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Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In May

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In May - Two Out of Three Ain't Bad!

Pinot Rouge

What a way to kick off the season! I'm practically bouncing around the yard this morning after our brilliant day at Hexham yesterday. Two winners out of three runners – as Meatloaf would say, "two out of three ain't bad!" Though honestly, after the way things went, I'm feeling pretty greedy and thinking we deserved the hat-trick.

Let me tell you about our star of the day – Buddy. Now, if you know anything about this horse, you'll understand why his full name is Wotyoudunnow Buddy. He's had more "moments" than a temperamental teenager, bless him. But his owners, Chris and Gary, have been absolute saints with their patience. They've stuck by him through thick and thin, and yesterday it all paid off.

The seller he was entered in was red-hot. On paper, the favourite was about 39 pounds better rated than us – that's like bringing a knife to a gunfight! But Nathan gave him the most beautiful ride, and when Buddy was headed in the home straight, something magical happened. Instead of throwing in the towel like he might have done before, he dug deep and battled back to win. I nearly cried watching from the stands!

Of course, being a seller meant he'd go through the auction ring afterwards. With a name like Wotyoudunnow Buddy, I was crossing everything that no one would bid – can you imagine trying to explain that name to new owners?

Thankfully, nobody was brave enough to take him on, so he's staying put with us. He'll be out again soon, and I have a feeling this could be the making of him.

Johnny Dogs was our disappointment of the day – but don't write him off yet. He absolutely hated that ground, pulling faces like he was walking through treacle. We're heading to a flat track next time, where I suspect he'll show his true colours.

Atomic Angel

Then there was our little star, Atomic Angel. Edward gave her the most positive ride – though that wasn't exactly the plan we'd discussed beforehand! Sometimes these jockeys get ideas of their own, but fair play to him, it worked.

She flew under the radar for most of the race, only to have that sneaky Better Be Definite come at her in the final furlong. But like Buddy, she showed real heart and battled on to win. I'm seriously thinking of starting an Atomic Angel fan club – she's just such a character.

We've got a new arrival in the yard too – a gorgeous colt called Clyde by Sciparelli. He's out of our homebred Ebony Rose, who won one of the first Northern series races at Carlisle before becoming one of our foundation mares.

The Nelson Racing Club are the lucky owners, and I have high hopes for this one. We might soon be joined by Toarmandowithlove, Joker's dam, who's currently visiting Vendangeur – the same sire as our very own Pinot Rouge. The breeding side of things is getting really exciting.

A gorgeous colt called Clyde by Sciparelli

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In May - Holidays

It was love at first sight! We've formed a new four-way partnership with some brilliant new people – welcome to the madhouse, Andy and Mike! And huge thanks to our stalwarts Ron and Sheila for never giving up on us.

Some of the horses are starting their summer holidays now, getting turned out to grass to recharge their batteries. But most of the team are staying in work a bit longer, while our flat horses start limbering up for their season. I was chuffed to see that Infinite Honour's form got a real boost yesterday – the horse that beat him when he finished third at Wetherby went and won at Hamilton by four lengths. That's always satisfying when your form gets "franked" like that.

We do have a bit of a mystery with Kaidu, though. He's been stopping very suddenly in his races, which is completely out of character. We're investigating what might be causing it, but these things can be real puzzles to solve.

This week, we've got Pinot Rouge heading to Kelso on Wednesday for a novice hurdle. It might be a bit sharp for her, and the ground isn't as soft as she'd prefer, but she needs the education. Sometimes you have to take your chances with an improving horse, and Stu and Steve are happy to give it a go. Edward Austin will be in the saddle.

Clear Angel has entries at Chester, Nottingham and Haydock – we're studying the entries carefully to pick the right spot for her. Les's Legacy is pencilled in for Hexham on the 11th for the Tweed Valley Racing Club, which should be a lovely day out.

Don't forget to mark your calendars – we've got our Owners Open Day coming up on August 4th, followed by National Racehorse Week on September 7th, and of course, our Christmas party on December 14th.

