Only five go in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot tomorrow but it looks particularly intriguing. On ratings, there's little to choose between Workforce and Rewilding while Coolmore has surprised many by putting up trainer's son Joseph O'Brien on St Nicholas Abbey. Nathaniel has course and distance winning form and has been supplemented at a cost of £75,000; Debussy is set to act as pacemaker for Rewilding. Over the week the market has changed significantly with Workforce now a clear favourite following a favourable gallop at Newmarket on Sunday. Rewilding, with Ascot specialist Dettori in the plate, has to be the value; William Hill offered 7/2 until early afternoon but now go 3/1; 100/30 is generally available. Connections think they have found the answer to the colt's apparent inconsistency last season - he needs a break between races. Workforce flopped badly in this last year, leading some to question whether he disliked the track; trainer Sir Michael Stoute is on record saying his charge is in much better shape this year. A fascinating renewal - Rewilding gets the nod.
Continuing with a theme (Keys went in again (4/5f) earlier this afternoon), horses with NH form running over more than 12 furlongs tomorrow include:
4.05 Newcastle - Tillietudlem, Jeu De Roseau, Summerlea, Falcun, Hi Dancer, Strikemaster and Follow The Sun. Tillietudum has won novice hurdles at Perth, Bangor and Ayr by racing from the front. Jeu De Roseau has Towcester and Sedgefield handicap hurdles to his name and was beaten less than five lengths by Tillietudlem at Catterick last time; they look closely matched on the revised terms. Summerlea has his second run for new connections, having finished mid-division in a Punchestown maiden hurdle in October 2009. Falcun didn't look suited to the jumping game with two undistinguished runs in maiden hurdles; his latest run hints he may benefit from this trip after staying on well over 14 furlongs at Redcar the last time. Hi Dancer won a Sedgefield handicap hurdle off 108 in March at odds of 25/1. Strikemaster boasts little NH form of note but Follow The Sun has won a Southwell two mile handicap chase. Tillietudlem, Jeu De Roseau and Falcun are of interest - Falcun is a tentative suggestion.
4.45 York - Bow To No One, Simonside and Profit's Reality. Bow To No One has run of the mill novice hurdle form over two miles that dates back to March/April this year. The mare finished second to 66/1 winner French Hollow at this course two weeks ago and on the back of that effort looks likely to go off the market leader; Spiekeroog made up plenty of ground to finish fourth that day and may well have improved for the run. Simonside was a Market Rasen bumper winner in 2007, won over course and distance last September and won his penultimate start at Ayr. Profit's Reality has raced 64 times with just the one start over hurdles at Bangor in August 2008. Bow To No One is of most interest; Simonside may find one or two too good in this Class 3 event.
6.15 Lingfield - eight of the ten runnners have NH form; Dream Catcher has won over hurdles but has been generally disappointing. No suggestion.
8.10 Salibury - Tropical Batchelor is the only one with jumps form but is of interest on the back of his close fourth at Haydock last week. The winner of the Haydock race, Spirit Of A Nation, goes in York's 4.45 (see above) and may provide a pointer to Tropical Batchelor's chance. Reg Hollinshead's Drawn Gold finished fifth at Haydock but reopposes on two pounds worse terms as the jockey isn't a claimer. Tropical Batchelor looks to represent a reasonable each-way shout (10/1 or bigger) on his third start of the season after a long layoff.
Showing posts with label salisbury. Show all posts
Showing posts with label salisbury. Show all posts
Friday, July 22, 2011
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Grumpy Old Punter writes...
I first started PG's Tips roughly three and a half years ago; at that time one of my favourite blogs was the Grumpy Old Bookman. Much to my dismay, that blog was discontinued towards the end of 2007. Since then several acquaintances have suggested I should re-brand my efforts to carry the name Grumpy Old Punter - I can't think why.
Here's this week's round-up from the Grumpy Old Punter...
We saw two big rides from two top jockeys in two feature races on Saturday. With three furlongs to run you wouldn't have given Richard Hughes much of a chance on 2/1 favourite Monsieur Chevalier in the Wetherbys Super Sprint at Newbury; once the jockey got to work, his charge came with a rattling run to beat all nineteen rivals a shade cosily. At Market Rasen Tony McCoy performed an astonshing feat in getting 7/2 favourite Nostringsattached to win the Summer Plate; three out the horse looked a spent force in sixth, some ten lengths off the pace. McCoy galvanised his mount to pip stable companion Keepitsecret and No Panic a short head and a neck on the line.
