PART II
DIARY – CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2017
DAY ONE
FEATURING THE CHAMPION HURDLE
TUESDAY 14 MARCH 2017
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The winner of the Champion Hurdle; Buveur D’Air ridden by Noel Fehily Click here to read my Day 1 Diary Part I It was now time for the feature event of the day,
the Champion Hurdle. This being the
case, there was a pre-race parade, with the horses exiting the horse-walk and
congregating upon the racecourse before being led up the home straight in
front of the main grandstands. Parade
over, they then cantered down the turf to enter the all-weather strip and
continue their journey to the starting gate which was situated at the far end
of the home straight. The favourite for the race was the Alan
King-trained Yanworth, ridden by Mark Walsh. JP McManus’ first jockey, Barry Geraghty having sustained an injury at Kempton Park the
previous month. He was priced at 2-1.
I’m not quite sure why he was such a short-price, as many were
convinced that 2 miles and half a furlong was far short of his optimum trip …
including me! There were a total of 3 JP McManus runners, the
other two being Buveur D’Air
and veteran My Tent Or Yours. Having
finished 3rd to Altior in last year’s Supreme
Novices’, the former had been successful on both his runs over the larger
obstacles this season, before returning to win over hurdles at Sandown the
previous month. The idea of switching
back to hurdles had become a firm possibility for Nicky in January. Both he and jockey Noel Fehily
thought there might be more to come from the horse in this sphere; besides,
that way, he’d avoid Altior in Novice Championship
races! There was also a rumour that his trainer had been
concerned by the speed with which the horse had attacked his steeplechase
fences! Presumably he was the most
suitable of JP’s horses to go after this prize now that Faugheen
and Annie Power had been beaten by injury this season. Mind you, that did leave Yanworth between a rock and a hard place. Simon Munir and Isaac Souede also had two runners in this event, Footpad and
the Alan King-trained Sceau Royal. Having exited the holding pen, the runners
initially headed away from the starting gate before walking in towards the
tape; Moon Racer appeared the keenest, having jig-jogged in to the outside of
runners.
And then they were off, with the grey Petit Mouchoir (Little Handkerchief) and The New One leading
the way to the first. In contrast,
Wicklow Brave wasn’t at all keen and it took much cajoling from his jockey
Paul Townend and one of the assistant starters too,
to persuade him to jump off, but not before he’d lost a number of lengths! The grey touched down slightly ahead over the
first flight, with The New One jumping out slightly to his right as is his
habit. Having spread out across the
course initially, the runners closed up into a group as they made the long
journey up the home straight towards the second flight. Petit Mouchoir
continued to lead, from The New One, Moon Racer, Yanworth
and Brain Power. The latter landed
over this flight a little awkwardly. Heading up the hill in front of the Best Mate
enclosure, the horses began to string out behind the leader as a good pace
was being set. There was no change at
the head of affairs as they began their journey down the back straight; Petit
Mouchoir led from The New One, Moon Racer, Yanworth and Brain Power.
They were followed by Buveur D’Air, Footpad, Cyrus Darius, Sceau
Royal, My Tent Or Yours and Wicklow Brave; after a tardy start, the latter
had now closed up upon the field. There were no jumping issues at the first in the
back straight, although Yanworth wasn’t the fastest
across it. The eleven runners were
bunched up again at this stage. The
New One hit the next one, which meant he briefly gave away second position to
Brain Power before regaining it. The
horses headed around the dog leg turn before approaching the fifth
flight. A number of horses made a mess of this particular
obstacle. Petit Mouchoir
kicked out the protective orange strip on the inside section. The New One hit the third panel; Moon Racer
blundered in the wake of the Twiston-Davies’
runner, and Buveur D’Air
flattened the intermediate section. However,
Petit Mouchoir continued to lead the way to the far
corner, from Brain Power, The New One, Yanworth and
Buveur D’Air. Behind these travelled the improving My
Tent Or Yours, Sceau Royal, Footpad, the now
struggling Moon Racer, Cyrus Darius and Wicklow Brave. Having travelled around the bend, the runners
began to motor downhill towards the third last flight, the grey still out in
front with The New One being pushed along in an endeavour to hold his second
position. Petit Mouchoir
landed first, from Brain Power upsides The New One, with Buveur
