Good morning all,

Most enjoyable day at Leicester yesterday, and a profitable one too. Pleased that London Prize won the first (well backed near the off) and then almost had heart attack as Royal Etiquette, who regular readers will know I had a share in for most of this year (but no longer) almost snatched the seller at 33-1! I was delighted for Rod and Collette Carmichael, who own the majority of him now, as they've had to be patient with him and both had made the effort to travel up from London to see him, despite it being only a seller. Hopefully he can win a handicap soon, if they can keep him in the same form.

There's times when 4-7 looks value, and if you'd seen Thankyou Very Much's opponents in the paddock, you'd have seen why. One looked unfit and the other half asleep, so to my eyes you were taking the odds-on he'd jump round. He proved 11l too good for Nefyn Bay with a country mile back to the other. Paid for the teas and the beef rolls, anyway.

I'll be keen to take She's Late on next time, as he's won a race that's absolutely fallen apart (3.10) and will get a few lb for it. Captain McGinley was still on the bridle and going well when unseating, and he's probably the one to give another chance to.

Anyway, on to today, where one from the Ten To Follow goes, and there's my fancies for Sandown too.

Read More »Sandown Thoughts

Good morning all,

Seems a bit strange to be switching codes again, especially with Cheltenham just around the corner, but Southwell's A/W season starts today and I hope to be attending as many meetings as possible. It's something I will be covering in a bit of depth here over the Winter, as there's definitely some punter advantages from betting on the Fibresand if you're careful. Draw biases, sire stats and run styles really come to the fore here, and that, combined with actually being at the track and seeing the condition of the horses can often narrow fields down to two or three pretty quickly.

Now, of course, I'm not there today as I'll be travelling to Cheltenham as soon as today's message is done, but my good friend Daren does notes for each Southwell meeting, often in the style of writing you get on a doctor's prescription. So I've tidied them up a bit for you and reproduced them – hope you can find some use out of his writings. Read More »Southwell Sand Starts Today

Good morning all,

A terrific day at Exeter yesterday and delighted to get the big race winner, Sir Valentino, as our selection yesterday at the very rewarding odds of 10-1. Exeter is another one of those places you wish was just a bit nearer, so you could visit more often. I probably get down there twice a year, often trying to tie it in with a visit somewhere nearby as a drive there and back in the same day is knackering. Thankfully I was playing the passenger yesterday as my good friend Becky did the steering, which means I’m in decent shape heading home this morning.

And I shall be calling in at Nottingham on the way home for their afternoon (only just, 12.20 start) meeting as it’s not a bad card and looks like there might be a bet or two. Read More »Back To The Flat (But Not For Long)

Good morning all,

Couple of notices before we get stuck into today’s piece.

First of all, I’m now going to be doing Friday’s bulletins from this week. As a result, I’ll be dropping Monday’s bulletins as the racing at the beginning of the week tends to be pretty dreadful, and there’s often not much to say about it.

Second, I’m sure you’ll all join me in wishing Jim Crowley and Freddy Tylicki a speedy recovery after the dreadful events of Kempton yesterday. I know we as followers of the sport never forget how dangerous racing is, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t still shocked when injuries like those Freddy and Jim suffered yesterday occur.

With that, here’s today’s piece, with a review of Wetherby and today’s selection. Read More »Haldon Gold Cup