Over the years we've all heard tales of members of the public being refused entry to various racecourse enclosures, often on account of the state of their attire (Ascot and Goodwood are two courses that come to mind immediately). Salisbury went a step further late last month when threatening to eject two racegoers from the members' enclosure for eating ice-creams! After a number of complaints, the course has now revised its policy...
It was a case of music while you work for Ryan Moore and his companions at a recent Kempton evening meeting. The London Philharmonic Orchestra played the William Tell overture during the running of the Digibet.com Handicap; this was the first race run to musical accompaniment in this country. Whether the idea is going to catch on is another matter altogether. One punter, when asked what tune had been played during the race, replied 'the Lone Ranger theme tune'. I also heard an unconfirmed rumour that several members of the orchestra failed to put in their best performance as the horse they'd backed in the event finished up out the back with the washing.
This snippet was spotted in the Times' City Diary last Wednesday. A gent, queuing up for his winnings at Ascot (yeah, OK), struck up a conversation with a woman who happened to be a banker with Lloyds Banking Group. They were at the races as part of a team-building exercise and had been given £5 'to put on horses'. That's taxpayers' money, isn't it? Aren't we entitled to our share of the spoils?
Finally, in case you hadn't realised, the football season is nearly upon us. I'd be the first to admit that my knowledge of the non-league scene is pretty patchy, although it has improved somewhat following Wrexham's relegation to the Blue Square Conference in 2007/8. I like to use Dr John Beech's excellent Football Management blog to keep abreast of events. The leagues below the Blue Square Conference, North and South in the hierarchy were previously sponsored by British Gas; this season however there is a new sponsor - the league will be known as the Zamaretto League. I know what you're thinking - just what is Zamaretto? Zamaretto is, apparently, a brand of flavoured liqueurs. Flavours available include blue raspberry, banana, apple, cherry, pear, peach and chocolate. Quoting from the website: 'Liqueurs are enjoying a renaissance with a new generation of young adults who are seeking something new, sophisticated and glamorous to enjoy with friends.' I'm just wondering whether non-league football is the right arena in which to promote this sort of stuff...
Here's this week's round-up from the Grumpy Old Punter...
We saw two big rides from two top jockeys in two feature races on Saturday. With three furlongs to run you wouldn't have given Richard Hughes much of a chance on 2/1 favourite Monsieur Chevalier in the Wetherbys Super Sprint at Newbury; once the jockey got to work, his charge came with a rattling run to beat all nineteen rivals a shade cosily. At Market Rasen Tony McCoy performed an astonshing feat in getting 7/2 favourite Nostringsattached to win the Summer Plate; three out the horse looked a spent force in sixth, some ten lengths off the pace. McCoy galvanised his mount to pip stable companion Keepitsecret and No Panic a short head and a neck on the line.
Over the years we've all heard tales of members of the public being refused entry to various racecourse enclosures, often on account of the state of their attire (Ascot and Goodwood are two courses that come to mind immediately). Salisbury went a step further late last month when threatening to eject two racegoers from the members' enclosure for eating ice-creams! After a number of complaints, the course has now revised its policy...
It was a case of music while you work for Ryan Moore and his companions at a recent Kempton evening meeting. The London Philharmonic Orchestra played the William Tell overture during the running of the Digibet.com Handicap; this was the first race run to musical accompaniment in this country. Whether the idea is going to catch on is another matter altogether. One punter, when asked what tune had been played during the race, replied 'the Lone Ranger theme tune'. I also heard an unconfirmed rumour that several members of the orchestra failed to put in their best performance as the horse they'd backed in the event finished up out the back with the washing.
This snippet was spotted in the Times' City Diary last Wednesday. A gent, queuing up for his winnings at Ascot (yeah, OK), struck up a conversation with a woman who happened to be a banker with Lloyds Banking Group. They were at the races as part of a team-building exercise and had been given £5 'to put on horses'. That's taxpayers' money, isn't it? Aren't we entitled to our share of the spoils?
Finally, in case you hadn't realised, the football season is nearly upon us. I'd be the first to admit that my knowledge of the non-league scene is pretty patchy, although it has improved somewhat following Wrexham's relegation to the Blue Square Conference in 2007/8. I like to use Dr John Beech's excellent Football Management blog to keep abreast of events. The leagues below the Blue Square Conference, North and South in the hierarchy were previously sponsored by British Gas; this season however there is a new sponsor - the league will be known as the Zamaretto League. I know what you're thinking - just what is Zamaretto? Zamaretto is, apparently, a brand of flavoured liqueurs. Flavours available include blue raspberry, banana, apple, cherry, pear, peach and chocolate. Quoting from the website: 'Liqueurs are enjoying a renaissance with a new generation of young adults who are seeking something new, sophisticated and glamorous to enjoy with friends.' I'm just wondering whether non-league football is the right arena in which to promote this sort of stuff...
