New Year - New Horses!
I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas. Despite it being Christmas Day on Wednesday – there was still plenty going on – we had two runners on Boxing Day – and squeezed in a stud visit to see the team at The Elms as well.
The week started with me sat in the office tracking declarations for Boxing Day. Dino Bellagio had a couple of entries in Market Rasen and Sedgefield, and Old Blue Eyes was in the concluding bumper on Aintree’s card. After chatting with Donald, we decided to declare Dino Bellagio in Market Rasen where he would tackle 2m4f for the first time, and Old Blue Eyes would take on tougher opposition, carrying a penalty for his debut win in the Aintree bumper. Having informed relevant syndicate members and owners, I jumped in the car and headed over to meet Steve at The Elms. Steve has a couple of interests at The Elms – he recently purchased a foal which he has sent there to board, and he has also joined me in breeding from Savingforvegas this time round. It has been a busy year for Steve, and it was good to catch up with him for a couple of hours as we walked round with Louise and looked at the stock. The two of them even witnessed my athletic prowess as I was seen to run – yes run - and not fall over!! Anyway – rest assured the running was very much a necessity – disaster averted!! All the horses looked really well – Savingforvegas is blooming in pregnancy as she always does – she is in foal to Nirvan du Berlais this time round, and both Steve and I are very much looking forward to seeing what we have when she foals in March. Thus far she has produced an incredible 6 bay colts from 6 foals – with Nirvana du Berlais and herself both being very strong chesnuts – the chance of another bay are very slim – and it would be incredible if the seventh is also a colt – so we are preparing ourselves for a chesnut filly!
Steves new purchase has settled in well and is doing great.
Steve and the weanling fillys
The boys are also in fine fettle. Floyd (Falco x Savingforvegas) who turns 3 on NYD is a lovely young horse, he is the spitting image of his year older half brother ‘Barry’ who is currently in pre training with Jason Maguire – hopefully he has his ability! Finbar (Falco x Molly Childers) although also rising 3 is not quite as big as ‘Floyd’ but is extremely athletic – and very tough – he will be ideal for Junior Bumpers in the autumn of 2025, and there will be a very limited number of shares available to purchase in him in the summer.
Finbar
Floyd
‘George’ (Golden Horn x Savingforvegas) is a lovely yearling – he will turn 2 on NYD and will head down to Jason and the team in the spring of 2025 to be broken in and start his journey to being a racehorse. He is developing very nicely, with plenty of substance about him. Given the quality of his sire, and the 100% winner producing record of his dam – he is a young horse that surely has a cracking future!
'George'
Sadly, having chatted on the run up to the visit about having lunch afterwards – it didn’t happen – I had a little too much to do in the afternoon – organising badges etc for Boxing Day etc. So, we will save lunch for our next catch up! One other bit of work that needed doing on Monday afternoon was to inform Chevelle’s owners that the wait to see her back on the track was nearly over and that she had been entered in the fillies maiden juvenile hurdle in Doncaster on Sunday. The videos of her recent schooling and work had been very good – she is a filly that has always shown a huge amount of speed, but she got a fright at the first on her hurdles debut, and just when Johnny was getting her going and she was gaining confidence, her wind started to catch her out, and in the end she could only run on one paced for a distance 9th place. On the back of a wind op she has been working great and it would be good to see her out again!
Later in the day as I was looking through the declarations for Boxing Day I noticed that not only did we have our two homebreds out of Savingforvegas declared to run on the same day, but remarkably she had a third of her sons, One Eye On Vegas declared to run in a handicap hurdle in Aintree as well! I have seen a mare have two of her progeny run on the same day before, but I can’t recall ever seeing a mare have three running on the same day. It may have happened, but if it has it is very rare! For all three to win it would really be a ‘Christmas Miracle’!!
On Tuesday I discovered that even with online shopping there are men (and I can say men – as they all were men) who leave their Christmas Shopping until the very last minute on Christmas Eve! It was a busy day sorting shares in the Red Sash Racing Club – the very last one was being processed at 7.00pm in the evening! That is cutting it a bit fine – even by my standards! In between RSRC registrations I managed to get the remainder of my presents wrapped and the car washed – a productive day!
Josh Moore did call to chat about Cloud Dancer who has come out if his win in Doncaster really well – so well in fact that Josh called to say that him and his Dad had been discussing running plans for CD and had decided that they would like to have a crack at the Sussex Stayers Hurdle in Plumpton on January 5th. A £75,000 contest, that they feel is worth having a go at. As I said to Josh ‘Was I ever going to say no to having a go at a share of £75k?’ The only slight concern would be the track – I think he is better suited to a big galloping track like Doncaster, but he has run OK at Plumpton in the past and the prize money is very tempting! He will of course only run if he is in the weights proper and will have the entry!
