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My notebook runners

Sober Glory never broke sweat and was pretty impressive, as was Kadastral in second who wasn’t pressed to beat the rest of the field with ease. Matty’s Getaway was heavily outgunned.

Since we’re not off to Madeira this winter we’ve rejoined Newbury, so it’ll be our first visit for a good few years today.

No notebooks, but my preliminary short list is:

1:05 Maitre En Science
1:40 Captain Hugo, Caballero Cliff
2:15 Khrisma, Jackie Hobbs
2:50 Tranquil Sea, East India Express
3:25 Outlaw Peter

Hardly an adventurous bunch, but it’ll be fun regardless.
 
I'm a bit annoyed. I spoke to Johnson White last week and asked about Starzand who I popped in as my Dark Horse and was he their best. Johnson did confirm that he was really highly thought of and now I read that this Sober Glory is their next big horse - surely he could have told me that!!! :mad: ....we might be having words
 
Thanks all, it was a brilliant day. I hadn’t realised how much I”d been missing it. Didn’t start well with Megan Fox falling off Maitre En Science after jumping the third. Caballero Cliff had drifted like mad so left alone and enjoyed Captain Hugo winning. Khrisma was a non-runner so was left with Jackie Hobbs who won nicely. Tranquil Sea looked as though he was going to threaten, but never did, whilst East India Express never threatened an inch and pulled up. I’d conked out so we left before the next, but I wouldn’t have backed Outlaw Peter at odds-on anyway.

I thought Haiti Couleurs looked terrific, but didn’t really consider him because I thought it was just a hurdle pipe opener before the real business of chases started. Big mistake.

No notebooks today. Paul Nicholls thinks Kalif Du Berlais is something special, - “I don’t want to over-hype the horse, but I have never hidden the high regard in which I hold him and he could have the chasing world at his feet.”-, but he’ll need to be extra special to overturn the historic record of 5yo runners in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter. JPR One has never run better than he did winning it last year and I think he’ll be hard to beat, but it’s a hot race and there’s about four in it who could!
 
barjon said:
Thanks all, it was a brilliant day. I hadn’t realised how much I”d been missing it. Didn’t start well with Megan Fox falling off Maitre En Science after jumping the third. Caballero Cliff had drifted like mad so left alone and enjoyed Captain Hugo winning. Khrisma was a non-runner so was left with Jackie Hobbs who won nicely. Tranquil Sea looked as though he was going to threaten, but never did, whilst East India Express never threatened an inch and pulled up. I’d conked out so we left before the next, but I wouldn’t have backed Outlaw Peter at odds-on anyway.

I thought Haiti Couleurs looked terrific, but didn’t really consider him because I thought it was just a hurdle pipe opener before the real business of chases started. Big mistake.

No notebooks today. Paul Nicholls thinks Kalif Du Berlais is something special, - “I don’t want to over-hype the horse, but I have never hidden the high regard in which I hold him and he could have the chasing world at his feet.”-, but he’ll need to be extra special to overturn the historic record of 5yo runners in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter. JPR One has never run better than he did winning it last year and I think he’ll be hard to beat, but it’s a hot race and there’s about four in it who could!
Click to expand...
Money for Thistle Ask though, was 10's on Wednesday, 100/30 now.
Should be a cracking race.
 
Well, I got the bit about Kalif Du Berlais right, but nowt else. As Nf19 pointed out, the market called it. I ignored it :(

Having a day off today, I’m up to my ears in horses. Need a break.
 
A couple of notebooks:

1:30 Sandown - Into The Park was favourite and a bit unlucky last time in a Class 2 at Uttoxeter - 17/10 didn’t get the clearest of runs and held into a neck second place - this one should be slightly easier.

2:40 Sandown - Nardaran is up in class, but that shouldn’t be much trouble - 20/10 that was a pretty impressive performance and more to come, I think. - Weak in the market at the moment which is off putting.

And a couple that are interesting, but whether they are betting propositions is doubtful:

12:40 Ffos Las - Our Boy Stan makes his hurdle debut. He was thought good enough to go for the Listed New Year’s Day junior bumper at Cheltenham without a previous run where he was second. Followed that up with a pretty convincing Class 3 bumper win at Kempton. Not a go at odds-on, particularly taking a chance on his jumping.

2:05 Sandown - Hurricane Pat is another making his hurdle debut. Won a couple of bumpers at the lower levels and a reasonable third in a Class 3 one. Near evens is really too short for comfort.
 
Although Into The Park was kept up behind the leaders he never seemed at the races to me and didn’t find anything towards the end. Disappointing.

Our Boy Stan lost an awful lot of ground over the jumps and had to work hard to overcome that and win by a neck. Needs to get a lot slicker over the hurdles. Nardaran won as nicely as his price suggested he should as did Hurricane Pat. They’ll progress.

