A Knight's chivalric retirement

Yesterday Henrietta Catherine Knight called time on a training career that saw her win three consecutive Gold Cups with Best Mate (2002-4) and the 2000 Champion Chase with Edredon Bleu; owned by Jim Lewis, those horses also won the King George VI Chase for her in 2002 and 2003.

Knight came into racing through a somewhat circuitous route.

Having gained her BEd (Oxon) qualification at Westminster College, Oxford, she taught biology and history at St Mary's School, Wantage, before embarking on a career trainng racehorses. Her first winner under rules was The Grey Gunner at Bangor-On-Dee in 1989, Bruce Dowling up; in 1995 she married former jockey Terry Biddlecombe and the partnership went to the very top of the profession, becoming affectionately known as racing's 'Odd Couple'.

In November 2005 stable star Best Mate collapsed and died of a suspected heart attack after being pulled up in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter. The quest to find a replacement was doomed to fail and led to a split with ambitious Jim Lewis.

Biddlecombe suffered a stroke in 2011 - it's Terry's continued ill health that is behind Hen's decision to hand in her licence. The vast majority of horses will transfer to Mick Channon who trains nearby at West Ilsley.

Over the years I came to associate the yard with well-schooled novice chasers, with a preference for using riders you'd lean to calling horsemen rather than jockeys. A couple of personal memories from the gaff tracks ...

Young Warrior (Bruce Dowling) won me some money one sodden New Year's Day at Exeter in the early nineties. There had been a market move for a horse of David Elsworth's, Seven Of Diamonds, and that one came to win the race but took a heavy fall at the last. Young Warrior collected but Seven Of Diamonds spent a fair while on the floor before eventually rising to a round of applause from the enclosures.

Another run that sticks in my mind is that of Blowing Rock (Jim Culloty) in a novices' handicap chase at Hereford in October 1998. We'd taken 9/2 and the horse had jumped well, gaining ground over his opponents at most of the obstacles. Three out Culloty sent the Strong Gale gelding on; the form book reads '... 5 lengths clear and in control when fell last, unlucky...'

Hen is set to have her final runner in next few days; it could be Harvest Song, owned by HRH The Queen, entered up in the 2.30 at Newton Abbot on Wednesday. That would be some finale - in Derby week, Hen Knight trains winner for The Queen - at Newton Abbot!

Bits and pieces...

 Regular readers will know that Cheltenham was something of an unmitigated disaster for yours truly this year but a couple more points come to mind... Full marks to Ruby Walsh on two scores. Firstly, Walsh, who had dropped his whip just before the final flight in the World Hurdle, knew Big Buck's had saved his bacon and told it exactly as it was in the post-race interviews; secondly, the same jockey made a particular point of going to congratulate Gold Cup winning rider Sam Waley-Cohen as the horses circled waiting to return to the unsaddling enclosures. Well done Ruby Walsh on both counts.

The latest Cheltenham fashions included horse shoes that look like hooves which were available for purchase at £1,300 a pair. The latest extreme-sports craze is apparently 'horse-boarding' where a competitor stands on a skateboard and is pulled by horse at speeds up to 35 mph!

The best bit of news I heard at the this year's Festival - a colleague had recently purchased an annual membership badge at Hereford for just £100. With 19 fixtures scheduled throughout the year, that works out at £5.26 per meet - what a bargain!

The Daily Telegraph boasts a long, proud tradition of horse racing coverage and clearly Martin Smith has been delving into the their archives. Kings, Queens & Four-Legged Athletes: The Daily Telegraph Book Of Horse Racing was published recently and recalls many a memorable racing occasion. Available from Amazon at £13.79, free postage & packing thrown in.

Finally I have a confession to make. I'm not quite sure but I think I'm starting to develop a crush on the teacher taking Paddy Power's adult education class, in much the same way as Peter Kay has a fancy for Clare from work. Maffs has never been one of my stronger subjects (nor spellng for that matter), so I thought I'd join Victor (Meldrew?) and William (Hague?) and ask for the extra lessons. Of course, it's highly unlikely such classes, held weekly in Room 6B, will ever result in any improvement in the quality of the tips published here, but I'll let you know how I get on anyway.

