PART I
DIARY – CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2013
DAY THREE
FEATURING THE WORLD HURDLE
THURSDAY 14 MARCH 2013
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Cue Card, ridden by Joe Tizzard, returns triumphant having won the Grade 1 Ryanair Chase I set my alarm to sound 15 minutes earlier today
… as I’d felt stressed each morning when it went off at 04:27 when I would
get out of bed immediately. I have
discovered it is better to lie in bed for a few minutes before getting up! I showered and washed and dried my hair. It was then time for breakfast of two Weetabix and two slices of buttered toast. Having eaten breakfast I applied my
make-up. Thursday outfit was a black thermal vest (not the
same one as yesterday!), burgundy thermal long-sleeved vest, black thermal
long-sleeved vest, cerise frilled bottom cardigan, new purple fleece, purple
frill-edged cardigan, black gillet, M & S
horse-print snood, grey 40 denier tights, black treggings,
black handkerchief hemmed long skirt, M & S engineer boots, black faux
sheepskin coat, Thinsulate gloves, wrist-warmers,
cerise Katia Big Snow scarf, and cerise facetted
glass and blue Swarovski bicones necklace. With no ill-effects from yesterday, I decided to
wear contact lenses again today. But,
to be on the safe side again, I wore glasses whilst driving to Cheltenham,
inserting the lenses once I’d arrived. Despite waking earlier today, I still left home
at around the same time as yesterday – just after 06:30. I had decided
to watch the weather forecast and log onto my PC before departure.
Still a dusting of snow, and covered with hard frost. The best news,
however, was that the wind had dropped considerably. Once again, my route took me up through St Albans
city centre before heading to Hemel Hempstead. I joined the A41 bypass which took me past Berkhamsted and Tring, then
onwards to Aylesbury. My journey was going well too, with me taking the
necessary extra care due to the prevailing snowy/frosty conditions. However, this was all to change shortly
after I’d reached Bicester and turned
south-westwards along the stretch of the A41 which leads to Junction 9 of the
M40. Initially there’s a new
roundabout to negotiate, or at least a fairly new one, and the traffic was
clear to here. But on the next stretch
I encountered a very long tail-back. At first I thought nothing of it ... until
vehicles began to move towards the curb on their respective side of the dual
carriageway; I followed suit. It soon
became apparent that there must have been an accident, for everyone was
making way for a fire-engine to pass by.
I would not have heard it coming, just seen it, as my CD had been
playing quite loudly – it helps alleviate the monotony of a long
journey! My favourite is a 1970s album,
it takes me back to my teenage years when I knew all the words to the songs
and can sing along! Once the emergency vehicle had passed by, a car
from the outside lane manoeuvred through my own queue, heading for a nearby
slip-road which led to a country lane.
I had a brilliant idea ... follow a local! My car was stationary next to the beginning
of the slip-road, so I turned left and followed. A short stretch of lane soon led to a
T-junction; I turned right as the other vehicle had done. The lane was very winding and soon entered
the village of Wendlebury; the main residential area
served by a stretch of road protected by speed bumps. Having exited the far end of the rural community
I saw a helicopter attempting to land over to my right; probably on the A34
southbound carriageway; an air ambulance.
The lane soon ended in a further T-junction. Turning left would have taken me across to
the other side of the A34 and the village of Weston-on-the-Green, so I turned
right and re-joined the A34 southbound carriageway. It was almost deserted! Traffic travelling on the northbound
carriageway had been stopped in order for the helicopter to land in safety;
there was a very long tailback as a result. With a clear, almost deserted road ahead of me, I
soon reached the Peartree Interchange; it was no
surprise that the roundabout below the A34 was clear of queuing traffic
too. I was thus able to quickly join
the back of the queue heading down the short stretch of A44 before turning
west onto the A40. I arrived at racecourse at 09:05 today, having
travelled in via Greenway Lane once more.