Nothing today, although I might have been interested in Skelton’s Mydaddypaddy and Real Quartz at Carlisle if they hadn’t been heavily odds-on.
 
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I missed Our Boy Stan's race as the internet was sticky. Read the report and it sounded like he had a few jumping issues. He is a big horse though and his future may lie over fences.
 
Yes, according to the race iq data (which I’m still getting my head round, although it looks quite interesting) he was pretty poor so far as jumping was concerned. Had the best finishing speed percentage which brought him home.

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Skelton’s Mydaddypaddy and Real Quartz won as easily as you like, but it didn’t really tell us much except that they can handle the hurdles, Mydaddypaddy particularly well. Dan Skelton said afterwards that neither were fully wound up and he’s bringing them along slowly.

Another day without notebooks.
 
No notebooks, but I’ve taken evens about Joyeuse 1:30 Bangor because if she handles the fences she’s more than a cut above the rest.
 
The jumping of Joyeuse was adequate, but a bit cumbersome and slowish getting away. An expensive school, albeit not for the full Monty.

11:50 Sedgefield Tanking Along - nudged up a couple of pounds for last time (hardly conducive to try hard to be second) should cope with that ok - 21/10 was a couple of lengths clear when lost momentum at the last and handed it to the fast finishing winner.

1:13 Market Rasen Roe And Co is out again quickly enough to avoid the penalty for winning last time - 5/11 jumping was slow , but won this easily. Evens is a bit tight with a hope that he’s ready again

And one I want to watch is Japetus who had a couple of easy bumper wins and who makes his hurdle debut 12:10 Market Rasen
 
Well, that turned out a good day. Tanking Along and Roe And Co both won very nicely, as did Japetus who finished very strongly and winning despite pretty poor jumping (not fluent at last, either). Plenty more to come there if he gets his jumping sorted.

No notebooks today, but can I resist Jonbon as short as he is. He’s done me proud over the years. Won’t even think about it if it goes soggy.
 
Wasn’t worth backing Jonbon in the end, just as well.


Couple of notebooks at Cheltenham. Racing goes ahead after the rain, but the heavy going makes it a bit of a minefield.

1:45: Be Aware - hugely competitive race with several high lass chase debutants as well as a well thought of Irish challenger, but Be Aware made a decent Chase debut - 30/10 Good chase debut win by Be Aware who jumped well and although Grandeur Dame had led for a long way and into the last where he fell Be Aware hadn’t been really asked for much at that stage. Good by them both. - This is a much tougher assignment, though.

3:30: French Ship won impressively after the notebook run - 11/10 handicap debut, had been racing third, moved up to challenge three out looking to be going well when stumbled and came down shortly after the fence. I think he’d have featured if he’d stayed up. 24/10 won impressively. Won’t take him out yet until I see what the handicapper’s done.- but the handicapper has maybe blunted his chances in this.
 
It was a good run from Be Aware, but he couldn’t cope with the winner. French Ship a non-runner.

Three notebooks at Plumpton today, but two of them in the same race unfortunately.

2:20: Nardaran - first went in the notebook after an impressive win here st Plumpton and went up eight pounds for it. Then went up a class winning nicely at Sandown and carries a seven pound penalty for that - 20/10 that was a pretty impressive performance and more to come, I think. 9/11 won well, still more. - as well as the penalty he’s up in class again today and in distance, so it’s a big ask to go three on the trot.

Gold For Alec is also up in class after a pretty decent third at Cheltenham - 24/10 held up at the back, easily the slickest jumper and finished second fastest of all just being denied second by a head. - Back at his winning distance he should be in the picture.

3:50: Premier had been kept fairly busy on the flat through the summer and then showed up nicely on his hurdle debut at Warwick in the juvenile hurdle - 4/11 A very nice educational debut. He raced at the back end despite an obvious desire to get on with it and was soon miles behind where he stayed until James Owen gave him his head around three out. To close up into fourth (almost nabbed third) from that position was impressive and he’ll be of interest next time. - Bit of a bold step to take on his seniors on his handicap debut, but the market seems to love it.

Elsewhere it’s watching Lulamba on his chase debut at Exeter. Obviously a no bet, but I expect great things of him this season and fingers crossed that he jumps smartly and confidently. And there’s the carry over from Navan to enjoy - an unusually full Monday.
 
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Apart from Lulamba it was a poor day all round yesterday.

2:20: Nardaran made a slightly awkward jump at the second and fell away quickly to be pulled up - hope there’s nothing amiss. Gold For Alec jumped really well again, but that’s about all he did and it looked as though Class 2 was a bit ambitious. Ignored my rule not to play when two are involved. Premier was keen again, jumping was no more than adequate and this proved too much of a test at this stage. Lulamba jumped nicely, but a bit slow getting away afterwards (I doubt Nico was asking him to do so). Good enough for his educational debut, although it’s a shame the sun clobbered several fences.

Nothing today.
 

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