D’Air travelling strongly just behind them. Having held a good position since the
beginning of the race, the favourite was outpaced at this point … he’s not a
2-miler! Tom Scudamore
decided to pull up Moon Racer before the flight, in order to save his mount
for another day. The runners sped down to the penultimate flight
with the long-time leader remaining just ahead of his rivals; whilst Brain
Power had weakened quickly, this had left the pushed along The New One and
the strong travelling Buveur D’Air
to lay down a challenge to him. Petit Mouchoir hit this one and shortly afterwards he was
joined to the outside by Noel Fehily’s mount. My Tent Or Yours crept up the inside of the
hard-driven The New One as they headed around the home turn, whilst Wicklow
Brave laid down a challenge to the outside of them. Buveur
D’Air took the lead as they headed towards the
final flight, with My Tent Or Yours almost upsides the grey as they cleared
it. The JP McManus second-string was
not for stopping and he drew away to win by 4½ lengths from the perpetual
runner-up My Tent Or Yours. Petit Mouchoir held on
for third, 3 lengths back, with Footpad just holding off the challenge from
the staying-on effort of The New One for 4th place; a short-head the distance
between these two, 3 lengths behind the third-placed horse. Sceau Royal
finished 6th, with Yanworth 7th, Wicklow Brave 8th,
Brain Power 9th and Cyrus Darius 10th. It was owner JP McManus’ 50th Cheltenham Festival
winner! And it was trainer Nicky
Henderson’s 6th triumph in this particular race too. That’s three wins for See You Then, plus
Punjabi, Binocular and now Buveur D’Air. And, of
course, the trainer’s 57th all-time Festival winner too. Also an inspired buy for JP … although inspired
is probably not the word as he had shown so much potential prior to the sale
anyway; he’d been purchased as a result of the Potensis
Bloodstock dispersal sale last year, having already been trained by Nicky
Henderson.
Again
I wasn’t going anywhere ahead of the next race. Reports from the Stewards’ Room: Race 4 - 3:30pm The Stewards gave permission for PETIT MOUCHOIR (FR) to go first in
the parade and they noted that the gelding would wear earplugs, which would
be removed at the start. The Stewards noted that BUVEUR D'AIR (FR), trained
by Nicky Henderson, would wear earplugs and that MOON RACER (IRE), trained by
David Pipe, would wear earplugs which would be removed at the start. The Stewards noted that WICKLOW BRAVE, ridden by P. Townend, and trained by W.P. Mullins, lined up with the
other runners but was reluctant to jump off when the tape was released. Mark Walsh, the rider of YANWORTH, unplaced, reported that the gelding
was unsuited by the slow early pace. The Veterinary Officer reported that a
post-race examination of the gelding, during routine testing, failed to
reveal any abnormalities. The Stewards considered the running of MOON RACER (IRE), ridden by Tom
Scudamore, and trained by David Pipe, which was
pulled up. The Stewards noted the trainer’s explanation that the gelding made
a mistake at the top of the hill when weakening. The Veterinary Officer
reported that a post-race examination of the gelding failed to reveal any
abnormalities. The Veterinary Officer reported that BRAIN POWER (IRE), unplaced,
trained by Nicky Henderson, lost its right fore
shoe. The favourite for the next race was Limini, trained by Willie Mullins and the choice of
jockey Ruby Walsh over Vroum Vroum
Mag; the former had won last year’s Mares’ Novices’
Hurdle at this Festival, whereas the latter had won this same race. There had been 9 previous runnings of this race, with Willie having won it the last
8 years – 6 times with Quevega, Glens Melody which
won when Annie Power fell at the last and, of course, Vroum
Vroum Mag.
The ‘elephant in the room’
being Whiteoak, the 2008 winner, trained by Donald
McCain! Today’s favourite was priced 6-4. Also competing was Apple’s Jade, runner-up
in last year’s Triumph Hurdle and a very impressive winner of the Grade 1
Anniversary 4-year-old Juvenile Hurdle at the Aintree Festival too, not to
mention a Grade 1 Punchestown Festival win and the
Hatton Grace Hurdle too. I, personally, had three runners of interest in
this one – the Alan King-trained Midnight Tour ridden by Tom Cannon, Miss
Crick also trained by Alan and ridden by Wayne Hutchinson, plus the Noel
Williams stable-star Briery Queen ridden by Richard
Johnson. Having
left the Parade Ring and headed along the horse-walk, the runners exited
straight onto the course, heading across the turf to canter up around the top
bend upon the all-weather strip to reach the mid-course chute. Because
the race distance was two and a half miles, this meant it didn’t commence at
the beginning of the chute, but slightly further along.
