Pendleton

I'm ambivalent about it.

Before the race I was seriously worried that something nasty was going to happen because her race performances beforehand had been pretty dreadful. She got round, she came fifth but it could have been very different - she didn't look particularly comfortable at times.

On the positive side, though, she did what I have no doubt she was told to do - to jump off at the rear of the field, stay out of trouble and move through field as others tired, if possible. She did far better than expected and it ended up being a good publicity tale rather than bad.

I don't think it's something that should be encouraged ...
 
There have been worse jockeys that have ridden in the Foxhunters Muttley . Let alone jockeys that were nowhere near as good as the horses they rode - Fred Hutsby on Mighty Moss probably the most memorable example .
 
Two of my nieces watched while sitting on their rocking horses on Friday afternoon.

Great achievement from VP and credit to those who've trained her, the Hill's, Yogi Breisner, PFN etc.

Martin
 
Anybody remember JP Magnier trying get Defy Logic around the bend at Navan on his debut? Pure comedy. Worse than Fred.
 
an capall said:
Anybody remember JP Magnier trying get Defy Logic around the bend at Navan on his debut? Pure comedy. Worse than Fred.
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Rhinestone Cowboy at Aintree and Punchestown were his finest moments. He went from useless to having the ability to stay in the saddle on certainties in under two years. Like Lester Piggot, he should never have come back.
 
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I feel the same, TheBear. A failure on the part of the PR people for the sport.
It is noteworthy that it was Betfair that promoted Pendleton not the esteemed guardians of our sport. Indeed if one totals up all the PR and promotional people pushing everything from betting to alcoholic drinks at the Festival I would suspect the number to exceed 1,000 by some way.
When one looks at the general press coverage for the Festival it is usually driven by the accompanying betting adverts which dominate e pages. Not surprising in this times when advertising often drives content.

Racing is is the only sport I'm aware of that relies on betting for its main income. The only sport that gives bookmakers prime position between spectators and the sport. In the village I live my friends and I, as well as several other groups, are generally known to be racing fans. An abiding feeling one gets from people we know is that we all must be losing money in the long term and whilst they might enjoy the day out they don't go racing for fear of being drawn into gambling more than they can afford.
What is needed is a sustained promotion of the characters,human and equine, in the sport by skilled media experts with background stories, pushing in regional papers stories of locally owned or trained horses all to generate a feeling for the sport aside from betting. Not an easy task, I concede, but necessary if the spectator base is to increased.
 
There's a lot of girls working their butts off in yards who would ride Pendleton to sleep and will never get the chance to ride in a race ..She gave the horse a shocking ride for a jockey but presented the horse well at it's fences.......she was crapping herself and scared to move on him from the top of the hill.
 
Tanlic said:
There's a lot of girls working their butts off in yards who would ride Pendleton to sleep and will never get the chance to ride in a race ...
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Much as I felt getting the sport into the minds of a much wider audience was a very good thing, there was a bit of me wondering about the average girl in the yards who are competent riders but never really get the chance. On the other hand, maybe this will push them to consider taking out a licence. Then again, I wonder to what extent any of them would really want to.
 
SlimChance said:
Rhinestone Cowboy at Aintree and Punchestown were his finest moments. He went from useless to having the ability to stay in the saddle on certainties in under two years. Like Lester Piggot, he should never have come back.
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As Lester Piggott rode eight Group1 winners in 1992 including two classic winners and the Breeders Cup Mile in 1990 I doubt you are right - whether he should have come back after the fall from Mr Brooks was another matter. Indeed, comparing Magnier to Lester is nonsense .
 
Tanlic said:
There's a lot of girls working their butts off in yards who would ride Pendleton to sleep and will never get the chance to ride in a race ..She gave the horse a shocking ride for a jockey but presented the horse well at it's fences.......she was crapping herself and scared to move on him from the top of the hill.
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True enough but the same could be said of lots of the horses that well off amateurs ride when they shouldn't - Hutsby was the most obvious example but David Dunsdon was not much better .
 
Ardross said:
As Lester Piggott rode eight Group1 winners in 1992 including two classic winners and the Breeders Cup Mile in 1990 I doubt you are right - whether he should have come back after the fall from Mr Brooks was another matter. Indeed, comparing Magnier to Lester is nonsense .
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Did Willie Miullins bring home the sarcasm along with all the prize money from the UK last week?
 
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Tanlic said:
There's a lot of girls working their butts off in yards who would ride Pendleton to sleep and will never get the chance to ride in a race ..She gave the horse a shocking ride for a jockey but presented the horse well at it's fences.......she was crapping herself and scared to move on him from the top of the hill.
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Who you are, how much money you have, who your daddy is etc. can make quite a difference to your prospects in all walks of life, not just trying to be a jockey.

There isn't a workable alternative. How would you take the ride off Pendleton and give it to a girl in a yard? How would you choose which girl?
 
Ardross said:
True enough but the same could be said of lots of the horses that well off amateurs ride when they shouldn't - Hutsby was the most obvious example but David Dunsdon was not much better .
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Not forgetting the late Sir Nicholas Nuttall.
 
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