I must have arrived earlier in the general scheme of things, as I was
directed to park further down the field slope than on the previous two
days. As in Festival week in previous years, I had
decided that I’d take a trip down to the Cheltenham branch of my
employer. So, having eaten three of
the cheese rolls I’d brought with me, I put on my engineer boots ahead of my
walk. Knowing that walking would make
me feel hot, I left a number of clothing layers in the car, to be collected
before I ventured to the turnstiles on my return. I decided to walk across the car park to climb
the few steps to the pavement on Evesham Road before turning right and
crossing the busy Swindon Lane. I
continued on my journey down the hill to the town; a pleasant walk, as it was
sunny today. Before visiting the
branch, I popped across to the local branch of WH Smith to buy a copy of the
Racing Post; just in case there was an article about the Alan King-trained Medinas winning yesterday’s Coral Cup. Yes, there was. I then retraced my steps to visit the
branch. The Manager was pleased to see
me and we had a chat. She then popped
out to the nearby M&S to buy a large box of chocolates for me to take
back for my department at Head Office upon my return the following week. It was soon time to say farewell, and set off
back to Prestbury Park. Being horribly fat and unfit at the moment,
my walking pace was poor when compared to previous years. Close to the racecourse, there were a
couple of Betfair promotional workers standing on the
pavement and handing out scarves.
“Would you like one?” they asked as I passed by. “Do I look like someone who needs a scarf?”
I joked, waving my cerise scarf towards them.
“I have hundreds at home. Besides,” I said, “Yellow doesn’t suit
me”. I fear I wasn’t exaggerating
either, when referring to numbers!!!
It’s the peril of being an ‘extreme’
crafter! I returned to my car to drop off the newspaper
and the box of chocolates, leaving them in the boot. I also put on the additional layers of
clothing that I’d need during the day to keep warm before heading to the
turnstiles. Handbag searched, I
entered the confines of the racecourse at 10:55. Today I purchased a race-card before
heading to the loo. I then returned to
the steps above the Winners’ Enclosure to bask in the warmth of the sun. It was announced that Paddy Brennan would replace
Dominic Elsworth aboard Captain Sunshine in the Pertemps Final and by Andrew Thornton aboard Calgary Bay
in the Byrne Group Plate. Dominic
having been injured when Somersby fell during yesterday’s Queen Mother
Champion Chase. It had been minus 7 overnight at Cheltenham and
there were still concerns for the Cross Country course. An inspection
was planned for 14:15 and, if it needs to be, the race would be postponed to
Friday and run as the last event on the card. At 12:15 it was time for today’s
Paddock Interviews with presenters Alastair Down and Martin Kelly. Their first guest interviewee today was actor
James Nesbitt, part owner of Riverside Theatre, winner of last year’s Ryanair Chase. He said there was less pressure this
year; last year’s race was thrilling as an owner and it was a privilege to
have a Cheltenham winner. It was a mystery why the horse performed so
badly last time out, until it was later discovered that he had been suffering
from ulcers! He saw First Lieutenant as the main danger today;
jockey Davy Russell loves the Michael O’Leary owned horse. James said
he must have been the only one to take money off Michael O’Leary last year,
owner of Ryanair, when he won the race. James
explained that his interest in equine sports began with show-jumping when
younger. He thought the World Hurdle would be an ‘open’ contest; he fancied both
Peddlers Cross and Oscar Whisky to run well. Finally, he spoke about
his new series – James Nesbitt’s Ireland – I decided to buy the country, he
joked! The second guest of the day was Conor Murphy, former second in command to ‘Corky’ Browne at Nicky Henderson’s
yard. Conor placed an anti-post accumulator
bet on five of the yard’s horses who he hoped would win at the 2012
Cheltenham Festival. It was a £50 bet, placed on 23 December 2011 – if
they were successful, he would win a million pounds. The horses involved were Sprinter Sacre, Simonsig, Bobs Worth, Finian’s Rainbow and Riverside Theatre. And, of
course, they all won. Conor said it
was touch and go, because his bet was for Simonsig
to run in the Neptune Novices’ Hurdle and, for a brief spell, there was a
possibility he’d run in the Supreme Novices’ instead. But the late
lamented Darlan had saved the day, as he took his chance in the latter race
instead, leaving Simonsig to take up the hoped-for
engagement. Conor had
almost forgotten the terms of his bet as it had been placed well before the
Festival, so when Finian’s Rainbow (who he looked
after) won the Queen Mother Champion Chase (the 4th leg of the accumulator)
he went out to celebrate in style – it was the best day of his life he
said. So when Thursday arrived and it was Riverside Theatre’s opportunity
to win him the bet, he was still recovering from Wednesday’s overindulgence
so didn’t actually have much recollection of anything, let alone the
possibility of winning a million pounds! He subsequently left his job at Nicky Henderson’s
yard to set up as a trainer himself in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. He
came back to visit the Cheltenham Festival because he wouldn’t miss the event
‘for the world’. His fancies today were Captain Chris and First
Lieutenant. The third guest today was Peter Spens, who has been appointed as the Cheltenham
Festival’s Official Artist for 2013 and 2014; with a London exhibition of his
work due to take place in October 2014.