Friday, July 25, 2008
Ascot, York and Salisbury
Just eight runners are declared for tomorrow's King George at Ascot. Three of the eight come from Ballydoyle; Macarthur is entitled to take his chance but stablemate Duke Of Marmalade will go off favourite, with Red Rock Canyon being employed as the pacemaker. Duke Of Marmalade won the Prince of Wales's Stakes at the Royal Ascot meeting five weeks ago but this is his first try at a mile and a half - we don't know for certain whether he'll stay but his style of running suggests he should. Favourites have a good record in this, having won six times in the last decade but at the prices available, I'm going to look elsewhere. The two most likely to upset the applecart are Youmzain and Lucarno. In the Weekender Nick Mordin favours Lucarno but I'm going to side with Mick Channon's Youmzain who was second to Dylan Thomas last year in both this race and the Arc. The use of a pacemaker will suit this horse and if I have a concern, it's that his top-drawer form has tended to come with some cut in the ground; 3/1 is generally available and seems fair.
The big race at York is the Group 2 Sky Bet York Stakes. Dettori rides Ascot better than most but, with the Godolphin operation going through a lean spell, it speaks volumes that his employers send him here to ride Campanologist. That doesn't ring a bell for me though (apologies) as Pipedreamer would appear to have four pounds in hand over his rival on Eclipse form. Tajaaweed was a tad disappointing in finishing eighth in the Derby but he suffered a slight setback a couple of days before the race and poses a live threat here. It's a close call but I note that John Gosden's stable is flying at the moment while Sir Michael Stoute's is particularly quiet - Pipedreamer is top-rated by the Racing Post and gets the vote.
Finally, for those with more money than they know what to do with, Roger Charlton's Oarsman, sporting first-time blinkers, looks the one to beat in the 7.40 maiden at Salisbury.
The big race at York is the Group 2 Sky Bet York Stakes. Dettori rides Ascot better than most but, with the Godolphin operation going through a lean spell, it speaks volumes that his employers send him here to ride Campanologist. That doesn't ring a bell for me though (apologies) as Pipedreamer would appear to have four pounds in hand over his rival on Eclipse form. Tajaaweed was a tad disappointing in finishing eighth in the Derby but he suffered a slight setback a couple of days before the race and poses a live threat here. It's a close call but I note that John Gosden's stable is flying at the moment while Sir Michael Stoute's is particularly quiet - Pipedreamer is top-rated by the Racing Post and gets the vote.
Finally, for those with more money than they know what to do with, Roger Charlton's Oarsman, sporting first-time blinkers, looks the one to beat in the 7.40 maiden at Salisbury.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
A Salisbury soiree
People have started asking about my new shoes. It looks like a long job; I'd hope to have them broken in for Newbury's Hennessy meeting at the end of November.
You know, it really is such a long time since I've managed to get to the races - the best part of nine months. A couple of weeks back, I came up with a cunning plan. When I say 'cunning', it was only moderately cunning in a blokeish sort of a way, something any practised female would describe as 'naive' and would see through in an instant, which is exactly what Mrs Tips did. The fact I thought it cunning at least afforded me some small pleasure.
My daughter's school choir is on a trip to Salisbury Cathedral. I thought I could show a newly-discovered interest in choral singing by combining a visit to church with a trip out to the track - on either Tuesday afternoon or following evensong on Saturday. Of course, the whole idea was hopeless, transparent, a 66/1 shot in three horse race...
So, this Saturday afternoon, I'll be watching one of the Flat season highlights, the King George, on the television in my front room; after that I have Channel Four's Glorious Goodwood coverage to look forward to.
You know, it really is such a long time since I've managed to get to the races - the best part of nine months. A couple of weeks back, I came up with a cunning plan. When I say 'cunning', it was only moderately cunning in a blokeish sort of a way, something any practised female would describe as 'naive' and would see through in an instant, which is exactly what Mrs Tips did. The fact I thought it cunning at least afforded me some small pleasure.
My daughter's school choir is on a trip to Salisbury Cathedral. I thought I could show a newly-discovered interest in choral singing by combining a visit to church with a trip out to the track - on either Tuesday afternoon or following evensong on Saturday. Of course, the whole idea was hopeless, transparent, a 66/1 shot in three horse race...
So, this Saturday afternoon, I'll be watching one of the Flat season highlights, the King George, on the television in my front room; after that I have Channel Four's Glorious Goodwood coverage to look forward to.
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