
inoperable and he was humanely put to sleep to prevent further
suffering. RIP And today’s results for my runners of interest: Kempton Park: Kayf Blanco (Graeme McPherson/Kielan Woods) finished 2nd in the Novices’ Limited
Handicap Chase (5 ran). Azzerti (Alan King/Adrian Heskin) finished 7th and Monbeg
Theatre (Jamie Snowden/Sam Twiston-Davies) finished
3rd in the Silver Plate Handicap Hurdle [2 miles & 5 furlongs] (11 ran). Thomas Crapper (Robin Dickin)
finished 9th in the Silver Bowl Handicap Chase [2 miles 4½ furlongs] (10
ran). Chosen Path (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) won the Novices’ Hurdle
(8 ran). Alan’s 56th winner of the season and Wayne’s 43rd winner of the season. The RUK raceday
presenters, Niall Hannity and Dave Yates, were to
be pitied today; it was absolutely freezing at the Sunbury track, with snow
showers too! Fontwell Park: Naranja (Jamie Snowden/Gavin
Sheehan) finished 3rd in the Mares’ Handicap Hurdle (Qualifier) (6 ran). Samson The Man (Noel Williams/Tom Garner)
finished 6th in the Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 3 furlongs & 49 yards] (8
ran). Meanwhile at Uttoxeter,
the Bob Buckler-trainer Regal Flow won the Midlands Grand National. Amazingly, the horse ran and won at Taunton
last Monday too: Just one runner of interest tomorrow, at Carlisle, and subject to an 08:00 inspection: 14:05 Bingo D’Olivate (Gemma Anderson/Brian Hughes) – Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 1
furlong] Apart from Tuesday, when I stood beside the rails
for every race, the only other race I viewed first-hand was the
cross-country. The other twenty races
were viewed via the big screen which overlooks the Parade Ring, whilst I
stood on the new upper steppings overlooking the
Winners’ Enclosure. One of my work
colleagues found me on Tuesday, and I bumped into the same member of EPDS on
Thursday and again on Friday (Murray?), along with EPDS Racing’s MD, John, on
Friday too. The latter told me that,
all being well, Kincora Fort may run at Aintree or
at Sandown Park on the final day of this season. But, sadly, there was no sighting of Choc. I did loiter for a while, close to the
marquee area, late yesterday morning … but it was like looking for a needle in
a haystack. L Although I did see Ian Popham,
Mattie Batchelor and Alan King. If only Apple Tree Stud hadn’t sold Redicean … otherwise I would, no doubt, have spotted Choc
in the Pre-Parade ring. I now need to clean my car … it’s filthy … it’s
been filthy ever since I parked up at Cheltenham on Tuesday. You’d think I’d have learnt my lesson by
now, not to clean my car before I go – I washed it on Monday!!! It’s too cold to do it at the moment,
especially the wheels, as once I’ve cleaned them they can get ‘stuck’ when temperatures fall close to
freezing. My pelvis has been okay whilst I’ve been at
Cheltenham, despite being on my feet for hours on end and walking a little
too fast on occasion too … but it’s ‘complaining’
again today. I wonder if horse racing
has a painkilling effect on one’s aches and pains, hence this minor flare-up
now I’m back home! I also need to catch up on my sleep. For some reason, despite being tired when I
arrived home yesterday evening, I didn’t turn in until around 04:00 this
morning, apart from dozing in the chair for a while. Then I was up at 07:00 because I wanted to
buy a copy of the Racing Post before the local supermarket sold out! |
|
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Monday 12 March 2018 |
|
Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest, at Taunton: First Mohican
(Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 9th in the Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 3
furlongs & 1 yard] (15 ran). Wilde
Spirit (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 5th in the Mares’ Standard Open
NH Flat Race (9 ran). Stratford
was abandoned because of the heavy recent rainfall. Here are
tomorrow’s runners of interest: Cheltenham: 15:30
Elgin (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Champion Hurdle (Grade 1) 16:10
Midnight Tour (Alan King/Davy Russell) – OLBG Mares’ Hurdle (Grade 1) There are just
five runners for tomorrow’s Arkle Chase, with Ruby
Walsh taking the ride aboard Footpad.