Racing bytes

Imperial Commander took the Betfair Chase in impressive fashion at Haydock yesterday. Coral has taken a stance betting 11/8 Kauto Star 13/2 Imperial Commander for the King George on Boxing Day; Long Run is generally available at 7/1. Earlier today Sam Twiston-Davies' burgeoning career took another giant step forward when Hello Bud collected the Becher Handicap Chase but, speaking personally, this weekend's stand-out performance was Silviniaco Conti's facile victory in the Coral Hurdle at Ascot; layers quote Paul Nicholls' four-year-old at 14s for the Champion Hurdle and 10s for the World Hurdle at Cheltenham next March.

Two older members of the training fraternity have been in the news over the past few days. On Thursday Reg Brown, 89, saddled Tiptronic to take Hereford's opening juvenile hurdle at odds of 100/1 (112.3/1 on the Tote) while Michael Banks, a mere youngster by comparison at the age of 70, was inclined to blame the ground for the defeat of the well-fancied Clerk's Choice in yesterday's four-year-old hurdle at Haydock.

Matt Crawley put in a superb round of riding at Musselburgh on Friday aboard Lastroseofsummer. In the course of the race the rider lost both irons and then the saddle slipped but the seven pound claimer kept the partnership intact to win the Scottish Mares' Maiden Hurdle at odds of 11/2. Pulling up proved slightly more difficult - the mare unceremoniously dumped the jock on the turf after they'd passed the winning post. Something of a lady's prerogative, I suppose...

Adapted from a piece in last Monday's Times which looked at family ties in racing... Niall "Boots" Madden could finish no better than fifth in the Grand National but son Niall "Slippers" Madden won the 2006 running of the great race aboard Numbersixvalverde. 12-year-old brother Tom "Socks" Madden is now cutting his teeth in pony races... [Socks and Teeth? What's all that about?]

Finally, I see Irish point winner Kilcrea Kim takes on seasoned handicappers in the Gwynne Price Handicap Hurdle at Ffos Las tomorrow. The novice beat Drill Sergeant eight lengths on his seasonal debut which looks decent enough form but the chestneut gelding is priced up 7/4 favourite in the tissue this evening which doesn't make much appeal at all.

Festive fare

The only thing that makes Christmas half-bearable is the racing on Boxing Day. Last night somebody who clearly has little regard for their own money asked me for an each-way outsider in the King George; I came up with 20/1 chance Snoopy Loopy. I figured if connections have stumped up £10k to supplement the horse, they must think it has some sort of chance. Previous King George winner and current favourite Kauto Star will generate plenty of press interest. However his stablemate and Gold Cup winner Denman has a surprise entry in the 2.55 hurdle race at Wincanton on the same day; teletext reports a decision regarding his participation will be taken on Tuesday. In the meantime, if you're in desperate need of rescue from the whole horror of Christmas, I recommend ploughing through the Boxing Day declarations to see if you can spot a cunning plot; should you happen to stumble upon one, please let me know.

Many will think that within the space of half an hour at Ascot on Saturday they saw the next Champion and World Hurdle winners in Binocular and Punchestowns. After winning on Binocular McCoy had a dig at the BBC's proposed coverage cuts with a quip that the only chance viewers would have to see the horse again would be on Top Gear.

A couple of midweek results caught my eye. Bannister Lane bounced back to form to win the three and three quarter mile handicap chase at Bangor on Wednesday while Ron Hodges' Dream Falcon was backed in from 20/1 to 7/1 before taking the two and a half mile novices' handicap chase at Ludlow on Thursday. At Ascot on Friday Medermit and Dee Ee Williams fought out a thrilling finish but perhaps the horse to note was Wendel who had every chance coming to the last; that form represents a big improvement on his previous two wins at Plumpton. Quoting Charlie Mann in the Weekender - "I have some very nice novice hurdlers this season and I think he could be the best of them." Earlier in the season Black Jacari was touted as a possible Triumph Hurdle hope but the horse has patently failed to deliver; he runs with first-time blinkers applied in a Class 4 juvenile novice hurdle at Hereford tomorrow.

It might be Christmas but the press still likes nothing better than a bad news story - they've been hinitng for a few weeks now that ten household High Street names are in danger of going to the wall in 2009. I wonder if William Hill is one of those ten names. And, finally, a phrase to strike fear into the heart of any sports administrator is 'suspicious betting patterns'. Last week snooker came under the spotlight...