Peter also acted as the London 2012 Olympic artist, famed for his
scenes of the volleyball arena at Horse Guards. The last event on today’s card
would be the St Patrick’s Derby Charity race in aid of Cancer Research
UK. Fundraiser Frances Milner spoke
about the 4-year partnership with the Festival which had raised over £650,000
to date. Today’s participants were
required to raise at least £5,000 each and she hoped that a total of £260,000
might be forthcoming. TV sports presenter, Alex
Hammond, and James Fenton, a member of Ireland’s national police service were
two of the riders, and they were interviewed too. Alex said she had felt nervous in the
run-up to today, but was now strangely calm; with the experience feeling
surreal. In preparation, she’d ridden
out at Neil Mulholland’s, Lawney Hill’s, Paul Nicholls’ and Richard Fahey’s
yards. James admitted to being
nervous; since arriving over from Ireland he’d ridden out David O’Meara’s
yard and would be riding their designated ‘charity
horse’ Rosie’s Lady today. As Ladbrokes sponsored today’s
feature race, the World Hurdle, the company’s representative David Williams
was on hand to run through the ‘movers
and shakers’ in today’s betting. In the World Hurdle itself,
Oscar Whisky was the most popular choice; followed by Reve De Sivola and Smad
Place. The Paul Nicholls runner,
Wonderful Charm, was weak in the betting.
Ladbrokes had been sponsoring the race since 2005, with Inglis Drever
winning it on three occasions (2005, 2007 and 2008) and Big Buck’s on four
(2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) ... the other, of course, was My Way De Solzen in
2006 ridden by Choc! David then spoke about the
fancied runners for the Ryanair Chase – First Lieutenant was expected to
start as the 9-4 favourite; he thought Cue Card at 4-1 was too big a
price. He reckoned David Pipe’s best
chance of a winner this week was Dynaste in the Jewson Novices’ Chase; a
banker. At the moment Jetson was the
favourite for the Pertemps Final; also popular with punters were Sam Winner
and outsider Mr Moonshine. The Byrne
Group Plate fancies were Ballynagour and Hunt Ball. The penultimate interviewee was
Joe Tizzard, who was due to ride Cue Card in the Ryanair Chase. He said it was a big boost to the yard when
Golden Chieftain won Tuesday’s JLT Specialty Handicap Chase. Cue Card had provided them with some
memorable days at Cheltenham, and this year had performed well when winning
at Exeter and Ascot. He said the
Ryanair was always their first choice; the horse having been entered for the
Queen Mother Champion Chase just in case anything happened to Sprinter
Sacre. First Lieutenant would be by
far his biggest danger in today’s race. Joe’s other rides today were
Third Intention in the Jewson Novices’ Chase; an improving sort who would
have a chance. Theatre Guide in the
Byrne Group Plate; it was a novicey error when he fell at Kempton last month,
and he thought his ride would have been shorter in today’s betting if it
wasn’t for that fall. The horse had been schooled, and the ground today would
be better; he had also undergone a wind operation before the Kempton run. Not surprisingly, Joe thought that Cue Card
was his best chance of the day. The final guest today was
trainer David Pipe; who Alastair referred to as the ‘World’s Tallest Trainer’.
David hadn’t trained a winner yet at this year’s Festival but thought
Dynaste was his best chance. He said
the horse was very impressive in his earlier runs this season, had rock solid
form, and would not be inconvenienced by the ground. Junior was one of his
representatives in the Pertemps Final, but he was high in the weights. Close House was stepping up in trip and
David felt he had a good each way chance.
Later in the afternoon David had
four runners in the Byrne Group Plate.
The first was Ballynagour, who’d gone up 20lbs in the handicap
following a success at Warwick; Shoegazer, Zaynar who was fresh, and
Matuhi. Finally David had three
representatives in the Kim Muir amateur riders’ race; Swing Bill, Problema
Tic and No Secrets; they were not without chance he said. Once again, I ensured that I
arrived at the course-side rails in plenty of time to obtain a space
immediately beside them. This meant
that I needed to leave the Parade Ring area as soon as the Paddock Interviews
had been completed and before any of the runners taking part in the first
race had arrived. Nearly every year, on either the
Wednesday or the Thursday of the Festival, I find someone at the course-side
rails to talk to ... and today was that day.