And then they were off, with Pass The Time and Rons Dream leading the way to the first flight. Also prominent were Apple’s Jade, Midnight
Jazz and Indian Stream. The mares
cleared the flight in their stride before heading across the interchange with
the Old Course to reach flight number
two; they all cleared this one safely too. The runners continued downhill, bearing to their
left as they did so, also crossing the New Course along the way; Pass The
Time continued to lead the way from Rons Dream, Apple’s
Jade, Debdebdeb, Indian Stream and Midnight
Jazz. Following these were Miss Crick
upsides stable-companion Midnight Tour, then Vroum Vroum Mag to the outside of Jer’s Girl, Lifeboat Mona, followed by the hooded Briery Queen, Limini, Bon Chic,
Hidden Identity, Rock On The Moor and The Organist. Having turned into the home straight, the runners
soon arrived at the third flight; the leader was a little bit clumsy at this
one. The field continued their long
journey towards the next; the pace being set was a steady one. They all landed safely over this flight,
although Indian Stream to the outside of runners did hit it. The runners now turned away from the main
grandstands and headed up the hill in front of the Best Mate enclosure; as
they did so, Apple’s Jade took a narrow advantage over her rivals. Bringing up the rear were Hidden Identity,
The Organist, Rock On The Moor and Bon Chic.
Upon entering the back straight, the field began
to string out, with Apple’s Jade now the clear leader. There was daylight between the
second-placed Pass The Time and third-placed Rons
Dream; and again between her and Debdebdeb
alongside Midnight Jazz. It was then
three lengths back to the main body of the field led by Midnight Tour and
Indian Stream. Having jumped the fifth flight, the main body of
runners had regrouped once more, leaving solely Apple’s Jade clear; she too,
was soon also absorbed into the group.
There were a couple of untidy jumps at the next flight, from Midnight
Jazz and Lifeboat Mona; meanwhile Bon Chic jumped it slowly at the rear of
the field, after which she was pushed along. The runners headed around the dog-leg turn and
had soon reached the seventh flight; the hurdle seemed to be set very close
to the bend today; as was the hurdle at the far end of the home
straight. Pass The Time jumped this
flight a little awkwardly; Limini and Vroum Vroum Mag
had closed up noticeably upon the leader, ready to cover any move she might
make. Bon Chic had been dropped off
the back of the group by this stage, with Hidden Identity detached too by the
time they reached the far turn. At the
rear of the main group now were Lifeboat Mona, The Organist and Indian
Stream. Miss Crick and Midnight Tour got caught up in the
backwash as Pass The Time dropped back through the field. Thus, heading down the hill towards three
out, Apple’s Jade continued to lead, from Rons
Dream, Limini, Vroum Vroum Mag, Debdebdeb,
Midnight Jazz, Briery Queen and Rock On The
Moor. Apple’s Jade was still a length
ahead of her nearest rival as she jumped it.
However, back in the field, Jer’s
Girl capsized on landing over this one; as she was travelling towards the
inside of the runners when this mishap occurred, Pass The Time was unable to
avoid her prostrate body and she was brought down. Then, to add insult to injury, Hidden
Identity also collided with them and was brought down too. Oops.
Jer’s Girl was quickly to her feet and was
caught by jockey Mark Walsh. Meanwhile, up-front, the Gigginstown
runner still held sway over her rivals as they jumped the penultimate flight;
Vroum Vroum Mag was travelling in second, with Limini,
Rons Dream and Indian Stream just behind
these. The Organist had also made
progress from the rear of the field. And still Apple’s Jade led the way as they headed
around the final turn; Vroum Vroum
Mag remaining her nearest pursuer. Limini and Indian
Stream were close on their heels, from The Organist, the now tiring Rons Dream, and then Briery
Queen. The leaders moved nearer the stand-side as they
exited the bend; the Willie Mullins-runners now flanking Apple’s Jade as they
headed towards the final flight; Ruby’s mount to the far-side and last year’s
winner to the nearside. The nearest
British challenger was Indian Stream, hotly pursued by Briery
Queen; behind these were Rons Dream and the now
staying on Midnight Tour. Vroum
Vroum Mag got her head in
front, very narrowly, as they cleared the last; Limini
hit this one which didn’t help her cause.
