Exciting Future

A slight delay to this weeks ramblings - as we started out in Newbury this morning, after a very good days racing yesterday. More of that later! The past week we have racked up a few more miles, and had the usual ups and downs for sure! 

Monday we started our travels and headed off down to Taunton to see Auditoria contest the mares handicap chase on the card. Auditoria has been a little frustrating of late - she definitely has more ability than she is inclined to show on the track - we had hoped to pick up,a nice pot earlier in the season - but that didn't work out - very deep ground scuppering her chances, but what those early runs this season have done is left her on a favourable handicap mark which we felt she should probably have benefitted from a couple of runs ago. She finished second on both of those starts under Sean Bowen so we were hardly travelling to the South West expecting to collect first prize. With Sean in Southwell, Fergus Gregory was in the saddle, Fergus has won on her before, so it was good to see the pair reunited. Olly had rolled the dice again, and switched the blinkers for a visor in the hope of getting her to put her best foot forward. The plan was very simple, buck out in the front rank - if she got a flyer at the first - don't disappoint her, let her roll on in her rythmn and use her jumping. The plan worked well - Auditoria leading after the second, and never seeing another rival. She jumped superbly for 95% of the race and was well clear when a bad blunder at the last saw her lose vital momentum, and leave the door slightly ajar for her nearest pursuer. Luckily there was only a short run in, and she managed to hold on - value for more than the winning margin. Good scenes in the winners enclosure - really pleased for her syndicate - she has been a little frustrating of late - but Olly did say he would get a win out of her before the end of the season and he has done just that. Auditoria may have her kinks, but she is a terrific syndicate horse - she is sound and consistent, she runs regularly, and always picks up some cash at the end of the day! She has come out of her race so well, that she will run again tomorrow in Wincanton. It is almost a carbon copy of the race in Taunton, a ,mares handicap chase, over 2m4f, on a sharp right handed track - with a small field we felt it was worth a shot - you will almost never see horses in our colours back up quickly like this - I always like to give them plenty of time between their races - but this looked like the right thing for sure! Hopefully it works out! Monday was the start of a fantastic few days for the Olly Murphy yard, an across the card treble that day was backed up with another four on Tuesday - Olly has been very patient since the turn of the year - as he would not run nice horses on watered ground - he is now reaping the rewards - once again - and I know I always bat on about it - but pateince will always be rewarded! Lets hope the good yard form continues for a few weeks, as Itchy Feet is in good order, has come out of Cheltenham really well, and will head to Aintree in a couple of weeks. He will have some very interesting entries! 

Auditoria pre race

A well earned drink

More happy owners!

Monday night I stayed at the Frogmill in Andoversford - The Kilkeney closed on a Monday - so I didn't like to bother Kev and Jules - we will see them in a couple of weeks! The Frogmill works well - it is a stones throw from Ravenswell Farm, the rooms are comfortable, there is a good selection of beers, and the food is good. Service on Monday was a little slow, but I was catching up with correspondence while I sat in the bar - so no bother really. 

Tuesday morning is work morning in Ravenswell and it is always good to be there. As ever the horses looked fantastic and everything worked really well. Greyval caught the eye, and has been declared in Huntingdon on Tuesday. She has been off since a below par scope ahead of her last intended start - a run that would have seen her qualified for the Boddles Handicap at The Cheltenham Festival - a race that Paddy felt she had a great chance in. Sadly not to be - but it was good to see the filly that she beat into third on her last start in Doncaster come out and win a competitive and valuable handicap in Musselburgh this week, so her form looks strong and this race on Tuesday should put her spot on for a crack at a handicap in Cheltenham next month. Blue Bikini worked great and will have an entry in Uttoxeter next weekend as will Fortune Forever, who also did a very nice piece of work. Mamoon Star went very nicely as well,. and would head to Ludlow later in the week. Volkovka flew up the hill once and was her usual self - she loves her work. She will have an entry in the next couple of weeks - races offering ideal conditions do not jump off the page but she will run while there is a bit of soft ground around, and gain more experience that will stand her in good stead for next season.

Greyval

Blue Bikini on the round

Blue Bikini on the hill

Fortune Forever

Not all of the 'aeroplanes' were on the gallop!