This year I discovered my ‘pal’
owned a horse of her own and was a self-employed ‘consultant’ of some kind based in the Bristol area – she
mentioned that she wouldn’t be earning money today because, instead, she’d
decided to come along to the races.
She also enjoyed a flutter or two on the horses. The starting gate for the first
race of the day was mid-way along the mid-course chute; two fences being
jumped before the far turn. Having
exited from the horse walkway, the runners cantered across the home straight
and up along the all-weather strip around the top bend to reach the
in-field. Of the 13 runners, three were
greys – Molotof, Sire Collonges and the 11-8 favourite Dynaste; five of the
horses were trained in Ireland – Aupcharlie, Benefficient, Marito, Texas Jack
and Argocat.
Then
they were off. Leading the way were
Sire Collonges with, upsides to his outside, the
hooded Benefficient and Molotof.
Behind these were Module, Captain Conan, Dynaste, Aupcharlie, Argocat, Changing
Times to the outside, Texas Jack, Third Intention, Desert Cry and Marito; the latter a little untidy at the first. The
field headed over the intersection with the Old Course and towards the second
fence, which they all cleared safely.
They then continued on their journey towards the far bend, crossing
the New Course intersection en route; Benefficient
led the way, with Changing Times now at the rear. Having
negotiated the turn, the horses straightened up to approach the third fence; Molotof clouted the obstacle, skewing in the air as a
result but survived, and Changing Times made an error too. The horses headed up the home straight,
with no noticeable errors at the following three fences. The
horses passed the stands and headed out into the country for the one and only
time. Benefficient
continued to lead from Molotof, Sire Collonges, Captain Conan, Dynaste,
Module, Argocat, Marito,
Third Intention, Texas Jack, Aupcharlie, Desert Cry
and Changing Times. The
runners jumped the first fence in the back straight, no major errors,
although dust rose from the fence indicating that perhaps Third Intention
hadn’t been quite as fluent as the others.
They then headed over the water-jump, the field still closely
grouped. The following fence is an
open-ditch; they all cleared this safely although, again, dust could be seen
as runners brushed through the top of the fence. The
next fence is a plain one; on the outside of the field Aupcharlie
in the well-known Potts colours, dived slightly over this one and pecked on
landing. As they entered the dog-leg
section of the track, Desert Cry received reminders from his jockey Jason
Maguire. There were no problems as the
runners cleared the final open-ditch; Aupcharlie
soon began to struggle at the rear of the field. Heading
around the far turn, Benefficient continued to lead
narrowly, Dynaste and Molotof
now almost upsides; just behind these travelled Captain Conan and Module. Molotof wasn’t
fluent at the next fence and lost ground on the other two. The field set off down the hill towards
three out. Benefficient and Dynaste continued to lead the way, from Captain Conan,
Module, Molotof, Argocat,
Marito, Changing Times, Texas Jack, Sire Collonges, Third Intention and Aupcharlie;
Desert Cry was tailed off and would be pulled up before this fence. Dynaste jumped into the
lead here, with Captain Conan following him through as they negotiated the
final bend. Benefficient
was still a close third, with Ruby Walsh aboard Marito
in their slipstream poised to make a challenge. They straightened up before jumping the
second last, but the latter got too close to the fence and fell. But
Dynaste’s move had not been decisive and Barry Geraghty’s mount loomed up to his outside as they
approached the last fence, with Benefficient
rallying to the inside too. The three
runners jumped it in unison, the latter with more zest and he quickly got
into his stride and continued to draw away from his rivals as he headed
towards the line to triumph by 3¼ lengths. Dynaste finished 2nd,
with Changing Times staying on up the run-in to claim 3rd, Module also closed
to take 4th, with Captain Conan fading into 5th. Both Marito and
Ruby Walsh were fine after their mishap two out. It
would prove to be the first of three Festival victories this week for the up
and coming young Irish jockey, Bryan Cooper.
