forum.sports-pro.co.uk

[jennywales]

Welcome to a new series of Through the Bins, now that the NH season has started pretty much in earnest

AUTUMN GLORY, JUMPING STORY

It’s a odd feeling – you’ve gone through the summer watching the rain fall and the wind blow, very pretty horses running very quickly without meeting anything remotely resembling an obstacle and in between, possibly, some sunshine (we English almost always start off with something about the weather!) Then one day, without really having noticed it, we’re getting into the car quite early on an autumn morning, chucking in our bag with a few clothes, our binoculars, a notebook and a pocket tape recorder, and setting off to…..Ludlow.

As it happens, Ludlow is one of my favourite courses. It is small. It is friendly. It has a lovely view out to Clee Hill (and if you have time you can visit Stokesay Manor before racing, an extraordinary mediaeval castle whose overhanging upper storey, like the prow of a large ship – an aircraft carrier, perhaps, - juts out over the Shropshire lowlands, guarding the pass between Clee Hill and the Long Mynd. It is full of local farmers. It is absent loud stag dos, cackling hen parties, or “ladies” dressed in inappropriate flimsies. It is also the first of my local courses where “proper”, i.e. not summer, jumping starts – Hereford in September is pushing it, in my view. But mid-October, the leaves are turning, it’s a lovely blue-sky day but there’s a wee bite in the wind, is a proper start to the proper jumping season.

So off I went to Ludlow (any of you of a poetic nature, please read Housman’s “Ludlow Fair”). On another Housman note, the “blue remembered hills” of the “Shropshire Lad” really are blue, particularly if you go up the Long Mynd. Whether they are “remembered” is another thing, but they are by me, if only when October comes around!

And now, after the travelogue, here is some racing!

The first, a mares’ only novice hurdle, was marred to start with by the fact that Marsh Court, in a complete strop, cast herself to the ground twice, by the simple expedient of throwing herself over backwards, before being successfully mounted (again!) and going to post, when she raced OK but was really never in it (not surprising, considering, and hats off to Tom O’Brien, who when she chucked herself down – it was, literally, chucking herself down, not rearing – for the second time looked to have been sat on, but still remounted and got her to the start in reasonable order). Who knows what is in the mind of another (mare)? There was a nice grey mare in the race (I am fond of grey mares!), Silivri trained by Richard Lee, who I hoped would do reasonably well (she didn’t), and one of Victor Dartnalls’ (Oscarvail) who looked pretty decent in the paddock and who I thought ditto – no luck with either of them though, but Oscarvail did get 3rd and kept my placepot (one of the, the others disappeared without trace!) alive. Race won by Tootsie Too, unexpectedly, to a great cheer because it was owned and trained locally…

The next, the selling hurdle, was effectively impossible to unpick from a betting point of view. And this view was vindicated by the fact that two fell at the fourth, badly hampering the favourite Goldan Jess, who was immediately pulled up, and leaving the field open for a long-price winner, Art Modern, who duly took advantage when McCoy’s mount, Vincenzio (which, naturally, I had backed) fell at the last. All were OK, though, which was by far the best thing to come out of that race (and the last lurking placepot disappeared into the afternoon at that point, too….)

The handicap chase looked as though it was going to be a hottish contest – and so proved. In the paddock beforehand I was much taken with the Twiston-Davies entry, Bermuda Pointe, who is a strapping chestnut who actually looks like an old fashioned chaser, which makes a nice change. Several promising and middle range horses ran in this, and I am afraid (or not!) that I deserted Bermuda Pointe (who should win a race fairly soon, particularly if the handicapper drops him a few pounds for his fourth here) for McCoy’s De Soto, who did it well, jumping pretty fluently and with a typical McCoy ride sitting relaxed in 3rd/4th for most of the way before taking it up smoothly two out. This one belongs to Gay Smith (of Black Jack Ketchum “fame”) and if Jonjo doesn’t manage to mess him up should have a decent enough career, although I’m not sure he has the quality to progress much further than his current level – we shall see though. Richard Lee’s Potts of Magic got second with a valiant effort, and I can see him winning a small one in the not too distant, if the handicapper doesn’t do that silly thing and put him up pounds for placing.

I found it impossible to sort out the handicap hurdle for some reason (I am normally OK at these), and stuck a couple of speculative quid on a rank outsider (Norman Beckett). However this race did throw up one to watch, Archimboldo, who ran as if he were out on morning exercise, never faltered or made a mistake, and came home to win by 6 lengths, which could have been 16 had Adam Pogson bothered to ride him out. He didn’t need to, however, and he never even let his reins out. Won “with head in chest” as they say, and will do it again fairly soon, I’d guess.

I’m not going to say much about the juvenile maiden hurdle (well, why would I?) except that I backed a ratty-looking thing of Charlie Swan’s who sweated in the paddock, looked like a polo pony, and ran in front for a mile whereupon he said “OK, had enough of this” (or perhaps “OK, I’ve won, hooray”), and pulled himself up. Force and Motion is the name, and as he exhibited neither should be ignored next time out, when he will probably win at an enormous price and pay Charlies’ feed bills for the year! I was, actually, peed off big style because I had picked out the winner (Rock Me) in the morning, as it was Don Cantillon’s (apparent) second string, and I suspect a decent gamble was landed.

I was particularly asked to have a look at the Elite Racing Club’s Sherbet Lemon. I didn’t get to see much of her because she was very late in (ditto into pre-parade). I have to say, without wishing to cast a blight on the aspirations of any Club members on here, that the most positive description I can give is “pleasant looking”. She is clearly still growing and needs to fill out a bit. She is long for her height, but this should put itself right with time. But she didn’t look as if she had enough fizz for sherbet, (though that is also a positive, because a decent calm temperament in a filly makes up for a lot). I couldn’t see much to criticise in her conformation, but nor could I see much to praise. She moved OK, walked straight, was without visible defect of any kind, and had a pretty head. She handled the racecourse quite OK and held her end up when it came to the race. She was never really in contention but she certainly did not disgrace herself, and her jumping was sound.

The next was notable for the fact that Young Tot failed yet again to get his head in front. This poor lad has had a string of 2nds since he moved from pointing to hunter chasing and chasing “proper”. And he now added a 3rd to that list (which also includes a u/r). I feel really sorry for him, he tries and tries, he jumps well, he travels, and yet he just cannot seem to win. In this case he ran second to Fort Augustus, who blazed off in front and when the latter gave up the ghost halfway through was left in front by lengths and simply could not hold on against a determined challenge by The Jolly Spoofer, with King Ali just getting his head in front for 2nd. I wonder whether trying to hold him up might do the trick, or cheekpieces, or blinkers, or softer going, or a longer race, or a shorter one, or honourable retirement……He is 10, after all. Maybe he should go back to pointing and hunter chasing, where he is clearly much more at home.

And now to the jolly bumper. Won by Deep Squeeze, a Lucy Gardner ride, trained by Mum, and she saw off McCoy on the hottish favourite in a driving finish. It must be a great feeling for an amateur to beat McCoy like that. Deep Squeeze is an Accordion gelding, and is only 5, so we may be seeing a bit more of him in days to come. I backed Poppy Parade of Twiston-Davies’s, and she got a decent enough 3rd.

So I left the course with my pocket a bit emptier than when I arrived, but what the heck – and I’ve still got two days of Cheltenham in which to recover my fortunes. Best of all, jumping is back in business – so good luck to all for the season, and may all the horses and jockeys come back safe and sound.


©  Jennywales 2008