PART II
DIARY – AINTREE FESTIVAL
LADIES’ DAY
FRIDAY 13 APRIL 2018
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Winner of the Topham Chase, for
the second year running, is the Colin Tizzard-trained
Ultragold ridden by Harry Cobden Click here to
read my Ladies’ Day Diary Part I The
favourite for today’s feature race was Min, trained by Willie Mullins and
ridden by Paul Townend; price 11-10. Min had finished as runner-up to Altior in this year’s Queen Mother Champion Chase, a race
in which fellow competitor Politologue had finished
4th. Also taking part today was Balko Des Flos, winner of the Ryanair Chase, and Le Prezien,
winner of the Grand Annual. There
were two greys in the race, namely Cloudy Dream and the hooded Politologue. Being
a Grade 1 race and the feature event of the day, having exited onto the
racecourse, the runners were paraded in front of the stands before they
headed to the starting gate, which was at the beginning of the back
straight. Le
Prezien was a little keen going down to the start
and overshot the first fence; the one which Barry Geraghty
took him to look at shortly afterwards, although his mount wasn’t too keen to
get in close to it! STOP
PRESS … the ambulance had finally escaped from the quagmire!!!
The
flag was raised and the six runners edged towards the start; the tape flew up
and then they were off. Balko Des Flos led the horses
to the first, from Min, Cloudy Dream, Politologue
and Sizing Granite. The first five
cleared it okay, but Sizing Granite made an error which resulted in jockey
Robbie Power losing his left iron; he reached down and quickly replaced his
foot in the stirrup. They
continued their journey along the back straight to the next; the leader was
five lengths clear of his nearest rivals.
Politologue and Min disputed second
position; the latter was keen. There
were no noticeable errors at this one and the horses continued to the first
of the open-ditches; again there were no problems, although Min did have to
reach for it. The
runners headed across the sanded track-way on their way to the fourth fence; Balko Des Flos remained well
clear of his rivals jumping this one and Le Prezien
was less than fluent. They
subsequently headed into the far turn, with Balko Des
Flos leading from Politologue,
Min, Cloudy Dream, Le Prezien and Sizing Granite. The
cross-fence presented no problems and these experienced chasers continued
into the home straight on their journey to the sixth fence; once again there
were no jumping errors here. The
following fence was an open-ditch; Politologue put
in a big leap over this one and again Le Prezien
was the least fluent. Their
route now took them across the Grand National course, between the 14th/30th
fence and The Chair to be precise, before they reached the eighth; yet again
Le Prezien was less than fluent and he now disputed
last place with Sizing Granite. Balko Des Flos led by just two
lengths as the horses continued down past the grandstands and winning post
with one circuit now to travel. The
leader extended his advantage as they approached the first fence in the back
straight; both he and Min reached for it, Sizing Granite made an error here
as he’d done on the first circuit also, and Le Prezien,
which had been relegated to last place, was slow. The latter was pushed along for a few
strides after the fence, before Barry Geraghty
decided to call it a day and pulled him up. Meanwhile
the remaining five continued to the next fence, the tenth; Politologue got a little bit close to this one. Balko Des Flos remained three lengths clear of his rivals as they
headed to the penultimate open-ditch, from Politologue,
Min, Cloudy Dream and Sizing Granite; the quintet cleared it okay, although
Cloudy Dream jumped it slower than the others. The
runners subsequently headed across the sanded track-way to reach the final
fence in the back straight. Politologue got a little close to this one and Robbie
Power had to regain his rhythm aboard Sizing Granite having landed over
it. Davy Russell’s mount was a couple
of lengths clear of Politologue and Min as they
headed into the far turn; Cloudy Dream was a further two lengths behind these
and Sizing Granite the same distance in rear. All
five jumped the cross-fence okay before heading around the bend to enter the
home straight. Balko
Des Flos was just a length ahead now and Cloudy
Dream had been relegated to last position.