Briery Queen also made an error which
hindered her too. However, as the
leaders headed up the hill to the winning post, it was Apple’s Jade which
proved the strongest and she ran out to win by 1½ lengths
at the line. It was left Vroum Vroum Mag
and Limini to fight it out for the runners-up spot,
and the former prevailed by a nose. Having been less than fluent at the last, Briery Queen was unable to collar Indian Stream and had
to settle for 5th place by half a length.
Midnight Tour finished a clear 6th.
Twelve completed, with Miss Crick and Bon Chic both pulled up. Obviously this had been a kick in the teeth for
trainer Willie Mullins, as Apple’s Jade had been transferred from his yard to
Gordon Elliott’s as part of the mass Gigginstown
exodus earlier in the season. RUK’s Stewart Machin
reported that Jer’s Girl was fine, as was Hidden
Identity; both were walked back in. He
also said that Pass The Time was okay; although Nick Luck had earlier stated
that one was being assessed by the veterinary team. As I didn’t see any bad news reported, I
have to presume all three didn’t suffer any serious injury.
Again I remained beside the
course-side rails after the race. Reports from the Stewards’ Room: Race 5 - 4:10pm The Stewards noted that
LIMINI (IRE), trained by W.P. Mullins, would wear earplugs and they gave
permission for RONS DREAM, trained by Peter Bowen, to wear a hood in the
parade ring only. The Veterinary Officer
reported that LIFEBOAT MONA, unplaced, trained by Paul Nicholls, was lame
left hind. The favourite for the marathon event of the
Festival was A Genie In Abottle representing
trainer Noel Meade and ridden by Mr Jamie Codd;
price 4-1. This year the race was named in honour of the
late JT McNamara; the amateur jockey had passed away last July following an
infection. He’d been paralysed from
the neck down since suffering a fall during the Cheltenham Festival’s Kim
Muir Chase in 2013. Alan King had a representative in this race,
namely Kerrow ridden by Mr Joshua Newman. This race is the marathon event of the Festival,
being just shy of 4 miles in distance.
There were two greys in this one, Arpege
D’Alene and Champers On Ice. The starting gate for this event
was in the mid-course chute; this being the case the horses cantered across
the home straight when they exited the horse-walk, before heading up around
the all-weather strip to reach it.
And then they were off. It was another civilised start, as they
were away at the first attempt! The
cheek-pieced and nose-banded Flintham was one of
the three which led the runners to the first fence; inside him, upsides were Ballycross and Missed Approach as they cleared it. Arbre De Vie and Haymount brought up the rear at this early stage of the
race. The runners continued to the second fence where,
close to the back of the field, Champers On Ice made a bad error. They then headed over the intersection with
the Old Course before reaching fence number three. All eighteen runners cleared this, with the
David Pipe-trained grey now at the rear of the field. The runners continued downhill, whilst bearing to
their left, led by Flintham. He was followed by Ballycross,
Missed Approach, Bigbadjohn, Tiger Roll, Martello
Tower; Kerrow was behind these, alongside Bells ‘N’
Banjos. Having turned into the home straight
on the first occasion, all of the horses cleared the first fence therein
well. The runners continued to the next, where Beware
The Bear landed awkwardly, having possibly jumped into the back of the race
favourite; this resulted in his jockey Sam Waley-Cohen
losing both his irons. However, he’d
regained them by the time they reached the junction with the Old Course. Flintham
continued to lead as the runners headed over the next; there were no
noticeable errors here and the competitors quickly reached the following
fence. Again the runners cleared it
well. The field then headed away from the main
grandstand, continuing up the hill in front of the Best Mate Enclosure to
reach fence number eight. Dancing
Shadow jumped this one more slowly than those around him and, as a result,
lost his place. The runners then
headed around the turn and into the back straight. Calett Mad, to
the outside of the field, made an error at the first therein and Dancing
Shadow wasn’t particularly fluent here either; subsequently the latter was
being pushed along. The next fence was the water-jump; Haymount accumulated four faults here, having put a foot
in the water! Splash! They continued on to the first of the
open-ditches, where the leader stood a long way off but cleared it okay. In contrast, Martello Tower did the same
thing, but it resulted in an error; Tiger Roll also made a mistake here,
possibly influenced by the former’s poor jump. The following fence was a plain one, and
every horse cleared this without an issue. The field remained tightly grouped as they headed
around the dog-leg turn led by Flintham and Missed
Approach. There was an improved effort
from everyone as they headed over the second of the open-ditches on their
journey to the top of the hill. Having
reached the far turn, they swung left-handed to head downhill to the next
fence. All eighteen runners survived
this obstacle, with Dancing Shadow continuing to be driven along at the back
of the field. There was no change at the head of affairs as the
runners turned into the home straight for the penultimate time, with Flintham and Missed Approach sharing the lead. Just behind them, Tiger Roll was pulling
for his head, mad keen to get on with it!
