Neon Pounces At Plumpton

Despite the best efforts of Dudley, Eunice and Franklin, we managed to keep the show on the road and I was pleased to be on the mark again with the success of Neon Moon (pictured above) at Plumpton last Monday.  There were several other noteworthy performances too, not least from Adagio, who ran a super race to bustle up Goshen in the Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton on Saturday and all roads for him lead to Cheltenham in three weeks’ time.

Neon Shines At Plumpton

Neon Moon started the ball rolling in the best possible style last Monday when running out a ready winner of the 2m4½f handicap hurdle at Plumpton.  The winner of an Irish point-to-point as well as a Wincanton hurdle, his profile has been a little bit in and out, but there was nothing wrong with his most recent effort.  Held up by Tom Scudamore in first time blinkers, he made smooth headway to track the leaders on the home bend and soon pulled with the minimum of fuss and hopefully he can continue to progress from here.

Seventeen O Four seemed to relish the return to a stiffer track when second in the 2m conditional jockeys’ handicap hurdle at Sandown on Thursday.  He looked a little outpaced during the middle stages of the race, but stuck to his guns well and was a clear second best behind the well-backed winner.  He has a good record on a testing surface and looks capable of winning something similar.

All Systems Go For Adagio

Adagio ran a great race to finish a close second in the Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton on Saturday on his first start since the Greatwood Hurdle in November.  Held up behind the leaders, he came with a good looking run to lead between the last two hurdles and was only headed again by Goshen close home.  Everyone knows what a good horse Goshen is when conditions are right, as he demonstrated when winning the corresponding race by 22 lengths last year, so Adagio lost little in defeat and was probably recording another personal best effort.

He met with a setback shortly after his last run and whilst he was straight enough, this race will certainly have helped to put him spot-on for the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham in three weeks.  Obviously, Honeysuckle is the one to beat again and we are under no illusions about the magnitude of the task at hand, but in an otherwise open-looking year, he has done more than enough to warrant his place in the line-up.  He has only had eight races over hurdles and with further improvement entirely possible, it is not beyond the realms of imagination to see him running into the frame.

The Week Ahead

With only a couple of northern meetings surviving the storms today (Monday), we have no runners, but we are back with a couple when Miss M and Do Ya Feel Lucky contest the 3m mares’ handicap hurdle at Taunton tomorrow.

On Wednesday, Grand Sefton fourth, Via Dolorosa runs in the amateur jockeys handicap chase at Ludlow where Martin McIntyre will partner him.  Neon Moon, who won last week, bids to follow-up in the 2m5½f handicap hurdle later on the card.  He has come out of last week’s success in great form; conditions should suit and he looks to have a good chance once again with Tom Scudamore in the saddle.

We will not have any runners on Friday, but we do have plenty of entries at Exeter on Friday, including exciting novices, Kingofthewest and Brinkley, whilst we are doubly represented in the Devon National.  Red Happy is a likely runner and it will be interesting to see how he gets on over a new trip, whilst course and distance winner Gwencily Berbas is another possible, although he could run in the following day’s Eider Chase at Newcastle.

Brinkley has an alternative engagement in the Pertemps handicap hurdle qualifier at Chepstow on Saturday.  He ran well in the final of the series at the Cheltenham Festival in March, despite the ground being much quicker than ideal.  Paradise Island and Duc de Beauchene also feature among the entries at the Welsh track.

Seasonal Storms

Despite the awful weather from midweek onwards, the routine at Pond House has continued very much as usual.  The storms have meant a few trees have come down around the place, as well as some of the wings to the fences and some panels here and there, but things could have been much worse.  I am appreciative of my team’s efforts for keeping the show on the road during the inclement conditions.