Christmas Day – would be a quiet one for us. A lovely Christmas surprise was a piece in the Racing Post that was published on Christmas morning. They had picked up on the social media post that I had put out and run a feature about Savingforvegas and her three sons running on Boxing Day. The paper had not been in touch, so it was a lovely surprise to see the ‘Old Girl’ in the Bloodstock News in the paper!
Savingforvegas and Old Blue Eyes
Savingforvegas and Dino Bellagio
Savingforvegas and Old Blue Eyes
Boxing Day arrived, two runners at two different meetings – I headed up to Aintree for Old Blue Eyes and Cheryl would make her way up to Market Rasen to host those in Dino Bellagio’s syndicate that would be going racing. It was a foggy drive up north, with the fog only getting thicker as I neared Liverpool. The weather had not stopped Fergus and Gary from making the trip over from Cork once again! A mammoth effort – which involved a 1.30am alarm! That is pure dedication! It was also good to meet Rachel and Jim Davis for the first time. Through her nephew Alex, Rachel had purchased the last share in Old Blue Eyes for husband Jim’s Christmas/Birthday present – it would be his first racehorse, and this would be their first day at the races as owners. We spoilt them with a trip to Aintree! It is safe to say they didn’t see much racing, the fog was that thick that I am surprised the meeting went ahead, in fact if it had not been a Grade 1 day at a Grade 1 track on Boxing Day, I don’t think it would have! Such a shame for those that paid to be there!
It was not much better at Market Rasen, but at least racegoers could see the vast majority of the races – if only on the big screen! Dino Bellagio was tackling 2m4f for the first time – with ear plugs applied last time out – he looked like he settled very well, and was doing all of his best work at the end of the race. That performance, and his very stout pedigree led us to stepping him up in trip for the first time. Theo Gillard took the ride. The one thing that we would have to do – with an increased emphasis on stamina for the first time would be to hold him up, which is never ideal at Market Rasen. Theo got him settled beautifully in rear and jumping well. As they rounded the top bend it looked like he was going to play a part in the finish, but he couldn’t sustain his effort, and his race was soon run. Theo reported that he felt that Dino didn’t stay the trip, and we should drop him back to 2 miles next time. We had watched the race on phones in Aintree, and Donald was slightly puzzled – Dino has so much speed and ability that it is almost impossible for a dual bumper winner to run the way he is! Dino will revert to 2m next time – with different tactics and probably the application of some headgear – we just have to find the key to him, but when we do, he will be very hard to peg back!
Dino pre race
Coming back in
With the other sibling – One Eye On Vegas finishing fifth earlier on the Aintree card it was over to third one to rescue the day! Old Blue Eyes carrying a winners penalty, and pitched in against some pretty tasty rivals looked really well in the paddock. He is a chilled out individual and took all the prelims in his stride. After he left the paddock, that was basically the last we saw of him until he pulled up after the line – there was no way of knowing how he went to post our how he actually ran in the race, apart from a couple of brief glimpses on the big screen – we were completely at a loss to what was happening out on the track. After the race Brian reported that OBE had still been babyish and green on the way to post – when the tapes went up, he settled in mid division out wide on better ground as planned and travelled well. As the pace lifted, he was the last one off of the bridle, and when Brian pressed the button and asked him to pick up, he did so, but could not maintain his run on what had become very deep ground. When he knew that he was not going to trouble the judge, Brian put his stick down and just eased him home to finish the last of the six runners. This will turn out to be a very classy race, and I am sure that all six runners have a very nice future ahead of them. To be beaten an eased down 13 lengths with a penalty in that company was not a bad run. With Brian saying that OBE had failed to handle the deep ground – he will now have a nice long break and be back in calmer waters on some better ground in the spring.
Owners in the paddock
A long day for the men from Cork!
Old Blue Eyes post race
Boxing Day also saw entries for a couple for New Years Day – Itchy Feet in Cheltenham, Tintagel Queen in Exeter and Donald popped Ridin Solo in a race in Catterick. Itchy Feet had not been declared in Wincanton on Boxing Day – instead he would head to Cheltenham on NYD. IF has been off games since the turn of the year – nothing serious, just a minor injury that needed time – so it will be good to see him back on track. He will most certainly come on for this run – Olly has a plan for him going forward, but he certainly seems to retain all of his old enthusiasm at home and is loving his training! Tintagel Queen, also entered in Uttoxeter on the 31st is back on track after a mysterious occurrence last time out when she stopped very quickly, and Sean Bowen thought she had suffered a nasty injury. Thankfully that was not the case and after a short time she came sound and resumed training as normal, She has not missed a beat since, but there has been a lack of suitable races for her. She needs a big galloping track, soft ground and mares company – and races of that nature are just not on the calendar – Olly had entered her in a maiden hurdle in Uttoxeter in case it cut up, and she was now entered in a handicap in Exeter – again it is not an ideal race for her – but she has the entry and we can discuss things nearer declarations. The good news is that she is ready to run again!