Calett Mad travelled to his outside, with Ballycross close behind these; Haymount
had improved his position greatly, and was now alongside Kerrow
in the forefront of mid-field. Having
dropped quickly to the back of the field, Martello Tower was pulled up. The remaining runners soon arrived at the next
fence, where the favourite didn’t put in a particularly fluent jump and
Champers On Ice made yet another error.
They moved on to fence number sixteen; Flintham
blundered at this one, which allowed Missed Approach to briefly take an
undisputed lead. Mark Bradstock’s runner was on terms again as they headed up
the hill towards the fence in front of the Best Mate enclosure. The runners headed over this one, around the turn
and into the back straight for the final time led by Flintham. The gradient is slightly downhill to the
first fence therein and both Tiger Roll and Champers On Ice made a mistake
here. Missed Approach took the
water-jump better than his rival; the latter received reminders at this
point. Further back in the field Bells
‘N’ Banjos received a slap down his neck.
The seventeen-strong field now headed to the
penultimate open-ditch. Flintham was getting tired now and a tardy jump handed to
lead to Missed Approach once more.
There was further error from Tiger Roll at this fence too. Bringing up the rear of the main group at
this stage were Arbre De Vie and Beware The Bear;
Dancing Shadow continued, but tailed off. The following obstacle was a plain one and Missed
Approach led narrowly over this, although pressed again by Flintham, now to his outside. The runners again headed around the dog-leg
turn on their approach to the final open-ditch. Missed Approach and Flintham
continued to dispute the lead, from Tiger Roll with Calett
Mad, Ballycross and What A Moment. Behind these travelled Haymount,
Kerrow and Bells ‘N’ Banjos; then Arpege D’Alene, A Genie In Abottle
and Edwulf, followed by Bigbadjohn,
Arbre De Vie and Beware The Bear. Champers On Ice was behind these, with
Dancing Shadow tailed-off. Champers On Ice made yet another mistake at the
open-ditch, and Bells ‘N’ Banjos was pushed along having jumped it. By the time they’d reached the top of the
hill, the jockeys aboard Champers On Ice and Dancing Shadow decided to call
it a day. The remaining 15 runners swung left-handed to
head down the hill towards the third last fence; Flintham’s
stamina finally gave way at this point and he began to drift back through the
field. Tiger Roll joined Missed
Approach at the head of affairs as they jumped it. However, further back in the field and
having safely negotiated the fence, Arbre De Vie
clipped the heels of Kerrow and stumbled badly,
unseating Katie Walsh as a result.
Oops! Meanwhile, Tiger Roll took a narrow advantage as
they headed around the home turn, with Edwulf
looming up to his outside shortly afterwards as they approached the
penultimate fence; both horses were a little clumsy jumping this one. However, having looked a dangerous threat, Edwulf’s challenge began to falter on the run to the
last; Tiger Roll extended his lead and was going clear again as they jumped
it. Then, whilst Tiger Roll continued to pull away
from his rivals, Edwulf began to falter even more
badly; he seemed to be galloping up and down almost on the same spot. Missed Approach swept by him in pursuit of
the leader but to no avail; the Gigginstown runner
galloped on to win by a diminishing 3 lengths at the line. Haymount claimed
3rd place, with Arpege D’Alene in 4th. The favourite, A Genie In Abottle,
finished 5th, with Kerrow 6th. Edwulf never made
it to the line; he was pulled up and dismounted. What A Moment was pulled up also. Former Triumph Hurdle winner, Tiger Roll,
obviously loves Cheltenham … but it was amazing that he won, considering the
number of jumping errors he made too! Having run well and still occupying second
position after the last, although held, Edwulf was
pulled-up on the run in having faltered. The experienced amateur Derek
O’Connor hopped off his mount, which appeared very agitated before it
collapsed; the green screens were erected and the horse ambulance soon
arrived. A second runner, which I believe to be Nigel Twiston-Davies’ Ballycross
which finished 10th, also suffered the staggers following the race; he
remained on his feet and was treated with buckets of water whilst standing
close to the horse-walk exit point.
