Into The Nineties!

Arab League has been busy this season and was winning for the fourth time this term when successful at Taunton on Wednesday in the novices’ hurdle under conditional jockey Francis Hayes, who was taking a useful 10lbs off his back.  Arab League has done marvellously well since joining us and (despite the small field), this was undoubtedly a good effort coming less than a fortnight after finishing only 10 lengths behind the winner of the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ handicap hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.  He has been another cracking buy for lucky owner Stuart Mercer, who made the long journey from Manchester down to the West country to see his colours carried to victory.  He later claimed in a post-race interview that he had been an owner with the yard for over twenty years and that he would have got less for murder!

I was very pleased with the success of Weekend Millionair at Ffos Las on Thursday.  He was only having his second start for the yard (and third over hurdles) and produced a good performance to win by fifteen lengths.  He had shown promise on his debut for the yard at Taunton previously and hopefully he can build on this for owners Wayne and Sarah Clifford who do so much to help our sport through their most generous sponsorship.

Roi de Rose (pictured left) proved to be a revelation when winning the three mile handicap chase at Ffos Las.  The good ground is probably as fast as he has encountered since arriving from Switzerland, but that coupled with this first try at three miles seemed to suit him well.  His owners are among the most enthusiastic I have ever met, and I know that although they were unable to attend, they were watching on the television and cheering him on back home!

With no immediate break in this glorious weather on the horizon (unless of course you are in the north where incredibly the Met Office have issued a weather warning ahead of predicted snow!) the ground at some tracks where they are unable to water has become very fast.  Indeed, Taunton have sadly had to abandon their final meeting of the season on 12^th April, although they have been forward thinking enough to cancel in plenty of time, which has allowed for the meeting to be rearranged at Newton Abbot.

With the onset of fast ground, we have now turned out many of our horses for their summer breaks and as such we do not have as many entries as usual at our local tracks, Exeter, Wincanton and Newton Abbot later this week.  Even so, we should still have a few runners, while we also have runners further afield at Hereford and Haydock too.

Above: Cheltenham Festival winner Salut Flo

We were joined on Friday by Allan Stennett, who is the owner of our Cheltenham Festival winner, Byrne Group Plate hero Salut Flo.  Allan flew down and we were able to celebrate his marvellous success properly with a lovely dinner at the excellent Hartnoll Hotel near Tiverton.  Talking of Salut Flo, he could next be seen in action at Aintree, although it is more likely that he will go to Cheltenham or Punchestown as there are 2½ mile handicap chases there for him.  If the ground were to stay on the dry side then he will be put away until next season.

Finally, stable amateur Mikey Ennis is off on his travels again.  He is currently in Oman where he competes in the next leg of the Fegentri amateur riders’ series.  So far he has travelled to Qatar and Cork and has met with royalty in the Middle East – he won’t want to come back!