In fact as the runners straightened up, Paul Townend
had to take a pull on Min to prevent him going on too early. The
long-time leader came wide on his approach to three out, whereas his two main
rivals stayed to the far side. Balko Des Flow stretched for this one but landed safely,
meanwhile Min and Politologue now took a narrow
advantage. Two out was the final
open-ditch and the grey landed slightly ahead of the favourite who’d jumped
out slightly to his right. The
battle was joined as the leading duo travelled across the Grand National
course on their way to the final fence; the two horses coming very close
together as they did so. Min got his
head in front, just, but Politologue soon fought
back. They jumped the last almost in
unison and the grey had clawed back half a length’s advantage as they passed
the half-furlong post. It
turned out to be a battle royal all the way to the line, with Min fighting
back to regain some of the deficit but Politologue
wasn’t for passing and won by a neck at the line. It was just desserts for the grey following
last year’s disappointment when he’d tripped up after the last in the Grade 1
Maghull Novices’ Chase on Grand National Day. Sizing
Granite came home in 3rd position, 20 lengths behind the front two, with Balko Des Flos 4th and Cloudy
Dream 5th. The
hood had been put back on Politologue today, and he
wore a first-time tongue tie too. Min
was out-stayed; Davy Russell said a long-season had told with Balko Des Flos.
We remained beside the course-side
rails following the race. Race 4 - 3:25pm THE JLT MELLING STEEPLE CHASE (CLASS 1)
(Grade 1) Permission was given for POLITOLOGUE (FR) to lead
the Parade and MIN (FR) wore earplugs throughout the race. The favourite for the next race was Polidam, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Daryl
Jacob; price 9-1. Last year’s winner, the Colin Tizzard-trained Ultragold, was
taking part; partnered again by Harry Cobden.
However, he’d lost his way this year, apart from finishing as
runner-up in this season’s Grand Sefton Chase over
the Grand National course. My
un-bet upon selection was Kilcrea Vale ridden by
Jeremiah McGrath; a 12-1 shot. There
were three greys in the race, Flying Angel, Greybougg
and Mystifiable; I like Greybougg,
he is a pretty grey. Jamie Bargary,
who was riding Bigbadjohn, was dumped
unceremoniously by his mount whilst heading out along the horse-walkway to
the racecourse. He crashed against the
plastic rails; his colleagues asked him if he was okay ... he said he
was. The Topham
Chase is run over 18 Grand National fences.
The start of the race was at the far end of the home straight, with 2
fences to jump before The Chair.
The
horses were ready to go well ahead of time, so were sent back towards the
beginning of the two mile chute before returning. Greybougg was
late joining them and Indian Temple even more so. Having turned to head back towards the
starting gate, the competitors were well-behaved initially. However, the closer they got to the tape,
the faster they progressed, and Deauville Dancer was behind the others
too. The Starter, Robbie Supple, was
having none of it and refused to let them go first time. Once
at the line, there was a brief impasse as a number of jockeys refused to take
a turn, and Flying Angel was also stuck side-on; everyone wanted to retain
their hard fought position. They took
a turn, but failed to go back far enough before returning to the starting
line; this time Newsworthy was facing in totally the wrong direction and
refused to budge despite his jockey’s urgings. Newsworthy
finally turned, but Robbie had to send them away for a second time; they
lined up okay now … apart from Ballyalton;
fortunately Tom O’Brien managed to turn him around without too much
fuss. It looked like they’d be off
this time, until a couple at the end of the line decided to break rank. After a few moments, however, everything
was sorted and then they were off and heading for the first fence; in rear
were Midnight Shot and Flying Eagle.
The commentator reported that the starting tape became wrapped around
Richard Johnson’s neck initially! Leading
over the first were last year’s winner Ultragold,
also Greybougg and Indian Temple; also prominent
were Kilcrea Vale, Flying Angel and Rathlin Rose. The
blinkered Flying Eagle didn’t live up to his name, catching is hind-legs in
the fence and shooting Sean Bowen over his head as a result; the only one
flying was his jockey! This
left 26 runners to head to the second fence, which they all cleared without
incident. Greybougg
and Ultragold spearheaded the field as they
continued to The Chair. All of the
horses cleared it but, as the competitors headed away from the fence, it soon
became apparent that two jockeys had been unseated and were now lying on
landing side; the departures were Newsworthy and Bigbadjohn. Bouvreuil made a
bad mistake but survived. All three of
the loose horses were okay and continued after the field. With
the field having already been reduced to 24, they galloped towards and over
the water-jump before heading around the bottom bend and out into the country
for the one and only time. Ultragold continued to dispute the lead with Greybougg, from Flying Angel, Minella
On Line, Rathlin Rose, Eastlake, Kilcrea Vale, Indian Temple and Theatre Territory. The
runners fanned out as they crossed the Melling Road
and journeyed to the fifth fence; the competitors cleared this without
incident. Ultragold,
Greybougg and Minella On
Line continued at the head of affairs as they travelled to the next; the
latter made an error here but survived.