I
remained beside the course-side rails following this race. NEWS FROM THE STEWARDS ROOM: The
Stewards held an enquiry into the use of the whip by Bryan J. Cooper, the
rider of the winner, BENEFFICIENT (IRE), on the run to the line. Having heard
his evidence and viewed recordings of the race, they found him in breach of
Schedule (B)6 Part 2 in that he had used his whip in an incorrect place. The
Stewards suspended Cooper for 2 days as follows: Thursday 28 and Saturday 30
March 2013. The
starting gate for this event was at the beginning of the back straight; the
horses exiting from the horse-walk to canter across the home straight and
head up around the bend upon the all-weather track to reach it. To avoid any problems which might result in
a false start with such a large field, and having had their girths checked,
the group of runners trotted back along the course almost to the home
straight before turning and heading towards the starting gate. However,
as is often the case, the talented but recalcitrant Captain Sunshine, who was
initially being led around at the start, reared up and unshipped deputising
jockey Paddy Brennan when at the back of the pack. This left him to be legged back up, after
which he was cantered back up the hill to join the rear of the main group.
Then
they were off, with Captain Sunshine consenting to set off with the
others. The field was led away by
Junior, from Berties Dream, According to Trev, American Spin, Pateese, Holywell and Ballybough
Pat. There are four flights in the
back straight; the favourite, Sam Winner, hit the third flight, as did Close
House. Heading
around the dog-leg turn to approach the fourth flight, the order was Junior,
from Berties Dream, American Spin, According to Trev, Pateese, Holywell, Close House, Ballybough
Pat, Ardkilly Witness, First Fandango, Ely Brown, Jetson, Stonemaster, Top Of The
Range, Action Master, Shutthefrontdoor, Hada Men, Sam Winner, Catch Me, Captain Sunshine, Fair
Along, Bakbenscher, American Trilogy, and Bouggler. Close
House made a bad blunder here, losing his hind-legs on landing. The
runners had now reached the top of the hill; they turned the far corner and headed
downhill to the fifth flight, which Junior and Berties
Dream cleared in unison at the head of affairs. The horses then travelled around the bend
to enter the home straight on the first occasion; they were well-packed, with
no more than 10 lengths covering the entire field. They
then headed up the hill away from the stands to begin their final circuit;
near the rear of the field, Hada Men received a
couple of reminders from his jockey Aidan Coleman. Berties Dream was
leading narrowly as they set off down the back straight, from Ballybough Pat and Junior; all the runners safely
negotiated the next flight. Having
cleared it, Junior began to drift back through the field; near the rear,
American Trilogy made an error at the next flight. Hada
Men received another two backhanders from his jockey. Berties Dream led
over the 9th hurdle, from American Spin, Holywell
and Ballybough Pat.
Around
the dog-leg turn they headed, there was no change up front; disputing second
were Holywell, Ballybough
Pat and Ely Brown, after these were American Spin, Close House, Ardkilly Witness, Stonemaster,
According To Trev, First Fandango, Jetson, Bakbenscher, Shutthefrontdoor, Sam Winner, Fair Along, Catch Me,
Action Master, Captain Sunshine, American Trilogy, Pateese,
Top Of The Range, Hada Men, Bouggler
and Junior now in rear. AP
McCoy’s mount had improved on the outside of the field and was now in sixth
as they turned the far corner and began their descent of the hill for the
final time. Berties
Dream still held the advantage as they headed towards the penultimate flight,
with Holywell cruising to his outside. Captain Sunshine had also swept around the
wide outside of the field to begin his challenge; in fourth position, Stonemaster flattened the flight. They
turned into the home straight and began the long run to the final flight; Berties Dream under pressure, with Holywell
cruising under Richie McLernon to the
nearside. A couple of lengths back
were Captain Sunshine, Ely Brown, First Fandango, Shutthefrontdoor,
and Stonemaster.
Close behind these were the improving Bakbenscher
and Action Master. Berties Dream drifted
across slightly to his right under a drive before his jockey Andrew Lynch
pulled his whip through to his right hand, but Holywell
was barely inconvenienced and soon strode into the lead. He cleared the last with a three length
advantage from his now nearest rival, Captain Sunshine. Although the latter closed as they galloped
to the line, Holywell won by 1½ lengths. Richie McLernon’s
second Festival winner, having ridden his first last year. Jetson had stayed on
and was closing on the runner-up as they reached the line, he claimed
3rd. Shutthefrontdoor
completed in 4th; long-time leader Berties Dream
finished 5th, Ely Brown 6th and Bakbenscher
7th.