Feeling unwell, the horse refused to move initially; he was stroked
and talked to by one of the handlers at this point. Eventually he recovered
and was led back up the racecourse to the stables.
Again
I was not for moving and remained beside the course-side rails following the
sixth race. Reports from the Stewards’ Room: Race 6 - 4:50pm The Stewards held an
enquiry into possible interference shortly after landing over the third last
fence. Having heard their evidence and viewed recordings of the race they
found that KERROW (IRE), placed sixth, ridden by Mr
Joshua Newman, switched right-handed interfering with ARBRE DE VIE (FR), who
clipped heels and unseated Ms K. Walsh, the rider. The Stewards found Mr Newman in breach of Rule (B)54.1 and guilty of
careless riding in that he had switched right when not sufficiently clear
They suspended him for 5 days as follows: Tuesday 28 and Friday 31 March and
Sunday 2, Monday 3 and Tuesday 4 April 2017. The Stewards noted that ARBRE
DE VIE (FR) and HAYMOUNT (IRE), both trained by W.P. Mullins, would wear
earplugs. The Veterinary Officer
reported that MARTELLO TOWER (IRE), which was pulled up, trained by Ms
Margaret Mullins, was lame left hind. The final race of the day was delayed slightly,
as Edwulf continued to be treated on track. Ropes were fetched and the prostrate horse
was dragged onto the New Course, to enable treatment to continue and the
Handicap Chase to be run. The favourite for the final race of the day was
Foxtail Hill, trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies and
ridden by son Willy; price 6-1. There
was one grey in this race, namely Mixboy. The
starting gate for this race was in the mid-course chute, with the horses
heading across the home straight and up around the all-weather strip to reach
it.
And then they were off, yet again at the first
time of asking. Foxtail Hill led the
way to the first, from Templehills, Deans Road and Killiney Court; all 20 runners cleared the first fence
without incident, with Hammersly Lake bringing up
the rear. The leader got a little close to the second and
hit it as a result; he remained ahead however. Near the rear of the field, Powersbomb was awkward here too. The runners then headed across the
intersection with the Old Course.
Captain Redbeard dragged his legs through
the third fence, whilst travelling to the outside near the rear of the field. The horses then headed down hill, swinging to
their left as they did so; Bun Doran, to the inside of the runners, appeared
keen as they did so. Having entered
the home straight, Foxtail Hill led them over the next. Its’afreebee
jumped out to his right over the first fence therein, taking the grey Mixboy with him.
The Gigginstown runner, All Hell Let Loose,
was now travelling at the back of the field.
Once again, Foxtail Hill got a little close to the following fence but
remained ahead of his rivals. Having
landed over this one, All Hell Let Loose received a reminder. The field continued on their journey and soon
joined the Old Course; Willy Twiston-Davies’ mount
spearheaded the field, from Deans Road and Its’afreebee. The Gigginstown
runner stumbled badly on landing over the next fence. There were no noticeable errors as the
horses jumped the following obstacle before bearing away to their left to
travel up the hill in front of the Best Mate Enclosure. Willy Twiston-Davies
appeared to see a long stride before the fence, his mount took off but failed
to make it safely to the other side and they ended up on the ground. There were a few frantic tugs at reins to
avoid the prostrate horse and jockey and, fortunately, no-one was brought
down or unseated; although Two Taffs was badly
hampered, and Templehills was slightly
inconvenienced, as was Hammersly Lake. Foxtail Hill was okay and initially
followed the field; Bryan Cooper aboard All Hell Let Loose decided to call it
a day before heading out into the country; as did David Mullins aboard Hammersly Lake. This departure left Deans Road and Its’afreebee to dispute the lead as they headed to the
first fence in the back straight.
However, Deans Road lost his legs on landing having jumped this one,
although jockey Andrew Lynch survived this very bad blunder. In contrast, Burtons Well hit the fence and
fell. As a result Templehills
was hampered by the former, with Tully East and Relentless Dreamer by the
latter incident. With the excitement momentarily over, the
remaining sixteen runners headed towards the water-jump led now by Its’afreebee. Mixboy was his closest pursuer, from Sizing Tennessee,
Gold Present, Killiney Court and Bun Doran; the
latter landed awkwardly over the fence, having dragged a hind-leg through the
birch. The following obstacle was the first of the
open-ditches; the leader jumped it awkwardly and his saddle began to slip as
a result. This left the grey in the
lead. They headed to the next, a plain
fence, where Sizing Tennessee made a mistake.