Evidently Daryl Jacob isn’t the owners’ retained jockey for
Irish-based runners. Sedgefield: 13:55 Lostnfound (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) – Mares’
Novices’ Hurdle (Qualifier) And, with
48 hour declarations ahead of the Festival, Wednesday’s
Cheltenham runners too: 14:50
River Frost (Alan King/Barry Geraghty) & Dusky
Legend (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) & Bastien
(Alan King/Tom Cannon) – Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) [2 miles 5
furlongs & 26 yards] 16:50 Lisp
(Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) 15:30 Thebannerkingrebel (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) –
Champion Bumper (Grade 1) Currently
there’s a race against time to get Altior to the
Champion Chase, as he’s got pus in one of his feet and was lame this morning;
that’s a shame, as he is clearly be the best horse in the race. Douvan has been
declared for this after all, presumably in the hope that the Nicky Henderson-trained
runner fails to meet Wednesday’s recovery deadline. Following
recent rain, Cheltenham’s going is heavy tomorrow ... and I expect the
members’ lawn will be too!
Multi-purpose snow-boots at the ready! Horses due to take part in tomorrow’s ROR parade
include Annacotty, Any Currency, Dodging Bullets,
Hunt Ball and Silviniaco Conti. Martin
Keighley has tweeted a lovely photo of one of his former charges, Sky Calling
with her most recent foal: https://mobile.twitter.com/martinkeighley7/status/972867472364855296/photo/1 |
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Sunday 11 March 2018 |
|
Today I
attended the 2018 Lambing Live event at the local College ... here are my
favourites, Kerry Hill twin lambs.
And there
were more exotic creatures too ... this is Tyson the green iguana:
Not to
mention the alpacas:
And the
good news is that although I spent a lot of time on my feet today, walking
around the exhibits, I don’t appear to have suffered adversely. J Having now
uploaded my recent photos, here is one of Choc on TV; being interviewed at
Kempton Park last month:
And, if
you look very closely, you may be able to spot a pair of goldcrests
which visited my garden in the middle of last month:
Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest: Market Rasen: Shockingtimes (Jamie Snowden/Nick Scholfield) was a non-runner in the Handicap Chase [2
miles 5 furlongs & 89 yards] Skipthecuddles (Graeme McPherson/Conor Shoemark) finished 12th
in the Handicap Hurdle (Qualifier) [2 miles 7 furlongs & 16 yards] (13
ran). Warwick: Sugar Storm (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) was pulled up in the Novices’ Hurdle (Qualifier)
(14 ran). Nobby (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 2nd in the Standard Open NH Flat Race (7 ran). And here
are tomorrow’s runners of interest: Taunton: 16:10
First Mohican (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Handicap Hurdle [2 miles 3
furlongs & 1 yard] 17:10
Wilde Spirit (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Mares’ Standard Open NH Flat Race Stratford: 14:30 Hey
Bill (Graeme McPherson/Conor Shoemark)
– Handicap Chase [2 miles 6 furlongs & 125 yards] 15:00
Solstice Star (Martin Keighley/Tom Bellamy) – Handicap Hurdle (Qualifier) [2
miles & 70 yards] 15:30
Fields Of Fortune (Alan King/Tom Bellamy) & Pirate Look (Martin
Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) – Juvenile Hurdle Yesterday
I decided to wash my handmade, cross-stitch decorated and felt-lined mobile
phone cover and hung it out to dry; I checked it 24 hours later and was still
able to wring water out of it ... oops.
It’s now in the airing cupboard and I’m hoping for a better result tomorrow
... otherwise I might just have to knit one instead! There is news that Douvan’s
likely Festival target will be the Ryanair Chase,
not the Champion Chase as expected.