I remained beside the course-side rails following this race. NEWS FROM THE STEWARDS ROOM: The
Stewards held an enquiry into the use of the whip by Paddy Brennan, the rider
of CAPTAIN SUNSHINE, placed second, from the third last flight. Having heard
his evidence and viewed recordings of the race, they found him in breach of
Schedule (B)6 Part 2 in that he had used his whip
above the permitted level. The Stewards suspended Brennan for 9 days as
follows: Thursday 28, Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 March, and Monday 1, Tuesday
2, Wednesday 3, Thursday 4, Friday 5, Saturday 6 April 2013. Under Rule (B)54 the Stewards also fined the rider £350. WHY THEY RAN
BADLY It
was soon time for the next race of the day, the Grade 1 Ryanair
Chase. Bryan
Cooper replaced the injured Davy Russell aboard the 2-1 favourite First
Lieutenant; the latter having encountered a breathing problem which would
later be diagnosed as a punctured lung.
The injury had occurred when Davy’s mount Un Beau Matin
fell at the final flight in the Coral Cup, the fifth race on yesterday’s
card. Martin
Keighley had a representative in this race, Champion Court ridden by Jason Maguire.
Then
they were off. Cue Card and Champion
Court led the way, clearing the first in unison, from Albertas
Run, Riverside Theatre, First Lieutenant, Ghizao,
Menorah and For Non Stop. The former
held a slight lead as the field cleared the next fence; Menorah was a little
slow in rear and was pushed along for a few strides after it. The
runners travelled across the Old Course intersection before jumping the third
fence; Cue Card got a little close to this, allowing Champion Card to draw
alongside once more. The horses then
headed around the far turn before entering the home straight for the first
time. They
cleared the fourth fence safely; in rear Menorah once again being pushed
along having cleared it. Cue Card and
Champion Court continued to dispute the lead as the runners headed up towards
the grandstands. They negotiated three
more fences; Albertas Run had already begun to lose
his place before they travelled up the hill and out into the country for the
one and only time. Heading
into the back straight, Cue Card held a very narrow advantage; and he wasn’t
as fluent as Champion Court at the first in the line of fences. First Lieutenant pecked on landing over
this obstacle. By the time the horses
had reached the water-jump, Albertas Run was
disputing last place with Menorah. Riverside
Theatre was pushed along having cleared the first open-ditch; For Non Stop
was travelling well; Menorah was losing touch with the others and, having
jumped the fence, Albertas Run was pulled up. For Non Stop made a slight jumping error at
the next, a plain fence. The
horses negotiated the dog-leg turn; Cue Card and Champion Court continued to
dispute the lead, from First Lieutenant, For Non Stop, Riverside Theatre, Ghizao and the trailing Menorah. For Non Stop caught a hind-leg on the
open-ditch but it didn’t affect his momentum.
Richard Johnson pulled up his mount after the fence. The
remaining six runners cleared the next, where Cue Card out-jumped Champion
Court to take a clear lead. Jason
Maguire administered reminders to his mount, with First Lieutenant soon
drawing alongside him. Ghizao, in fifth position, made an error at the fourth
last. The
horses galloped down the hill to the third last fence, where First Lieutenant
blundered. Heading for the final bend,
Cue Card continued to travel well at the head of affairs. Both Champion Court and First Lieutenant
were being pushed along and also received reminders; For Non
Stop to their inside was travelling the better. Having
entered the home straight, Cue Card still held the lead; Jason Maguire and Bryan
Cooper continued to urge their mounts on in an attempt to close the gap. For Non Stop hadn’t found as much as
expected but was battling on in a close up fourth. Having jumped two out, Joe Tizzard’s mount then asserted his advantage, cleared the
final fence and pulled away up the hill to win by 9 lengths at the line. The jockey saluted with his whip as he
passed the line, it meant a lot. First
Lieutenant completed in 2nd, For Non Stop held on to third from a fast
finishing Riverside Theatre, with Champion Court fading into 5th; Ghizao was 6th and last.
It
was great to see Cue Card win again at the Festival; the Tizzards
had chosen the correct race for their charge having decided to avoid Sprinter
Sacre over the shorter distance of the Queen Mother
Champion Chase. Trainer Colin Tizzard is such a character!
I remained beside the course-side rails ahead of
the next race. That’s it for the first half of
my Day 3 diary ... click the following link to read the second half. |
