25th September Bulletin
Lesley's Choice
7th September: 5f handicap, Folkestone on firm, ridden by Darryll Holland: 6th
What we've got here is a failure to communicate. However, most horses you can reach, it just seems that Lesley's Choice is one of the harder ones. Ever since his totally forgiveable loss of morale, the answer appeared to give him some danger-free runs to remind him that he used to enjoy it. So far, this race included, it has not worked.
Roger prepares to law down the law to Lesley's Choice
Bould Mover
11th September: 5f Flying Childers Stakes, Group 2, Doncaster on good to firm, ridden by Graham Gibbons: 2nd
This was a really rather splendid effort by Bould Mover, overturning the Molecomb form with a couple of runners, but not up to beating Sand Vixen, who is a very, very good two year old filly. Obviously we are delighted with him, and this sort of performance earmarks him as one for Group races for the time being - he is entered in the Middle Park Stakes in early October, back up to six furlongs.
Stefanki
12th September: 6f two year old maiden, Ffos Las on good, ridden by Tony Culhane: 2nd
Actually ran rather well on what was his course debut, even though we had hoped that a running rather well would equate to a debut win. Stefanki was partly to blame himself, showing signs of his inexperience early in the race and also late on, when he and the winner found themselves in daylight, but he also met a bit of trouble in running as he improved mid-race (not his fault). In the end, Stefanki and the more experienced winner put a nice gap back to the rest, and as long as the adverse moments taught him something, he ought to be winning in the near future.*
* Presumably it is best clarified "something about racing" and not, for instance, astrophysics or cello-playing.
Zafisio
13th September: 1m Solonaway Stakes, Group 3, The Curragh on soft, ridden by Graham Gibbons: 3rd
Hot on the heels of Bould Mover and Stefanki, another horse produces a good run in a good standard of race - this would have been one of the stronger Group 3 events this season. The conditions, which were drying and sticky, were not as perfect as was hoped, and the leaders tactics of varying the pace wildly did not suit. When the final quickening took place ("There can be only one, McLeod.") Zafisio was a little tapped for toe and dropped from third to sixth, but he rallied bravely and regained third late on. Frustratingly, after finally getting something like his ground, and the benefits of his first run in a while, there is not really a race for him to follow up in. Zafisio is in the Cambridgeshire, where the going will surely be too quick and he will be in the top two at the weights.
A good webmaster would have Photoshopped Zafisio into this quickening. When asked, Zafisio himself approved it as a good representation of what he is all about. Group one winners do tend to have strong feelings about their image rights.
Callisto Moon
13th September: 2m 1f handicap, Bath on firm, ridden by Neil Callan: WON
For the horse who came back us with a record of loving second, Callisto Moon has had a really good summer, and this win was a really tough front running effort. As the field approached the not-quite-straight, they were gathering in behind us, but Neil kicked on again to go four lengths up, and all of a sudden the enemy were no longer at the gate (end of tenuous film connections for this newsletter). In the end, he won by a length, but the placed horses never really looked like getting to him in time. Splendid stuff.
Traditional Bells
22nd September: 2m ½f bumper, Stratford on good to firm, ridden by Mark Bradburne: 11th
It was hoped that Traditional Bells would fare rather better than this on his debut, but he travelled badly to the course, arriving all sweaty and 'orrible. Mark had ridden him at home, and despite going OK for the first mile, reported that the horse did give him the same feel on the day, probably down to dehydration. It seems that for his next run it will either have to be an overnight stay, where there is time to get him rehydrated if the same problems happen, or find a meeting within walking distance of his box.
News From Off Of The Track
Alderbrook Girl: Has had another one of those nasty-looking but often effective injections in the sacroiliac joint - the needle they use is nine inches long and can decapitate an unwary flat jockey at fifteen paces.
Maderson Blue: Has had something of a hold up due to corns.
Romney Marsh: We uncovered a slight tear to some scar tissue in her suspensory ligament, almost certainly due to her hurdle run at Newton Abbot, where she was severely clobbered around. This has resulted in three weeks off work.
Elegant Olive: Got as far as being entered at Fontwell, but was not quite 100%. The osteopath had a look and found a slightly displaced vertebra in her neck - a common injury in animals that are a bit too nosey about things outside their normal line of sight. The good news is that having manipulated it back in, she only had to have two days out of work.
Happy Fleet: Had been suffering intermittent lameness. When the farrier looked he said nothing was wrong with her feet it was one for the vet. When the vet looked, he said she was fine, it was something in her feet that the farrier could fix. After several false starts, both were able to attend at the same time for a lively and productive discussion, which was ruined by Happy Fleet being right as rain and giving them nothing to diagnose, then or since. So after a delay, she is not that far off of a run.
6th September Bulletin
Street Diva
6th August: 1m handicap, Brighton on firm, ridden by Simon Whitworth: 9th
Another disappointing effort from Street Diva, and without any excuses on ground, fitness or trip there was much thoughtful rumination on why she was failing to deliver. In the end no firm conclusion was reached, and since then she has moved on.
