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Nothing mysterious there. The other four jockeys knew that the favourite had to be held up, and between them they contrived a situation where Mutual Friend was left in front far too earlier than he was comfortable with. A well-executed plan which was to a large extent predictable. So if any backers of the favourite are crying "foul", then more fool them.
Terry Biddlecombe must have ridden in the same race as his brother on many occasions, especially when they were both still amateurs. Can’t remember his brother’s name, but I think the initial was A.
Thankfully I have thus far avoided any sighting of this person, but I find it hard to believe that he could be any worse than the insufferably pompous little p**** in a pin-stripe suit who was his predecessor.
Such a motley collection of sad Little Englanders is hardly likely to contain much leadership talent. They call themselves UKIP. I wonder how many candidates they are fielding in Scotland?
I see nothing "brash" or "cocky" in Twiston-Davies’ statement. He has every right to be confident….Imperial Commander is a good, if not great, winner of the Gold Cup who has come out of the race very well, is bouncing at home and there’s a valuable prize on offer with an apparently sub-standard list of entries. They’d be stupid not to go for it.
As for next year’s Gold Cup, Kauto Star and Denman will both be 11. I suspect that the ever-realistic Paul Nichols will be looking at a 4th King George as Kauto’s target for next season, while Denman is going for the National and may well swerve the Gold Cup.
I’m a fan of them as well, but
not
at the Cheltenham Festival thank you very much. This has already been dumbed down enough, with, I suspect, more to come.
I was standing close to the second last fence and Citizen Vic fell directly beside me. Sadly, he died instantly and that soured what should have been an enjoyable day. I didn’t have the stomach for any more punting after that.
At the risk of generating another round of yawns among forumites, Zorro’s thoughts on this topic are contained in an article on p.9 of the latest issue of the International Thoroughbred magazine.
People — and that seems to be the majority of the English population — who seem incapable of pronouncing the word "February".
Whatever happened to the "r" in the middle?
I found myself deeply moved by the documentary Michael Portillo made last year about his family’s terrible experiences during the Spanish Civil War. His father, an intellectual Socialist, managed to flee to England in the nick of time while his uncles were fighting on the side of Franco. The family was torn apart and never recovered. Portillo’s account of those events showed him to be a man of great humanity, and quite frankly I saw a Michael Portillo that I had not recognised before.
I’ve also been enjoying his railway journey series. Didn’t know that he is half-Scottish, the linoleum factory which his grandfather owned in Kircaldy presumably being the source of his mother’s wealth. I’ve completely changed my mind about Portillo. Like Ken Clarke, he’s a thoroughly decent bloke and far too good to be a Tory.
Disappointing turn-out at Folkestone??
Which trainer, in their right mind, would want to run a decent horse there just as the frost has come out of the ground? Very few horses would appreciate the gluepot conditions which seem to be worse at Folkestone at this time of the year than anywhere else in the country. Promising young horses have been ruined by running them there under these conditions.
So the low turn-out is hardly surprising. Folkestone in January is a grim experience for both humans and equines (but especially humans I would suggest).
Most knowledgeable punters I know wouldn’t back one of those if Mrs Wadham herself told you that it was going to win.
There’s nothing knowledgeable about ignoring obvious pointers. Lucy Wadham took three horses to Southwell, all cheap purchases and having their first visit to the racecourse. The first runner came 2nd at 25-1 and very nearly beat the Henderson hotpot which cost five times as much. The second runner also ran very creditably, coming third at 11-1. Having seen the way these horses performed, wouldn’t punters at the course conclude that her horses might well be fitter than the opposition and that her third runner should be backed e/w? Apparently not.
That’s not being shrewd, it’s not being clever, it’s just recognising clues which should have been staring them in the face.
Came across this
Paul Nicholls, Alan King and Nigel Twiston-Davies reported on Monday that they have been able to keep their strings exercising during the cold snap.
Quite. But the vast majority of NH trainers across the country will have had no problem in exercising their strings. However very, very few will have been able to gallop them, which is what really matters. A rare exception is Mrs. Wadham who is based at Newmarket where the a/w gallop has been kept open. Punters with that knowledge will have reaped the benefits at Southwell today.
Paul Nicholls is so desperate to get a gallop into his stable stars that he’s proposing to run Celestian Halo and Twist Magic in a/w bumpers at Kempton on Saturday.
A report in the Daily Telegraph says that Ferdy Murphy worked a number of horses, including Kalahari king if I remember right, on the sands at Saltburn this week.
Fine if your yard is close to the sea, but trainers in Oxfordshire or Gloucestershire or Berkshire don’t have that opportunity. There the a-w gallops are deep frozen by now and covered in about a foot of snow. So all that the trainers can do is canter the horses in the snow each morning. That keeps them ticking over and is OK provided the snow is dry and powdery, but if the temperature rises and the snow becomes wet then it’s too dangerous and the horses will be confined to indoor work.
Best horse that has lived, best horse that will ever live
FFFFFFFFACT!
CROWD TODAY WAS IMMENSE, ON TERMS WITH ANY CHELT FESTIVAL – FACT MATE
Don’t think I’ve had quite as much to drink as Mr. Wilson
, but if anyone asks me (yet again) what it is about horseracing that fascinates me so much, I will simply say Kauto Star, Boxing Day 2009.I’ve finally seen a performance from a chaser to rival Arkle’s.
Born and raised in the Vale of STRATHMORE, near the town of BLAIRGOWRIE. The latter met a sad end at Market Rasen’s notorious 3rd last.
This guy is an absolute gem of a man
& a top trainer to boot.He certainly is emerging as a top trainer,
to be mentioned alongide the Nicholl, Henderson,
King, O’Neill & Hobbs of the jumping world &
the pride of wales.Mark
Are you his father or brother?
Promising young trainer he may be, but as yet his achievements do not entitle him to be mentioned alongside any of these names.
, but if anyone asks me (yet again) what it is about horseracing that fascinates me so much, I will simply say Kauto Star, Boxing Day 2009.