The current backmarker was Rogue Angel. The
next fence was the open-ditch; known as ‘Westhead’. Beau Bay hit this one and shot Will Kennedy
over his head whilst travelling to the inside in mid-field. He hampered Polidam
slightly, and also Midnight Shot. This
left 23 runners to continue to the seventh fence, which they all cleared
okay. Theatre Territory had improved
into fourth position now; her pilot Sam Waley-Cohen. The
field continued their journey to the one before Becher’s,
where Minella On Line made another error and Conor Shoemark had to reach
down to replace his foot in the left iron.
There were no departures here, although O O
Seven was pulled up before Becher’s Brook with
jockey Aidan Coleman later reporting that his mount had never been ‘travelling’ today. Aintree’s
most famous fence failed to claim any casualties today, although the
favourite did peck on landing. Greybougg was marginally ahead of last year’s winner as
they continued to Fionavon; he was enjoying
himself, with ears pricked. The
innocuous fence claimed Minella On Line who caught
his hind-legs in the obstacle and shot his jockey over his head; Bouvreuil was slightly hampered. Meanwhile
the remaining 21 competitors continued to the Canal Turn. The grey was angled out very wide before
sweeping back towards the fence, but he nearly got caught out as one of the
loose horses came up his inside; this resulted in a wider course than
hoped. In fact it was fortunate he
wasn’t carried out at this point. This
enabled Ultragold to sneak up the inside and take
the advantage as the runners headed over Valentines Brook, although he did
make an error here. Taking the fence
behind the leading duo were Shanahan’s Turn, Village Vic and Theatre
Territory. Kilcrea
Vale was beginning to lose touch with the main group and, even further back
but still going, were Midnight Shot, Rogue Angel, Notarfbad,
and Devils Bride. The
runners continued on their journey down the side of the course; their next
fence a plain one, five from home.
Richard Johnson aboard Village Vic had to re-gather his reins having
landed over this one. Ultragold was currently leading, from Greybougg,
Theatre Territory and Indian Temple. The
following fence was the final open-ditch and Rathlin
Rose fell here. He had been travelling
towards the back of the main group and hampered Polidam,
Kilcrea Vale and the grey Mystifiable. Notarfbad and
Midnight Shot were pulled up before the ditch; Rogue Angel after it. The remaining runners continued to three
out, which Ultragold flew over barely touching a
twig; in contrast Greybougg blundered here. Having weakened significantly, Village Vic
was pulled up. Ultragold led the runners
back across the Melling Road; his long-time
companion was tiring now and dropped back through the field. Theatre Territory was hot on the heels of
the leader, from Shanahan’s Turn, Indian Temple, Clarcam
and Ballyalton.
The second group consisted of Greybougg,
Eastlake, Deauville Dancer, Top Gamble, the improving Kilcrea
Vale, Polidam and Flying Angel. Mystifiable
continued also, as did Devils Bride; the latter was so far behind that he
couldn’t be sighted at this stage! Sam
Twiston-Davies decided to pull up Bouvreuil on the home turn. Harry
Cobden’s mount still held the advantage as they cleared the second last, with
Theatre Territory continuing to press him to the far side and with a loose
horse for company to the nearside as they galloped to the final
obstacle. There were a few worrying
moments having cleared it, when it appeared that the loose horse might hamper
the leader as he headed for the elbow.
However, Harry was able to switch behind him and, latterly, the
rider-less horse was guided by the tape stretched across the track and
remained upon the correct trajectory just ahead of the leader. Meanwhile,
Shanahan’s Turn was staying on behind him and he soon moved into second
position, overtaking the Waley-Cohen mare. The loose horse kept straight as the
leaders headed down the final stretch and Ultragold
was switched back to the rail, following it all the way to the line to win by
3¾ lengths. The winning jockey waved
his whip in celebration as he crossed the line; the partnership having
claimed the race for the second year running. Theatre
Territory held on for third place, 6 lengths behind the runner-up and Kilcrea Vale stayed on to claim 4th. Ballyalton was
5th, Clarcam 6th, Indian Temple 7th, Top Gamble
8th, Polidam 9th, Flying Angel 10th, Mystyfiable 11th, Deauville Dancer 12th, Eastlake 13th
and in last place, 182 lengths behind the winner, Devils Bride! Greybougg was
pulled up before the last; the jockey reported he’d hung left-handed – he’d
also been struck into on his left fore.
Both
the winner and the runner-up were trained by Colin Tizzard.