Owner Rich Ricci already has a runner for the Champion, namely
Min. I wasn’t far out with the price-tag for Redicean when he was purchased out of David O’Meara’s
yard last autumn; it was actually £85,000. Just two more sleeps ... until we hear the
Cheltenham roar once more! |
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Saturday 10 March 2018 |
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Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest at Sandown Park: Canelo (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 4th and Midnight Chill (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) was
pulled up in the NH Novices’ Handicap Hurdle Final (Grade 3) (17 ran); Canelo would have been an okay bet, each-way at 10-1. Fidux (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 7th in the Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) (17
ran). The Nigel TwistonDavies-trained
Mr Antolini won the race, from top weight Call Me
Lord; although the winner did have to survive a Stewards’ Enquiry. Winning jockey Jamie Bargary
picked up a 3-day ban as a result. The most heart-warming result of the day was
14-year-old Pete The Feat winning the 3-mile Handicap Chase for Charlie Longsdon and jockey Jonathan Burke. You just have to love super veteran Pete;
he’s a legend! Sandown are hoping to
name a race after him next season; a race which he can run in too: https://mobile.twitter.com/RacingPost/status/972501211776782336/photo/1 Here are tomorrow’s runners of interest: Market Rasen: 15:35 Shockingtimes
(Jamie Snowden/Nick Scholfield) – Handicap Chase [2
miles 5 furlongs & 89 yards] 16:10 Skipthecuddles (Graeme McPherson/Conor
Shoemark) – Handicap Hurdle (Qualifier) [2 miles 7
furlongs & 16 yards] Warwick: 14:20 Sugar Storm (Martin Keighley/Andrew Tinkler) – Novices’ Hurdle (Qualifier) 17:30 Nobby (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Standard Open NH Flat Race The
Cheltenham going is currently soft, heavy in places ... with rain forecast
through to Monday; it’s expected to be the softest ground on day one for 20
years! Ruby Walsh
has picked six horses he wishes he could ride at Cheltenham – they are Buveur D’Air, Samcro, Presenting Percy, Cause Of Causes (in the
cross-country!), Sam Spinner and Might Bite.
He’s changed his mind this season about the latter, and now thinks the
horse is an incredible athlete who he’d ‘love
a go on’! Argocat, who suffered an
injury at Haydock Park last month, sadly didn’t
make it. RIP L I’ve
knitted another Fab Big woollen hat today – in
raspberry pink this time. I made three
bobbles too, one for this hat and two for a delphinium blue one; the first
blue one turned out to be larger than expected, so I made a second one using
a bobble-maker. The bobble-maker ones
aren’t as substantial, especially when using super chunky wool like Fab Big, so I usually use the tried and tested ‘cardboard’ method! The bobbles are interchangeable on all of
my knitted hats, as I leave the two longer lengths of the yarn which are used
to tie the bobble, thread them through the hat and tie these inside using a
double bow. I love
knitting, although it is a bit of an obsession; there are so many lovely
yarns to choose from. The downside is
that the larger the size of garment you knit, the more expensive it will
prove ... so with sweaters, cardigans and tops, everything has to be 100%
acrylic or contain only a small percentage of wool. I love the new ‘cake’ yarns, they are ideal for hats, scarves, gloves and snoods;
I make a beeline for the purples, turquoises, blues, berry and pink shades. |
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Friday 09 March 2018 |
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Just two results to report today: Sandown Park: Midnight
Monty (Jamie Snowden/Major Harry Wallace) finished 3rd in the Grand Military
Gold Cup (for Military Amateur Riders) (11 ran). Newcastle: (AW) Celtic
Artisan (Rebecca Menzies/PJ McDonald/EPDS Racing)
finished 9th in the Handicap Div II [1 mile & 5 yards] (11 ran). Here is Lee Mottershead’s
report, from earlier in the week, regarding Redicean’s
transfer of ownership ... basically, he’s returned into the ownership of the
stud which bred him! And the Cheveley Park
website – their current stallions are Dutch Art, Garswood,
Intello, Lethal Force, Mayson,
Pivotal, Twilight Son and Ulysses: http://www.cheveleypark.co.uk/ I have a random figure in my head, namely
£80,000, when Redicean was bought out of David
O’Meara’s yard towards the end of last year; I wonder if the latest
transaction might include stallion nominations, bearing in mind Apple Tree
Stud’s breeding operation. There are three runners of interest tomorrow, at Sandown Park: 13:50 Canelo (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) & Midnight Chill (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) –
NH Novices’ Handicap Hurdle Final (Grade 3) 14:25 Fidux (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) I’m
foregoing a yard visit tomorrow, scheduled for Noel Williams’ yard ... it’s
the first time I’ve missed a visit to Blewbury
since becoming an EPDS syndicate member.