Donald was another one throwing an entry in ‘just in case it cut up.’ He had popped Ridin Solo in a novices hurdle in Catterick. Donald had decided to give Ridin Solo a few easy days as he had run up a bit light after his last run in Sedgefield but couldn’t resist spending more of my money and entering him in this. It is very unlikely that he will run, but he is very fresh and well and it will not be long before he is back out racing!
Friday – Alan King on early – Rockola, a winner last time out was ready to run again, and he had spied a suitable race for her in Huntingdon on Jan 2nd. Rockola is a light framed mare, and not one that you can run back quickly – so she has had plenty of time between races. We believe that there is still some scope in her revised handicap mark and that she should run very well should she take up the Huntingdon engagement. Alan also gave an update on And She Was, who is very well and will be making her debut very soon. She had been entered in Newbury before Christmas, but that race had come a couple of weeks too soon for her, so she had not been declared. She will have an entry in Ludlow on January 6th.
Chevelle was declared in Doncaster on December 29th – a 2m fillies juvenile maiden hurdle, a race we have targeted in the past. Chevelle had been schooling very well, and working great after a wind op. Like her owners, I was keen to see what she would do after having her wind done, and having schooled so well – she has some fair form in France and had proved a natural from day 1 over an obstacle – but got a fright at the first on hurdles debut and the extra time schooling will have not done her any harm.
Saturday – you know what they say about ‘Best laid plans’. After getting all excited about seeing Chevelle in Doncaster, Fergal phoned to say that a routine scope and trach wash had returned some very poor results, and she would not be able to run! A bit of a blow to say the least – but if they are not well, they can’t run. It has been no secret that the team at Ravenswell have been struggling for form for some time – the horses are showing signs of recurring sickness, that they are having to deal with – constant monitoring – only running the ones that are testing clear. As a result, their stats have taken a hit – but to achieve what they have done under the circumstances is nothing short of a miracle and a testament to the hard work of everyone at the yard. It is always frustrating when your horses get caught up in the back wash of a bug going round a yard, but they always come out the other side, usually well handicapped and primed to the minute. Once again – this job is all about being patient. Another one with a below par set of test results was Intrepide Sud who was due to go to Taunton tomorrow, like Chevelle he will have a couple of weeks on the easy list and be back in the new year.
I also caught up with Olly Murphy and chatted about plans for Itchy Feet who would definitely be heading to Cheltenham on NYD. Olly will run two in the race, and Sean will decide who to ride nearer the time. If he choses Olly’s other runner we talked about getting Gavin Sheehan for Itchy – he did win a Grade 1 on him afterall. We also talked about Tintagel Queens entries – Olly is really happy with her but felt that the races that he had her in had not fallen as he had hoped and that he would be trying to ‘put a square peg in a round hole’ trying to run her. The maiden hurdle in Uttoxeter was against the geldings and looked like a warm heat – she would bypass that – and he was far from sure about the suitability of the Exeter heat as well. I have had a good look through the programme book and there are a few more suitable (on paper) races for her in the first 10 days of January so we may just wait for one of those.
Sunday – as I type – TQ has not been declared in Uttoxeter on Tuesday as planned, but Olly has just sent a video update of Itchy Feet who had a canter this morning ahead of his outing in Cheltenham.
That just about sums up Christmas week!
We wish you all a very Happy New Year – sadly the packed racing calendar and the need to stay close to home has put pay to our little break away with friends – such a shame as it is a few days that I really look forward to every year!
I hope to see you all on the track or at a yard very soon – 2025 looks like being another busy year – we will have four three year olds joining the racing team – a gorgeous gelding by The Grey Gatsby, the two homebreds by Falco who are at The Elms – as mentioned there will be a very small numbers of shares for sale in Finbar – Floyd will be syndicated but we will wait and see how he pre trains this summer to see how/when we do that – and of course we have the gorgeous half sister to Hidden Beauty who will be syndicated and head into training with Fergal O’Brien in the summer after pre training with Jason Maguire. If you are interested in a share in any of these lovely horses, please get in touch – 07909 518902 or email nickbrownracing@gmail.com
Here’s to a happy, successful and fun 2025!!