Ultragold was only the fourth horse to win
back-to-back runnings of the Topham
– Culworth in 50/51, Roughan
in 57/58 and Always Waining who won it three times
in 2010, 2011 and 2012! Harry
Cobden described his mount as ‘such a
lovely horse; he does whatever you
ask him’ and ‘he’s a pleasure to ride’. The horse is part-owned by Terry Warner,
along with Brocade Racing and Mr John Romans. It
was also confirmed that all horses and jockeys returned safe. An enquiry was held into the incident with
the starting tape, which had resulted in a number of jockeys having to duck,
including Barry Geraghty aboard Eastlake and Davy
Russell on Clarcam, in order to avoid it.
And
those which did not finish:
Two side-saddle mounted ladies
accompanied the winner back to the Winners’ Enclosure; according to the
race-card it was Beatrice Robinson and Katie Yeo. We remained at our chosen position
beside the exit/entry walkway. Sadly, in August, Mystifiable
passed away as a result of a twisted gut.
RIP Race 5 - 4:05pm RANDOX HEALTH TOPHAM STEEPLE CHASE
(HANDICAP) (CLASS 1) (Grade 3) RATHLIN ROSE (IRE) wore earplugs which were
removed at the start. The
favourite for the penultimate race of the day was Santini,
trained by Nicky Henderson and ridden by Nico de Boinville; price 6-4. Alan
King was represented in this race by Good Man Pat, sporting the familiar yellow
with red spots silks of owner David Sewell; Tom Bellamy rode. Jamie Snowden also had a runner in this
race, namely Dans Le Vent ridden by Gavin Sheehan;
Jamie and one of the owners watched the race from the Earl of Derby stand steppings. There
were no greys in this race. The start of this race was part way
down the home straight, with one flight therein to jump and therefore just
over 2 circuits to travel.
It
was a very-organised start for this one, and then they were off at a sensible
pace for three mile novices in testing ground. Jamie Snowden’s charge led them away, from
the favourite Santini, Uppertown
Prince, Point Of Principle, Good Man Pat against the inside rail, OK Corral,
Louse Talk to the outer, Tower Bridge, Chef Des Obeaux,
Another Stowaway, the mare Roksana, Sam’s Gunner
and Count Meribel.
Santini jumped into the
lead at the first flight, after which Nico de Boinville restrained him; this enabled Dans Le Vent to take a narrow advantage once more. The thirteen runners headed down past the
packed grandstands and winning post, with two full circuits now to
travel. Dans Le Vent continued to lead as the
horses entered the back straight on their journey to the second flight. They all negotiated this safely, although Uppertown Prince did stumble slightly on landing. The competitors continued to the third,
where Good Man Pat dragged his hind-legs through the hurdle. They
raced on, crossing the sanded track-way on their way towards the final
obstacle in the back straight. There
were no obvious errors as they cleared this one. Dans Le Vent
continued to spearhead the field as the runners headed into the far turn; at
the rear of the field were Another Stowaway, Roksana
and Sam’s Gunner. The
pace being set was steady, and the runners well-grouped, as they continued
around the far turn and into the home straight. Gavin Sheehan’s mount was enjoying himself,
leading the field, as he travelled with ears pricked for part of the
time. Having reached the fifth flight,
Chef Des Obeaux was slightly less fluent than his
rivals over this one. The
leading trio of Dans Le Vent, Santini
and Point Of Principle were almost three in a line as they jumped the sixth
flight; OK Corral clattered through the top of it. The runners continued their progress down
the home straight, with Dans Le Vent leading the
way and the field still closely grouped.
They cleared the seventh hurdle in their stride, after which Sam’s
Gunner was pushed along. With
all 13 runners still in the race, they continued down past the packed
grandstands once more, with no change at the head of affairs. Heading around the bottom turn, the order
was Dans Le Vent, Santini,
Point Of Principle, Uppertown Prince, OK Corral,
Good Man Pat, Chef Des Obeaux, Tower Bridge, Count Meribel, Louse Talk, Roksana,
Another Stowaway and the still pushed-along Sam’s Gunner. The
leading three jumped the first flight in the back straight in unison; at the
back of the field, Another Stowaway was pushed away from it. They continued on to the next where, once
again, Good Man Pat dragged his hind-legs through it. It’s strange that horses seem to make
mistakes at the same obstacle on different circuits; you might understand it
at a fence, but at a hurdle on a flat track like Aintree? Anyway,
they continued their journey along the back straight, crossing over the
sanded track-way on their way to the fourth last flight. Having cleared this one, Louse Talk was now
also pushed along. The runners headed
into the far bend and another two runners began to show the first signs of
distress, namely Chef Des Obeaux and Count Meribel. Good Man
Pat soon joined them; leaving a group of seven clear of the remainder as they
began to swing into the home straight. These
seven; Dans Le Vent, Santini,
Uppertown Prince, the urged along Point Of
Principle, OK Corral, Roksana and Tower Bridge,
continued on their way to the third last.