The runners then continued around the dog-leg turn and approached the
final open-ditch. The current order
was Mixboy, from Gold Present with Killiney Court and Double W’s. Bun Doran was close up to their inside,
outside him Its’afreebee and Deans Road, also Zamdy Man. Behind
these travelled Last Goodbye, Tully East, Relentless Dreamer, Powersbomb, Two Taffs, Templehills, Sizing Tennessee and, finally, Captain Redbeard. All of the runners cleared the open-ditch;
however Its’afreebee’s effort was half-hearted and
Harry Skelton decided to call it a day shortly afterwards because he could no
longer continue with a slipped saddle to contend with. Templehills was
also pulled up after the fence, as was Captain Redbeard
and Sizing Tennessee. This left twelve runners to head down the hill to
the third last fence. The grey led,
very marginally, as they jumped it, from Killiney
Court, Double W’s and Gold Present; however, he was swamped by his rivals as
they met the rising ground on the run towards the home turn. It was left to Killiney
Court and the white-faced chestnut Double W’s to lead them into the home
straight, closely pursued by Gold Present, Deans Road, Powersbomb
and Bun Doran. Six horses, line across the track, took the
penultimate fence in unison. However,
towards the inside, Killiney Court had got too
close to it and fell; it didn’t help that he appeared short of room too. Behind him, Last Goodbye was severely
hampered by this departure and the prostrate jockey, Mikey
Fogarty, was fortunate not to be trampled by Bun Doran’s hooves; Relentless
Dreamer was slightly interfered with too. However, this still left a number of horses in
the front rank as they galloped towards the final obstacle. To the nearside, Powersbomb
was narrowly ahead, from Gold Present and Tully East. Bun Doran was still there too, as was
Double W’s, Deans Road and the staying on Two Taffs. But it was Tully East which finished more
strongly than his rivals, and he headed up the hill to win by 1¼ lengths at the line.
A win for jockey Denis O’Regan and also for
trainer Alan Fleming who used to be based in Surrey and trained the popular
grey Starluck. Gold Present kept on under a strong drive from
Jeremiah McGrath to repel the challenge of Two Taffs
by a neck. Powersbomb
finished 4th, with Last Goodbye 5th, Bun Doran 6th, Relentless Dreamer 7th,
Deans Road 8th, Double W’s 9th, and Zamdy Man 10th
and last. Having quickly tired, Mixboy was pulled up before the last. When Foxtail Hill had departed at the uphill
fence, green screens had been erected; not for the horse but for the
jockey. Curiously Foxtail Hill, which
initially rose and galloped after the field, turned back and came to have a look
at Willy! The jockey did eventually
get to his feet and walked to the ambulance.
However, it was later reported that he’d fractured his T8 and T9
vertebrae and had cracked a few ribs too. Ouch. Poor Willy has always been injury prone, which is
why he switched to flat racing for a while before returning to the National
Hunt code this season, having begun to suffer from weight issues. Get well soon Willy. There was a very sad postscript later in the
season for Arpege D’Alene’; he lost his life at Ayr
during the running of the Scottish Grand National. It was not as a result of a fall; he
suffered a catastrophic leg injury on the flat.
Racing
over, I finally left the rails to return through the tunnel to the area
beside the Winners’ Enclosure. Reports from the Stewards’ Room: Race 7 - 5:30pm The record of vaccinations in the passport of KILLINEY COURT (IRE),
trained by Henry de Bromhead, did not comply with
the Rules of Racing. The Stewards found the trainer in breach of Rule (E)18 and fined him £140. The Stewards noted that FOXTAIL HILL (IRE), trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies, would wear earplugs. The Veterinary Officer reported that SIZING TENNESSEE (IRE), which was
pulled up, trained by Colin Tizzard, had bled from
the nose. The Stewards ordered the gelding to be routine tested. So, despite the absence of the Willie Mullins
stars, with the trainer not having had a winner today either, Ireland were
one ahead of the GB at the end of play today.
The veterinary team having persevered with Edwulf, and with the assistance of helpers fetching numerous
buckets of water, it was later reported that the horse had recovered from
what was described as a seizure.