It’s Lambing Live at the local College this weekend ... and Mothers’
Day on Sunday ... so I don’t want to overstretch myself ahead of next week,
in light of my ongoing physical issues.
A book
arrived from Amazon today – The Jumping Game - How National Hunt trainers work and what makes them tick by
Henrietta Knight. Alan King is chapter
9. Her other 26 subjects are Mouse
Morris, Gary Moore, Paul Nicholls, Enda Bolger,
Gordon Elliott, Henry de Bromhead, Oliver Sherwood,
Nigel Twiston-Davies, Neil Mulholland, Colin Tizzard, Dan Skelton, Mick Easterby,
Venetia Williams, Ben Pauling, Jessica Harrington, Philip Hobbs, Peter Bowen,
Lucinda Russell, Donald McCain, Joseph O’Brien, Willie Mullins, Noel Meade,
Harry Fry, David Pipe, Jonjo O’Neill and, last but
not least, Nicky Henderson. John Francome wrote the foreword and enjoyed the book very
much ... I look forward to doing the same.
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Thursday 08 March 2018 |
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The major
news story today is that last year’s Gold Cup winner, Sizing John, has been
ruled out of this year’s renewal because of a hairline non-displaced fracture
of his pelvis ... he’s been prescribed two weeks box rest, before being
rescanned with a view to starting walking exercise; in fact it sounds similar
to my suspected injury! So that’s
three years running that the previous winner has failed to make the line-up
for the following year’s race. Another
horse to miss the Festival is the Alan King-trainer Doctor Bartolo; he was due to run in the Fred Winter Juvenile
but he’s knocked a joint. Just two
results to report today ... but one was a winner: J Wincanton: Another
Crick (Noel Williams/Wayne Hutchinson) finished 5th in the Handicap Hurdle [1
mile 7 furlongs & 65 yards] (6 ran). Newcastle: Zabeel Star (Karen McLintock/Jamie Gormley) won the Handicap [1 mile & 5
yards] (6 ran). Just two runners of interest tomorrow too: Sandown Park: 15:40
Midnight Monty (Jamie Snowden/Major Harry Wallace) – Grand Military Gold Cup
(for Military Amateur Riders) Newcastle: (AW) 19:15 Celtic Artisan (Rebecca Menzies/PJ
McDonald/EPDS Racing) – Handicap Div II
[1 mile & 5 yards] |
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Wednesday 07 March 2018 |
|
Confirming
a recent tweet from Choc, Alan King writes in his Weekender column that Redicean has been purchased by Mrs David Thompson of the Cheveley Park Stud and will run in his new owner’s
colours at the Cheltenham Festival.
The horse remains at Barbury Castle; Alan
trained for the Thompsons when he first began his career. https://mobile.twitter.com/Choc_Thornton/status/971005696136433665/photo/1 Choc
mentions that he will still attend Cheltenham on Friday week, so that’s good
news ... but will I be able to track him down? It’s a shame that Apple Tree Stud has
relinquished a ‘sporting interest’
in National Hunt racing, as it offered the occasional opportunity to see
Choc, but that’s business I guess ... although they do currently appear to
hold a share in the Jamie Snowden-trained Thistle Do Nicely. Despite
not being 100% sound in body at present, I’m still kicking myself for not
going to Kempton Park last month to see Choc.