Lesley's Choice
7th August: 6f handicap, Brighton on good to soft, ridden by Simon Whitworth: 12th
The same recent story, where despite being physically talented enough, his poor morale came to the fore. In this instance, all went well whilst Lesley's Choice was more or less in the front line, but once headed it all went pear-shaped with alarming rapidity. Certainly the run suggested that if he could bowl along in space and stay there, things could go a lot better - and perhaps provide that much needed confidence booster.
Safin
22nd August: 2m 3f selling hurdle, Newton Abbot on good to firm, ridden by Mark Bradburne: 6th
25th August: 2m 1f selling handicap hurdle, Sedgefield on good to firm, ridden by Mark Bradburne: Brought down
31st August: 2m 1½f selling handicap hurdle, Cartmel on heavy, ridden by Andrew Tinkler: 7th
Coming into the Newton Abbot race after a few months off, Safin needed the race and blew up on the final turn. However, he was not that far off match fitness, and seemed fine for a quick reappearance at Sedgefield. All was going well there until the third last, where the horse immediately in front of Safin fell. He was left with two options - suddenly become the horse that evolved the power to levitate or be brought down. The more probable result ensued, with Mark fairly confident that it cost the pair of them success. As the horse seemed unscathed by the incident, we took a chance on a race at Cartmel, where wet weather threatened to carve up the field a lot. Alas, Safin was never travelling with any ease, and perhaps the tumble was still a bit too fresh in his mind.
Don Pietro
22nd August: 1m handicap, Bath on firm, ridden by Tony Culhane: WON
25th August: 2m 1f novice hurdle, Sedgefield on good to firm, ridden by Mark Grant: 5th
Despite being up in class and dropped in trip, we had a certain degree of confidence in Don Pietro at Bath, as he had been working so well. Even when that is the case, nothing is without risk, but he did manage to get the run of the race and a cosy win resulted. Another attempt over hurdles had already been planned, and he joined Safin on the trip up to Sedgefield. Things went less smoothly this time, as Mark made a move to the front entering the back straight, and Don Pietro failed to get home. What we know for the future is that he will need to be ridden with plenty of patience over hurdles - a duel with Mucho Loco would be an interesting spectacle!
Lady Of Namid
23rd August: 7f 2yo fillies' maiden, Folkestone on good to firm, ridden by Stephen Donohoe: 11th
She has been a bit green, but was fit enough for a run, so one was found for her. As expected, Lady Of Namid found it all a bit overwhelming, but any thoughts that she might have at least had an enjoyable experience for her debut was ruined when she was brought down just after passing the post. Perhaps karma was against her for being Pol Pot in a former life - assuming he is dead.
Gypsy Boy
24th August: 6f 2yo maiden, Kempton on the all-weather, ridden by Simon Whitworth: 5th
5th September: 7f 2yo conditions stakes, Kempton on the all-weather, ridden by TP O'Shea: 4th
Whilst there was not quite the faith in a big run that Don Pietro had carried, Gypsy Boy showed plenty of what we thought he could do on debut. In reality, things did not actually start out that positively here, but after 3 furlongs, 9 yards, 1 foot and 7 inches of the race, he suddenly realised what it was all about, and finished the race with plenty more aplomb than he showed at the start. Next time, he simply wound up in a race that was two strong for him too soon, but as his sire, Dixie Union, is not subscribed to the EBF, Gypsy Boy is immediately not qualified for a huge number of two year old maiden races, leaving options a touch limited. In this instance, it rode like a decent race, with all five runners capable of winning imminently, and the first two home, Quadrille and Circumvent, probably pattern race quality performers.
Just A Monkey
24th August: 1m 2yo seller, Windsor on good to firm, ridden by Tony Culhane: 10th
This was step two in the learning process for Just A Monkey, who has far more equine integrity than his name suggests, but is simply a longer term project as a racing entity. Unlike Lady Of Namid, he is clearly reincarnated from honourable, but perhaps slightly slow on the uptake and development, stock. To name names might be libellous, but most of them would probably have been pupils at Harrow...
7th August Bulletin
As readers of the last bulletin will recall, at least those who have not lost control of their faculties in the meantime, there was a bit of a cloud hanging over the horses at the time, mainly affecting the jumpers and older horses. The youngsters seemed to be unscathed and were mostly running quite well, and there was much scratching of heads, stroking of beards and generally other degrees of puzzlement as to what was wrong. Eventually something treatable did show up, and the vets recommended a couple of jabs against Equine Herpes Virus (EHV). This raises an intriguing point. The rules of racing insist on mandatory anti-flu jabs, an epidemic that must have been last sighted over 40 years ago (probably because of the jabs, although there would be some notable dissenters on that view) but EHV which seems to rear it's ugly head annually - Marcus Tregoning has suffered from it hitting his string this year, as have plenty of Newmarket yards - has no compulsory programme. And the nature of EHV is that the horses that have got over it do not retain their immunity, so can have it passed back to them soon after being clear of the symptoms. Anyhoo, the sufferers had their jab, then have three weeks off, have another jab, and then get back to work - which was towards the end of July. While this was happening, the non-sufferers mocked them by running especially well.