We have various fundraising events throughout the year and we should soon find out how much we have raised this season - can we beat last season? Watch this space to find out!

Summer Has Arrived and Everything Changes!

Horses out enjoying the sunshine

What a difference the weather makes! It's properly summer now – warm, sunny, and absolutely gorgeous. The horses that aren't living out full-time are absolutely loving their post-work field time. You can see it in their faces when they get turned out after morning exercise – pure bliss!

Our new colt is now out in the field with his mum, Ebony Rose, living his best foal life. Tomorrow they'll join our other two mares and foals, creating quite the little nursery group. All the youngsters have been microchipped and registered now – it's mad to think we've got four years to wait before they're ready to join our racing team! But honestly, there isn't a bad one among them. The fillies are by Kingston Hill and the colt by Schiaparelli – the future's looking bright.

This week was special for another reason – we had our team night out on Tuesday! I invited everyone who helps our world go around: the vets, admin staff, jockeys, and of course, all the yard team. I did a presentation about the Girsonfield Stud and Racing  and where we'd come from, where we are now, and our exciting plans for next year. I told Josh beforehand it was £5 for every heckle – funnily enough, it went quite smoothly after that! A massive thanks to all the owners who helped pay the bill – the staff really do appreciate all the kindness you show them, from bacon butties to nights out and all the chocolate in between.

Can you believe this is our 10th season? It feels like a lifetime, but I'm incredibly proud of the horses we have for the coming 12 months and the amazing support I get from all of you.

Jamie's CV is getting quite impressive – and I'm not talking about the one written on his birth certificate! He fixed both horse walkers this week. Amazingly, we had a spare gearbox hiding in the loft, and Claydon did next-day delivery on parts for our old walker. That machine is like Trigger's broom – it's had every single part renewed over the years!

Racing this week was definitely a mixed bag, starting with some tough decisions. We've made the difficult choice to retire Kaidu. He's just not finishing his races anymore, and despite our best efforts, we can't find any physical reason why. Sometimes horses just tell you they've had enough, and we have to listen. He deserves an easier life now.

I also decided to pull Pinot Rouge out of Kelso at the last minute. Although the ground was officially 'good,' neither Josh nor I were happy with it – there was no give in it whatsoever. She's now heading to Hexham instead, where they water the track much more regularly to keep it safe.

Jamie got the Nottingham trip with Clear Angel, and it was almost an action replay of his last race at Doncaster. He got stuck in traffic with not enough speed on that faster ground to squeeze through a gap, then powered on late to finish fourth, beaten just two lengths. No disgrace in a race like that – quite the opposite, really.

Meanwhile, I was at Hexham with Les's Legacy, who's been a bit disappointing this season after his mega year last year. But not yesterday! Nathan gave him a brilliant ride to finish second in a photo finish. As we won last week's photo finish, I can't be too disappointed about losing this one!

This week is absolutely massive for us – we've got five runners over four days, and the excitement is building. Perth on Wednesday sees Atomic Angel running, and she's feeling fantastic after her recent win. Charizard goes in the 0-100 handicap – he's got his official rating now, so he's finally in his proper grade.

Thursday, we’re at Perth and will try completely different tactics with Johnny Dogs. We're teaching him patience, so I'm not expecting miracles – he needs to learn how to race on the jockey's terms rather than his own. Champ Royal makes his second appearance over fences and his first for us. He's been schooling brilliantly at home, so fingers crossed!

Saturday brings Infinite Honour to Doncaster, and I'm genuinely excited about this one. The form of his last race has really stacked up – horses that finished behind him have been winning since, which always gives you confidence.

Then on Sunday, it's Dandycan at Ripon. About time he started showing what he can do!

Oh, I nearly forgot to reveal how our season’s fundraising ended – we received the loveliest letter from Cancer Research thanking us for the £1,500 we sent them. Together with the money we donated to the Children's Hospice, that's over £2,000 raised last year from you, our wonderful owners. Thank you all so much!

Someone’s coming for tea next week - read on to find out who. 