L Anyway,
Alan confirms further Cheltenham Festival plans: Elgin will be supplemented for the Champion Hurdle,
provided he worked well today. The Unit will probably run in the Close Brothers’
Handicap Chase ... despite his poor jumping display last time. Scarlet Dragon may run in the Supreme Novices, depending on how
he worked today and schools tomorrow. Meanwhile,
Vroum Vroum Mag has been retired. Here are today’s results for my runners of
interest: Fontwell Park: Stockburn (Alan King/Wayne
Hutchinson) finished 4th in the Novices’ Hurdle (5 ran). Crushed (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) was a
non-runner in the Maiden Hurdle due to unsuitable ground Some Day Soon (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan) was a
non-runner in the Standard Open NH Flat Race, again due to unsuitable ground Lingfield Park: (AW) Cliffs Of Dover (Paul Nicholls/Megan
Nicholls) won the Handicap [1 mile
7 furlongs & 169 yards] (7 ran). Kempton
Park: (AW) Three
Weeks (William Haggas/Ryan Moore/Apple Tree Stud)
finished 5th in the ‘Road to the
Kentucky Derby’ Conditions Stakes [1 mile] (7 ran). Just two runners of interest tomorrow: Wincanton: 14:40 Another Crick (Noel Williams/Wayne Hutchinson)
– Handicap Hurdle [1 mile 7 furlongs & 65 yards] Newcastle: 19:15 Zabeel Star
(Karen McLintock/Jamie Gormley)
– Handicap [1 mile & 5 yards] Meanwhile, I have to wait around 10 days until my
x-ray result comes through ... |
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Tuesday 06 March 2018 |
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There are five runners of interest tomorrow: Fontwell Park: 14:10 Stockburn (Alan
King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Novices’ Hurdle 15:10 Crushed (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) –
Maiden Hurdle 16:40 Some Day Soon (Jamie Snowden/Gavin Sheehan)
– Standard Open NH Flat Race Lingfield Park: (AW) 17:00
Cliffs Of Dover (Paul Nicholls/Megan Nicholls) – Handicap [1 mile 7 furlongs
& 169 yards] Kempton
Park: (AW) 19:10
Three Weeks (William Haggas/Ryan Moore/Apple Tree
Stud) – ‘Road to the Kentucky Derby’
Conditions Stakes [1 mile] Wolfie was given his first ‘proper’ haircut today ... evidently he’s already had 7 or 8 trims
despite having only just celebrated his first birthday; he’s got lots and
lots of hair!!! Here is Wolfie with the family’s dog, Moose. https://mobile.twitter.com/Choc_Thornton/status/971105582466904064/photo/1 Ruby Walsh
will be returning to race-riding action later this week ... just in time for
the Cheltenham Festival, but let’s hope someone else wins the ‘top jockey’ award this year! Hopefully
this link works; it’s about Jamie Snowden and his hopes for Thebannerkingrebel: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/racing/2018/03/06/jamiesnowden-pins-hopes-rescue-horse The Racing
Post posted a video (link below) of Alistair Down driving from his house to
Cheltenham racecourse; he lives in Bledington, so
is a fairly close neighbour of Choc’s. He visits The Plough in Ford during his
journey; I’ve been there twice. I love
the Cotswolds and I want to retire to live in Cheltenham ... besides, I’ve
been there so many times that it almost feels like home! |
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Monday
05 March 2018 |
|
Having
been an age since I purchased last week’s Weekender, I forgot to impart
information regarding Alan King’s expected Cheltenham Festival plans for his horses ... Valdez will probably run in
the Grand Annual Who Dares Wins is expected to
participate in the Pertemps Final Talkischeap will be aimed at the
Albert Bartlett Midnight Tour heads to the Mares’
Hurdle Dusky Legend might run in the
Coral Cup He’s got
three entries for the Fred Winter Juvenile – namely Doctor Bartolo, Lisp and City Dreamer Dingo Dollar may run in the Ultima Handicap Chase Mia’s Storm may also run in the Ultima, or the RSA ... provided the ground isn’t too
