After many years of following horse racing, it still amazes me how the really good jockeys seem to know where the line is and time their runs perfectly. The master, of course, was Piggott and we were so lucky to see him many times. Did he ever win by more that a head ? Of course he did but it didn’t seem like it.
Not a great day breaking even with a 20.00 e/way on Blue Prince to run, an the wifes got a fiver e /way on Ganesha, Shes got a statue of an Hindu god an she says its called a Ganesha fingers crossed.knowt lost, knowt gained i'll av another go t'morra, just the one placed t'day but returns cover the bets. PHEW.
Hurrah, small win on Zoulou Chief !! Two winners and arguably two unlucky placed. Small profit. And once again thanks to GJA for the Moore tip. If anyone else spots a good offer from a bookie for tomorrow by all means let everyone know
Three winners. Equilateral, Indian Run and Mostahdaf. Only recycled my money though. Probably only silver lining of small stakes and multiple runners in some of the races.
THURSDAY EARLY BIRD SUGGESTIONS 1 Relief Rally 2 Twilight Romance 3 The Gatekeeper 4 Stay Alert 5 Modaara 6 Keep Warm 7 Farhh To Shy Only one I've already had something on so far is Stay Alert. Backed it at 15.5 on the exchange as I thought it's price was totally wrong. Its now 11.5 on exchange. Might put some money on the place. Of the others I'm waiting to see prices in the morning.
Cherry blossom Ziggys condor Terwada Savethelastdance Sea theme Expert choice Unequal love My selections, Wifes aving a fiver e /way Sonny Liston, away t'morra at York good luck an i hope you all av a winner
Great day yesterday. The first four winning jockeys all rode terrific races with Frankie perhaps taking the most plaudits for his intelligent "clock in his head" performance on Mostahdaf. The owner, trainers and rider have all put a lot into the game, so nice to see their evident joy afterwards. Good to see two Yorkshire-trained winners too. Equilateral gave me a tidy profit on the day. Plaudits yesterday to GJA1979 (Ryan Moore to ride a winner at Evens); x11 Barnsley (Mostahdaf) and Kamikaze Co-Pilot (Continuous, Zoulou Chief). Mr Dawson also relates punts on Equilateral, Indian Run and Mostahdaf leading him to 'recycle' his money. (See me after class about staking policy, laddie! And selections before class next time, Dawson!) Interesting to hear from Sventyke that the Head Vet is from Tarn. The chap who used to conduct the minibus tours to the start (with explanation of the starting procedure) is/was also a Barnsley lad. I'm not sure if it is still John who does the tours from the side of the paddock, but I can say that he's a knowledgeable and engaging lad who had several rides on the Flat for Steve Norton in earlier times. On to Day Two. As outlined yesterday, I'm with Cherry Blossom in the Lowther Stakes (1.50). Although Relief Rally and Flora Of Bermuda may presently be ahead on the figures I think that Cherry Blossom's Curragh win hinted at better things to come for this filly. It was only a maiden, but she won by five lengths with a further five lengths back to the third in a fifteen-runner field. She looks to combine pace and stamina over six furlongs and her timefigure was very good. As Persica appears to be Richard Hannon's main runner in the Sales race (2.25) I'm with that one with stable jockey Sean Levey up. Hannon clearly holds this horse in some regard, judging by his comments, and I reiterate that he has won this race five out of the last seven years. The 3.00 is a cracking one mile handicap, but I'm buggered if I can solve it! And so to the Yorkshire Oaks (3.35). In the lead-up to this race it seems that the pundits have been falling over themselves to denigrate the early favourite, Savethelastdance. "The three-year-old fillies are not up to the standard of their elders" and "she needs heavy ground" are two of the most common refrains. Less than flattering remarks have also been made about the manner of her win in the Irish Oaks last month. The upshot of all this is that this morning you can have 9/2 about the Moore/O'Brien filly. Her sire (Galileo) won on Firm and Good to Firm (2), while her dam (Daddy's Li'l Darling) won three times on Firm in the States. Although not ahead of her rivals on ratings here, Savethelastdance is the least experienced runner in this field, and surely open to further improvement. She has won three of her four starts this season, culminating in that Group 1 Irish Oaks win at the Curragh last time. She went under in the Epsom Oaks by less than two lengths. I expect her to be ideally suited by the perfectly flat, long, galloping nature of the York track. Aidan has taken four previous Irish Oaks winners to this race. All four have won. I might look daft by 3.45 pm, but I am expecting a signature performance, and I expect Savethelastdance to pull right away from her rivals up the home straight here. As with yesterday, the last three races are perfectly good spectacles with good prize money, and I haven't a clue about any of them. Good luck to all who play today, especially those who follow my overly-strong opinions!
In the Nursery (4.45) I've belatedly had Blue Collar drawn to my attention. I'm not putting it up in bold as a selection, but it is not without interest. Hannon is shrewd and likes York winners. This horse has had three qualifying runs and makes his nursery debut here from a lowly mark. He could have run in lower grade nurseries but it is interesting that Hannon pitches him in here. Dropped to six furlongs last time, he returns to a more suitable seven here. He was available when betting opened at 14/1 but has been clipped in to 9/1, so has clearly attracted support.