From Ravenswell I headed over to Ivy Lodge Farm to see the team there, and organise the next draft to go down. Jason was in cracking form as ever - the horses all looked great - Intrepide Sud is coming in at night and spending the days in the paddock - he is a fine big horse and, already a bumper winner, he will not be rushed back and will be jumping hurdles next winter. Cloud Dancer has settled in well. He came out of training slightly early - as he was found to be a bit sore behind after winning on hurdles debut in Newbury last month. Nothing came to light, and he is fine now, but again we will take the patient route with him - he may not have beaten much when he won, but it was the manner in which he did it that suggests he could be quite a nice horse next season, and of course, as he won one of the new National Hunt Juvenile Hurdles, he is still able to run in novice hurdles next season - ideal for a horse that has just run once over obstacles and would otherwise have to go straight into handicap company. Hidden Beauty is in fine fettle, the big girl really does look a picture. The vet will be in to scan her pelvis in the next few days, and hopefully she can start her rehab and then go in the field for the summer. She is another that looks like she will have a good season over hurdles next winter. The form of her Doncaster win is working out well!  Jason and I organised the next draft to go down there and next week - three 3 yr olds will head down to Ivy Lodge Farm - more on those next week! 

Intrepide Sud

Intrepide Sud looking forward to his turnout!

Cloud Dancer

Hidden Beauty

On the way home from Ivy Lodge Farm I caught up with Kevin Philippart De Foy, and got an update on Reflexion Faite - he is really happy with her, She will be ready to run in about a month, but he is likely to wait a couple of weeks after that for the start of the six furlong maidens in May. She is doing everything that is asked of her at this stage, and hopefully she will be plenty of fun for her syndicate through the summer. There are a couple of shares left should you wish to join in - nickbrownracing@gmail.com Have a look at  her on the For Sale Page - she is a gorgeous girl! 

Wednesday I was in the office for the day - not my favourite place but it has to be done! 

Thursday I was left with a choice - with Mamoon Star running in Ludlow, and Tintagel Queen making her second start in Chepstow. where was I to head?  A nightmare run to Ludlow - but a really good lunch, against an easier run to Chepstow for a good lunch - but 'not as good as Ludlow' lunch - decisions decisions - and in the end it was Chepstow that won out - nothing to do with lunches in the end - simply that, by a quirk of fate MS and TQ had both run on Boxing Day at two different tracks and we had decided to go to Kempton to see MS rather than hauling up to Market Rasen to see TQ - so this time it was TQ's turn. The rain arrived with me as I pulled up in Chepstow and never eased up - so looking at the races from Ludlow where it was dry and mild I really felt I had chosen wrong - as did Olly who had left Stratford in bright sunshine and in Camilla's car - so soon found that his moccasins and sports coat were not entirely suitable for the Welsh weather! He was found under an umbrella for most of the afternoon, but I did relent in the end and found him a coat out of my car before he came into the paddock with TQ - I'm not sure he will ever grow into it - but at least it kept him dry! Over in Ludlow Mamoon Star was disappointing on handicap debut. He has always had a bit of a habit of jumping out to his right over his,hurdles, and it was hoped that this would lessen as he gained experience, sadly it is going the other way and he is getting worse. It looks as though something is hurting him slightly, and he will give him a full MOT in the next week or two. He had been due to run in Taunton earlier in the week, but was a non runner with a vets certificate on the morning of the race - that would have had no bearing on why he ran like he did in Ludlow, where he was all but unrideable up the home straight. He has a lot of ability, and we need to get to the bottom of what is going wrong. At Chepstow we were all still getting wet - and their ground had gone heavy. Tintagel Queen seems to like soft ground, and has been waiting to run for a while due to a lack of it - but would she cope with this very deep ground - we were about to find out! She has all the mental attributes to do so, she is a very sensible and solid individual, but she is also a very tall girl, and we did wonder wether she was physically equipped to be seen at her best. With Sean Bowen having to ride one for his family, Lewis Stones once again got the leg up - he has done all the work on her at home, and very much deserved to get on her again - he really likes her! The plan was to jump out handy and travel away where she was comfortable - as it happened she found herself in second place for most of the journey and perfectly placed to launch an attack when the race started in earnest. As they quickened she picked up nicely, but was always booked for second until the leader started to pull herself up with 100 yards to go - TQ rallied and actually went ahead by a fraction a few strides from the line only for the eventual winner to rally and beat her a short head. As winning trainer Harry Fry said to me yesterday - if we had have won, it would have been theft! He did confirm that he likes the winner and felt that she would be winning plenty of races - so to go down by the minimum distance to her was a fair run by TQ and she is another of our youngsters that has a very bright future ahead of her! What a bunch we have! Very exciting! TQ has come out of the race well, and will now head off for her summer holiday next month. We have always really liked her, and the softly softly approach, will as always, reap rewards down the line! 