soft, otherwise she will remain at home! Obviously Redicean is
heading to the Triumph Hurdle Alan also
has a number of horses who won’t get into races at the Festival due to
oversubscription ... and they will head to Kempton Park for the consolation
races on 17 March. Today it
was reported that Sceau Royal has picked up what Alan King
describes as a ‘niggle’, so he’s
now a non-starter for the Festival; he was due to run in the Arkle. It is also
reported that Terrefort’s
connections, who also own Sceau Royal, are
seriously considering running the Nicky Henderson-trained runner in the JLT
Novices’ Chase. I love Terrefort! Here are
today’s results for my runners of interest ... there were two winners, a 2nd
and a 3rd: Southwell: Good Man Pat (Alan King/Tom Bellamy) won the Novices’ Hurdle
(4 ran); Alan’s 54th winner of the season. Lingfield Park: Balli Martine (Noel Williams/Tom Garner) finished 2nd
in the Standard Open NH Flat Race (all-weather) (8 ran); Noel thinks a lot of
his charge and he was a 16-1 shot today. Kempton
Park:
(Bumpers’ for Jumpers) Giving Back (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) won the Mares’ Maiden Open NH Flat Race (12 ran); Alan’s 55th
winner of the
season and Wayne’s
42nd winner of the
season. Peggies Venture (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) finished
3rd in the Jumpers’ Bumper [2 miles 2 furlongs] (8 ran). Wayne is
currently officially listed as having ridden 41 winners ... I’ll check that
again in a day or two; I’ve already double-checked the most recent 10 of
these ... surely today’s winner must count, as the race wasn’t a Jumpers’
Bumper as such? Anyway,
although the thaw has set in, both Newcastle and Exeter’s Tuesday fixtures
have been abandoned; the Devon track is water-logged. |
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Sunday 04
March 2018 |
|
This is my
first blog for a while, as the ‘Beast
from the East’ and Storm Emma have been wreaking havoc across the country
since the beginning of last week. I think
west Hertfordshire must have been one of the areas least affected by the snow
and I managed to get into work every day, although I did leave earlier on
Thursday and Friday; these days were affected by snowfall. However,
having got bored of waiting for a bus on Friday in the snow, I decided to
walk home. Unfortunately although my
mind is still very willing to walk, my body is not; I’ve been suffering from
aches in my pelvis all weekend as a result.
My recuperation now feels like two steps forward, one step back ...
literally. L I have an
appointment for an x-ray later this week.
There was
news last week that Fox Norton will miss the Cheltenham Festival due to
injury, as will Willoughby Court who has been suffering from pus in a foot,
with the trainer, Ben Pauling, unable to get him ready in time as a result. There was
a ‘Jumpers’ Bumpers’ card at Newcastle yesterday and, as a result, there are three
results to report: Pantomine (Rebecca Menzies/Mr
Aaron Atkinson/former EPDS syndicate horse) finished 4th in a 2
miles & half a furlong bumper (5 ran). Tyrell (Micky Hammond/Joe Colliver/formerly
owned by Apple Tree Stud) finished 4th in a 2 miles & half a
furlong bumper (7 ran). Jamacho (Brian Ellison/Henry
Brooke/raised by Apple Tree Stud) won
a 2 miles & half a furlong bumper (6 ran). And
tomorrow, Monday: Southwell: 15:55 Good
Man Pat (Alan King/Tom Bellamy) – Novices’ Hurdle Lingfield Park: (subject to a 07:30
inspection) 14:10 Balli Martine (Noel Williams/Tom Garner) – Standard Open
NH Flat Race (all-weather) Kempton
Park:
(Bumpers’ for Jumpers) 15:00 Giving
Back (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Mares’ Maiden Open NH Flat Race 16:00 Peggies Venture (Alan King/Wayne Hutchinson) – Jumpers’
Bumper [2 miles 2 furlongs] |