What a Crazy, Busy, Wonderful Week!

Honestly, I don't know where to start! This week has been absolutely mental – in the best possible way. It's been all go from dawn till dusk, with more twists and turns than a rollercoaster.

Tuesday at Hexham didn't quite go to plan, I'm afraid. Les's Legacy just wasn't ready – it was too soon after his first race back, and you could tell he needed more time. Buddy got completely run off his feet in a fast two-mile handicap, but both boys came home safe and sound, which is always the main thing. They'll race again soon, but definitely not too soon this time!

Then came the marathon bit – we got back from Hexham at half past ten at night, and I was up at five (well, five past – I'm not superhuman!) to head off on a mission to the Goffs sales at Doncaster. You see, these last two weeks we've retired En Meme Temps, Kaidu, and Royal Prospect, and I'm delighted to say we've found them all wonderful riding homes. But that left us with some gaps to fill in the string.

What a day at the sales! We bought lot 404 – a gorgeous five-year-old grey mare by Kingston Hill. She's run twice in point-to-points, and last time she was sixth, about nine lengths off the winner. Now here's the interesting bit – that winner was sold at the same sale for €37,000 to Stuart Coltherd, and her brother went for €33,000 after winning a point-to-point! She cost us €13,000 last July when she was unbroken, so at eight thousand, she seems like an absolute bargain. Ian and Jason (who owned En Meme Temps) are looking for people to share in her – get in touch if you're interested!

But the boys weren't finished there. Josh, Jamie, and Jason hatched a plot to buy lot 413, who'd won a point-to-point but passed out unsold for £7,000. They negotiated some brilliant terms, and we came home with two horses instead of one! He'll either be sold to stay on the yard or join the Girsonfield Racing Club – we'll decide next week.

We tried again the next day but came away empty-handed, which was probably for the best given we'd already had such a successful haul!

So now we've got some shares to sell in our new acquisition, Sunset Hill, and also some leased shares in the Cloudings gelding 'Joker.' He's being broken in now and will go into a brand new syndicate on July 1st.

Guess Who Came To Tea

Today was absolutely brilliant – we welcomed the Nelson Racing Club and other owners to meet their new colt foal and see our latest additions to the team. Rose did us proud again with her incredible buffet spread, and Ruth from Finnies Heavy Haulage (our wonderful yard sponsors) brought the most beautiful cake made by her daughter.

Julia also brought a massive cream cake, so the staff will have enough energy to power through the week! I probably shouldn't mention Angela and Les's gin contribution or the shortbread – there's a limit to what the staff can eat and drink!

More horses are being turned out to grass for their well-deserved rest, and we've got a new recruit coming for a day's trial tomorrow as we gear up for everyone coming back in July and August.

This week's racing is absolutely packed! Rogers Dream makes her debut for the New Otterburn Racing Club at Redcar over six furlongs on soft ground – it's just a starting point, so best watched rather than backed! At Carlisle on the 30th, Infinite Honour goes again after his second place at Doncaster with the same jockey, Dan Muscutt – he's got to have a real chance.

Catterick on the 31st might finally see the long-awaited debut of Jimmybegood – will he or won't he make the race? It's been touch and go! Clear Angel is entered for Doncaster the same day, but only if the ground is soft – if not, he'll wait for Wetherby on June 3rd.

Apache Angel debut at Hexham over hurdles

But here's the big one – Apache Angel goes to Hexham on June 1st for his debut over hurdles. Our failed flat horse is getting his chance to reinvent himself over obstacles. He'll need the run first time over hurdles, so it's best watched rather than expected, but as the song goes, "Patches, I'm depending on you, son..."

I'm off on holiday for a week starting the 31st, so there won't be a newsletter next week... unless I get bored, which, knowing me, is entirely possible!

But before I sign off, Apache Angel's switch to hurdles isn't just a desperate measure – could he be absolutely tailor-made for this game? The question is, how will he get on when the real test comes? We’ll find out next month.

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In April

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In March

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In February

Racing Stable Daily Life Stories In January