Meanwhile, Louse Talk, Another Stowaway, Sam’s Gunner and Chef Des Obeaux were pulled up.
Jamie
Snowden’s runner jumped the flight in unison with Santini;
the former to the far side and the latter to the nearside of the
obstacle. Having cleared it, Nico de Boinville forged on
into the lead as they continued to two out.
Dans Le Vent, OK Corral and Uppertown Boy were vying for second spot as they jumped
it. Point Of Principle had been left
well behind by this stage, with Tower Bridge and Roksana
laying down their challenges in the centre of the track. Santini continued to
plot a lonely course towards the stands-side as the leaders headed to the
final flight and he was only marginally ahead of the mare as they jumped it;
she’d drifted away to her left latterly.
The mare flashed her tail as they began their journey down the run-in
and they both edged to their left.
However, Santini stayed on more strongly
than his rival and went on to win by 1½ lengths at the line. JP
McManus’ second-string, Tower Bridge, claimed 3rd, 6 lengths further back,
with Uppertown Prince 4th; JP’s first-string, OK
Corral, fading into 5th. Dans Le Vent was a creditable 6th and, last but not
least, was Point Of Principle. Good
Man Pat was pulled up before two out and Count Meribel
before the last. There
were actually 10 prizes; with Dans Le Vent winning
£1,100. The unclaimed prize money
would have gone to the winner too, although that was only £270 plus £140 and
£70 … on top of £42,960!
We stayed within the Earl of Derby Enclosure,
beside the horse-walk entry/exit point following the race. Race 6 - 4:40pm THE DOOM BAR SEFTON NOVICES' HURDLE RACE
(CLASS 1) (Grade 1) SANTINI wore earplugs which were removed at the
start. The
favourite for the final race of the day was the Paul Nicholls-trained Danny Kirwan, ridden by Sam Twiston-Davies;
price 11-4. He’s a very good looking
horse. Alan
King had a runner in this race; Harambe ridden by
Tom Bellamy. There
were four greys – Al Dancer, Dali Mail, Highland Hunter and Kateson; the latter is the son of Silver Kate. The
starting gate for this event was in the far corner of the track, close to the
Anchor Bridge canal crossing.
And
then they were off, with the Ben Pauling-trained Skidoosh
leading the way, from Portrush Ted, as the horses
headed along the side of the course; Dazibao
brought up the rear. In mid-field,
Dali Mail was keen. Skidoosh led the runners
into the home straight on the first occasion, with around 10 to 12 lengths
covering the field. Portrush Ted remained in second position, from Chanceanotherfive, Highland Hunter, Mister Fisher, Commanche Red, Normal Norman, Arthur Mac, Highland
Hunter, Harambe, Mercy Mercy
Me, Theatre Legend, Amoola Gold, Danny Kirwan, Pym, Sevarano, Al
Dancer, Kateson, Thosedaysaregone,
and Dazibao.
There
was no change at the head of affairs as the runners headed down through the
three sets of empty hurdle wings whilst on their journey towards the winning
post; Dazibao remained at the rear of the
field. They subsequently swung left-handed
at the grandstand turn to continue around the bottom bend and into the back
straight for the only time. The
leader had a little bit of a ‘wobble’
just prior to the start of the section of rails denoting the hurdle track;
signed with an ‘H’. Jockey Daryl Jacob had to momentarily take
a tug on the right rein to steer his mount to the outside of said rails. The twenty runners continued their journey
along the back straight; through three further sets of empty hurdle wings,
and having also traversed the sanded track-way between the latter two
sets. There was still no change at the
head of affairs and none had been dropped from the main group as the runners
headed into the far turn; one circuit now completed. Heading
along the side of the course, the field was led by Skidoosh,
from Portrush Red, Arthur Mac, Chanceanotherfive,
Commanche Red, Mister Fisher, Kateson,
Theatre Legend, Mercy Mercy Me who stumbled
briefly, Dali Mail, Highland Hunter, Sevarano, Harambe, Danny Kirwan, Al
Dancer, Pym, Thosedaysaregone, Amoola
Gold, Dazibao and Normal Norman. The latter had completely lost touch before
the runners turned into the home straight; he had been eased and would pull
up before three furlongs out. Shortly
afterwards, Dazibao lost touch too. Skidoosh relinquished
the lead as the runners headed into the home straight, with Portrush Ted now taking over; his nearest challenger at
present was Arthur Mac. Meanwhile, Tom
Bellamy was weaving his way through runners aboard Harambe
and the partnership had assumed the runner-up position by the time the
leaders headed through the penultimate set of empty hurdle wings. Theatre Legend was struggling at the back
of the main pack by this stage, as was the favourite Danny Kirwan. Portrush Ted continued
to hold the advantage, although he needed plenty of assistance from his
jockey Gavin Sheehan, as the runners continued their journey down the home
straight, heading for the gap between the final set of empty hurdle
wings. Harambe
continued as his nearest pursuer, just a length or two behind, with Kateson laying down his challenge towards the stand-side
too. In fourth position, currently,
was the hooded Al Dancer, from Severano and Commanche Red. However
the further they went, the better Portrush Ted
travelled compared to his rivals; he thus extended his advantage, staying on
strongly to win by 3¼ lengths at the line.