Mamoon Star

Tintagel Queen pre race

Nearly nicked it! 

Walking in - I think those colours needed a wash! 

Tintagel Queen will be better again after a summers break!

It was a very long and wet drive home - not pleasant - glad to get back and dry out a 9.00pm! 

Friday I had a bit of a trip out - over to Hereford to see Pauls horse run in the opener. She has been very disappointing to be fair - she was bought to go juvenile hurdling but an injury to a hind leg sustained on the flat meant that she never got to run in those, and her exploits since have been less than inspiring. She did run into third on Friday - and it was a small step in the right direction - she has certainly regressed from her runs on the flat in France where she was finishing within 5 lengths of subsequent Group 1 winners, maybe her injury has affected her - not sure - but whatever the reason she is a bit of a shadow of her former self. It was actually nice to go racing and not be 'at work' for once, a really good afternoon. 

The good mood was checked on the trip back though when I got a message from Louise at The Elms who had been trying to get hold of me as we travelled through the 'black hole' between Hereford and Worcester. When I finally got enough signal I called her to find out that Savingforvegas was haemorrhaging and that she was taking her to the vets in Newmarket. The foal she is carrying was fine and was in no danger, but they were not sure where the blood was coming from and what had caused it. That put a dampener on the afternoon! The latest news is that she had ruptured a varicose vein internally, and they did stop the bleed - the only worry now is how the foal passes the affected area, without rupturing the vein again when it is ready to come into the world. We will know more in the next day or two - at this stage mum and foal are fine, they remain in the vets in Newmarket, and we will devise a plan for foaling when the vets have had another look at the situation next week. She may have to go to the vets to foal, so she is in the right place to deal with any problems that could arise from her giving birth. 

Saturday and we headed down to Newbury for the Goffs UK Spring Sale Bumper. The 'Jump Boys' chance to win a Theault Horsebox for six months. This race is the Worlds richest bumper, and the horsebox is given by Andy and Claire of Atacanter Horseboxes as part of the prize. The four of us were treated to a lovely lunch, and plenty of liquid refreshment throughout the afternoon - and once again it was a really good fun time! We stayed in the Lodge which is yards from the O&T Entrance, - a functional place to stay - not flash, but clean and tidy. We ate out in town last night- a really good find - Turkish - the Turkuaz Restaurant and Bar in the Market Place - lots of tasty meat - oh - and more beer and a lot more laughs! 

Another little visit to the Royal Box in Newbury! 

On the trip down it was good to chat to Donald McCain and get an update on Dino Bellagio. He was very lame last Saturday - but nothing came to light, and after a couple of days on the easy list he was back being ridden later in the week. He seems fine - and they are just taking things a day at a time with him. His setback has put a bit of a spanner in the works with regard to his target race in Aintree on Grand National day - but we will keep everything crossed that he is OK going forward - at this stage last weekends lameness remains a bit of a mystery!

Dino up to his usual tricks! Sit tight Charlie! 

The rest of today will be spent writing race reports from the last week and getting them out to owners and syndicate members. This is something we started in lockdown so that all indiviuals were getting all of the information after a race - a full debrief - and we have carried it on from there as we feel that it is the best way to ensure that everyone is kept fully in the loop and that each individual is receiving the same information - communication is the key! 

Tomorrow we head off to Wincanton - and then Tuesday we finally have a runner somewhere local - Greyval in Huntingdon! 

Hopefully we will be telling you about more winners next week - until then - go and buy shares in paracetamol - I will be cornering the market this afternoon!