Bould Mover
3rd July: 5f 2 year old's novice stakes, Beverley on good to firm, ridden by Graham Gibbons: WON
28th July: 5f Molecomb Stakes, Group 3, Glorious Goodwood on good, ridden by Darryll Holland: 5th
31st July: 6f Richmond Stakes, Group 2, Glorious Goodwood on good, ridden by Graham Gibbons: 9th
As previously noted, a short break had done Bould Mover a world of good, but this race, consisting entirely of previous winners, was another step up in level. So it was more than satisfactory that he should not just win, but scoot home by five lengths, a better margin than his favourable weighting suggested, as the stiff track really suited him. After that, a pattern race run was inevitably worth a go, but which one? The Richmond was over the right distance, but the Molecomb being a Group 3 looked easier. There was a cracking photo in the Racing Post, showing Bould Mover right on Monsieur Chevalier's heels with a few yards to go, but at the time the out and out speedsters stole three places form him, quite shamelessly, in one hundred metres. Due to the poor weather, the Richmond began to cut up, so Bould Mover was declared again, but found the rapid reappearance and rise in class a bit to tough to handle.
Lesley's Choice
3rd July: 5f handicap, Sandown on good, ridden by Darryll Holland: 12th
15th July: 5f handicap, Catterick on good to soft, ridden by Greg Fairley: 6th
After being the collateral victim of two assassination attempts on the racecourse, Lesley's Choice ran a very cautious and nervy race at Sandown, dropping out when the threat of argy bargy returned. As a consequence, Catterick saw cheekpeices chucked on for the first time (rarely is Catterick subject to such poetic alliteration) and although they helped, the wariness was still there. It seems that he will have to be coaxed back to confidence.
Happy Fleet
5th July: 2m 3½f novice hurdle, Market Rasen on good to firm, ridden by Dave Crosse: 5th
Happy Fleet had this run just before the EHV jabs were applied, and it showed typically the symptoms of the horses that were not right. In the back straight almost the whole field were being ridden along. The exceptions were Happy Fleet and the winner. The race seemed between the pair rounding the final turn, but she dropped out very quickly and was fifth. After the race she blew for fifty minutes - and a horse short of fitness would typically expect to be out of puff for half that time. Is it the effect of Puff The Magic Dragon or HR Pufnstuf? Either way puff and dragons are involved.
Lady Deauville
12th July: 1m 1f fillies' Listed Race, The Curragh on soft, ridden by Hayley Turner: 6th
Having seemed to be free of it, Lady Deauville showed the first signs of being hit by the EHV here, as although it was not a soft listed race, the ground and trip were ideal, and she really should have been in contention had all been well.
Just A Monkey
13th July: 6f two year old's maiden, Windsor on good, ridden by Tony Culhane: 13th
The draw ended his chances here, as Just A Monkey is still learning his trade and being drawn wide on the outside was of no help whatsoever. Tony did manage to work his way across onto the rail, but doing so cost far too much ground, and the pair got caught up in the also-rans.
Going French
21st July: 6f two year old's maiden, Ffos Las on good, ridden by Tony Culhane: 2nd
31st July: 7f nursery handicap, Glorious Goodwood on good, ridden by Kelly Harrison: 15th
We were delighted with the Ffos Las run, as the not very secret hearsay was that the winner was very good indeed, so we knew Going French would have to do something exceptional if that rival ran to expectation. It did, but our hero was a definite next best. After that he crept into a really competitive nursery at Goodwood by the skin of his teeth, but with all the alleying and ooping in a big field, he never got a clear chance to challenge.
Callisto Moon
22nd July: 1m 6f handicap, Sandown on good to firm, ridden by Darryll Holland: WON
It has appropriately emerged that the hill up towards Esher was known in Roman times as Mons Callistus. Anyone got ant proof that it was not? That name, which has in the last couple of dozen words become accepted academic fact, is most appropriate, as Callisto Moon loves the place. In this instance, Darrell was sure that none of his rivals would stay in a true run race over 1m 6f, and after successfully making the running, he was proved correct.
Don Pietro
23rd July: 1m 2f seller, Bath on good, ridden by Gabriel Hannon: WON
2nd August: 1m 2f Amateur riders' handicap, Newbury on good, ridden by Chloe Boxall: 4th
Don Pietro was actually quite well in for that seller at Bath, and it was a case of find a plan and cross all fingers, rabbit's feet etc that nothing out of anybody's control scuppered it (e.g. when another good opportunity passed him by earlier this week at Chepstow, when the riders did not like the ground and racing was abandoned). All fell into place at Bath, but things at Newbury were harder, as he was drawn wide, and when Chloe tried to make ground to avoid being shunted round in the pack, Don Pietro took off like a veteran mafioso who spots someone stealing his meatballs. Having done too much too early in the race, he was still second forty yards to go, but the grana dish was empty, and two rivals passed him very late on.