Having looked booked for the runner-up spot, Harambe
was collared on the line by Kateson; the distance
between them just a nose. Al Dancer
completed in 4th, 4 lengths further back, with Severano
5th, Commance Red 6th, Mercy Mercy
Me 7th and Thosedaysaregone 8th. The
disappointing favourite completed in 17th position, 59¼ lengths behind the
winner! Trainer
Warren Greatrex had reunited with his former stable
jockey Gavin Sheehan to win this one on the 25-1 shot! The
winning prize was collected by Mr McNeill senior; the horse is affectionately
known as ‘SuperTed’
by connections!
We decided to return to the steppings above the
Winners’ Enclosure following this race, the final one of the day. Race 7 - 5:15pm THE WEATHERBYS PRIVATE BANK CHAMPION
STANDARD OPEN NATIONAL HUNT FLAT RACE (CLASS 1) (Grade 2) Permission was given for MERCY MERCY ME to wear a hood in the Parade Ring. Before setting off, we paid a visit to the ladies
loo; always better safe than sorry.
Having been forced to use the one to the rear of the Lord Sefton stand earlier in the day, we paid a return trip to
same. Our
route back to the bus takes us through the betting ring; as always, and
especially on Ladies Day and Grand National Day, the ground was strewn with
rubbish, including plastic glasses, some of which were broken into
shards. I always feel very sorry for
the people who have to clear up this terrible mess. However, unlike in many previous years, the
rubbish which had spilled out onto the racecourse had been kept to a
minimum. Having
taken the bus back to the car park, there were no queues to leave; it was
17:55. We negotiated the Anchor Bridge
and soon arrived at the T-junction with Aintree Lane; a barrier was in place,
encouraging vehicles to turn left but, as the car ahead of us turned right,
we did the same! We
subsequently wended our way to, and over the canal swing-bridge before
reaching the traffic lights at the junction with the A506. Whilst waiting to turn left, both Jonjo O’Neill’s and Jamie Snowden’s horseboxes drove
past! We
continued down the dual carriageway, turning right at the roundabout and
heading up the slip-road onto the M57.
We left one junction later in order to join the A580; we continued on
this dual carriageway all the way back to the hotel at Stone Cross, a short
distance to the east of the M6, arriving back at 18:30. We
obviously hadn’t expected to arrive back so early, as dinner was booked for
20:00. Tonight’s meal was chicken
escalope; it proved a little too much for me!
I drank two glasses of apple and mango J20 as I was parched, but still
found room for the desert – warm chocolate fudge cake, with ice cream. The service was far better tonight, although
we were sat at one of two tables in the ‘corridor’! Fortunately, though, it was the better of
the two! We
stopped off at reception on the way back to our rooms; I’d run out of UHT
milk. The receptionist gave me a bag
containing a further 9 of these. I
also helped myself to a couple of sugar sachets which were displayed on the
reception counter. There
was a guy in reception who was trying to find his hotel. There was no booking at this particular Premier
Inn, so the receptionist phoned another one located close by ... no, he
wasn’t staying there either! He said
he’d check again with the person who’d booked the room for him. My
friends on facebook informed me that they had seen
me on the ITV News that evening. I was
standing next to two girls who had been posing for the camera; it was Ladies
Day after all! And, yes, I tuned in
later and saw me too!!! |
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