- Monday, 18 September 2017 14:03
- Written by David Pipe
Without wishing to sound too clichéd, a week is a long time in racing so a year can seem more like an eternity! That is why I was more than a little surprised to look through the calendar this week and realise that it is approaching the first anniversary of our partnership with forward thinking recycling specialists National W&S Recycling Services as our yard sponsors. I would like to take this opportunity to thank proprietor Geoff Thompson and his team for their continued support and look forward to continuing our association for the coming season and beyond.
As our stable sponsors you may like to know a little more about what W&S do…W&S Recycling are a long established and well respected company, operating in all market sectors from individual site requirements to major regional and mainland recycling contracts while they operate numerous Household Waste Recycling Centres across Dorset, Oxfordshire and Bournemouth, offer a comprehensive skip hire service and have recently extended their services to include a demolition division. We are very proud to be associated with them.
Back to racing matters and it was a quiet week with just a few runners. Kalifourchon made his chasing debut in the 2m4f novices’ handicap chase at Worcester on Tuesday and was not disgraced in fifth. He jumped proficiently but will certainly have learned for the experience while stepping back up in trip will probably not do him any harm either.
With the jump racing not really getting in to full swing until next month when Cheltenham host their first fixture of the new season it is perhaps unsurprising that it is looking like another quiet start to this week too. Having said that, we will have a runner on the level tomorrow when Work reverts to the flat at Chepstow for the concluding staying handicap at 5.25pm. She has a higher handicap rating to contend with, but she has already won over this trip at Chelmsford City as a three year old so she will certainly not be wanting for stamina. Pat Dobbs will be in the saddle.
Looking further ahead we have a couple of entries at Newton Abbot on Friday with Bambi du Noyer engaged in the 2m2½f conditional jockeys’ handicap hurdle and Marangu Pass in the bumper. Bambi du Noyer has been running creditably since joining the yard, finishing in the frame on all four of his starts and he deserves a change of luck. Meanwhile, Marangu Pass is a daughter of Shali San who I trained to win a Chepstow bumper which makes her a half-sister to Barranco Valley (runner-up in a Newton Abbot novices’ hurdle).
Saturday is another blank day for jumping (which I find extraordinary given that the weekends are the time when most people are able to go racing, but that is another story!) so we will have to wait until Uttoxeter on Sunday before we have further entries. Ramses de Teillee ran a very promising first race of the season when a close third at Fontwell and he has a choice of two hurdle engagements over 2m4f. Of course, it is very early to be thinking of the weekend already so we will keep an eye on the ground, likely opposition and routine test results before committing to running anywhere.
In the meantime, for all the latest news from Pond House you can keep up to date with Chester’s Daily Chat or you can follow us on Twitter @DavidPipeRacing