Social media later stated Edwulf had eaten
up well the following morning and the outlook was positive. Attending the races alone can sometimes be a
lonely place but, today whilst standing beside the course-side rails, I’d had
a chat with a retired gentleman who was also going to attend Aintree like
myself and then, later, with a middle-aged guy who was going to put his money
on Debdebdeb in the Mares’ race because his
daughter’s name is Deborah. Presentations complete, I visited the ladies’ loo
before setting off back to my car. Exiting the car park after racing was a
nightmare. I began my drive at 18:10
and it took ages to even exit onto the driveway which leads to Southam Lane; this was due to the fact that 4 queues of
traffic had to merge at points along the driveway. I ensured that I changed to the right-hand
lane to enable me to travel out via Prestbury, as
the Evesham Road was closed to traffic until 19:30. I did have a slight issue
exiting onto the Southam Road; even second gear
proved almost too high to cope with the weight of my luggage! I didn’t get very far however, before
encountering a further traffic jam – movement was barely discernible through Prestbury High Street.
It transpired that this was caused by police directing traffic at the
double-roundabout junction with Tatchley Lane; no
surprise there then! Having negotiated
this junction, it was then a clear run all the way along Priors Road to the
Harp Hill turning; the traffic lights at the Sainburys
supermarket junction were out of action.
I managed to get plenty of impetus before
climbing up the steep incline which is Harp Hill and then turning into
Greenway Lane. I’d soon reached the
Six Ways junction – it had taken me 75 minutes to escape from Cheltenham …
ridiculous! So much for the new and
improved traffic measures which have been implemented during the Festival
since last year!!! I was pleased to discover that my night vision
was okay this year, as I headed up the Cotswolds escarpment upon the
A40. My night driving confidence was
thus restored, having taken a battering last year during the Festival. I continued along the A-road as far as the
beginning of the Witney bypass, at which point I took a left turn and headed
towards the town. My accommodation, at Eynsham
Hall, was situated to the northeast thereof.
It was easy to find, despite the darkness, as I’d made an exploratory
detour last July when returning home after visiting Graeme McPherson’s yard.
Also, I’d driven past the entrance using Google-maps satellite view to
remind myself of the landmarks to look out for on approach to the
driveway. Due to the delays, I didn’t
arrive until well after 20:00. Having turned off the road to the right in order
to pass through the gateway, with a lodge to the right too, I caught my first
glimpse of the country house at the far end of the driveway. The large trees lining the driveway close
to the entrance made for a spooky approach; the huge branches were
up-lit. Spotlights also highlighted
the house and, having reached the area just prior to the courtyard, I turned
right and parked in one of the few vacant spaces within a gravel car park. I then set off towards the house, on foot. Someone had parked their vehicle so close
to the shrubbery in the corner, close to the Estate Office, that I could
barely squeeze through the gap in order to take the sign-posted shortcut! I entered the house through one of two
large doors; inside was a large reception room with a fireplace. A doorway to the left led to the reception
area located beside the main staircase; I checked-in and was provided with
directions to The Cottage within the grounds. I returned to my car and, as it was heavily
laden, I decided to drive around to the Lodge car park, it being nearest to
my accommodation. It transpired I was situated on the second floor; it took
me a second trip to the car to unload and I still had to relay my belongings
up four short flights of stairs. The room was fine, with a double-bed, a TV and
tea making facilities too. The
bathroom was large, although it would later prove difficult to have a bath
and wash my hair due to the facilities being located under the eaves of the
roof! Although it would have been possible
to have a meal at the main Hall, I settled down to eat the contents of one of
the three chicken and mushroom Pot Noodle tubs I’d brought with me – one for
each evening of my stay. They had cost
just pence, whereas I understand a meal would have been upwards of
£28.00. Breakfast was almost £13 a
day, so I decided upon one good meal ahead of racing, rather than break the
bank with an additional evening meal; accommodation had already become a
large additional cost to my Cheltenham Festival holiday this year! My
mobile phone didn’t connect to the internet at my chosen hotel location, so
the only racing information I received was curtailed overviews via my
email. Drat. It’s amazing how cut-off one feels without
an internet connection. * *
* * *
* * Postscript Having been tested post-race, Yanworth failed a drugs test and was disqualified from
his 7th place in the Champion Hurdle; the anti-inflammatory drug of which traces
were found, is permitted to be used on horses in training but must no longer
be present in a horse’s system on raceday: https://www.racingpost.com/news/champion-hurdle-favourite-yanworth-failed-drug-test/291782 Here is the BHA press release
regarding Yanworth’s disqualification: |
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PHOTOS – Cheltenham Festival Day 1 (Index) |
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