The Grand Annual

L

len_madeiros

At the Start
Joined
Dec 30, 2014
Messages
49
Utter ******* of a race to call, but it is the traditional get out of jail stakes - and I might need the winner, come 5.15 tomorrow.

Is this going to be an "After you, Claude" exercise, do you think, with the other jocks allowing AP a free passage to get a winner on his last Festival ride? Or will they be properly race-riding? At this stage, I like the look of Ted Veale. But I'm not entirely convinced.


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You can bet your life Alan King has Grumeti ready for this, large bonus for any horse winning at Plumpton on the 4th January and the Festival.


Edit And first time blinkers for anyone following the Festival system on other thread
 
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Diamond Geezer said:
You can bet your life Alan King has Grumeti ready for this, large bonus for any horse winning at Plumpton on the 4th January and the Festival.


Edit And first time blinkers for anyone following the Festival system on other thread
Click to expand...

That's probably a very good shout. I'm taking on McCoy that's for sure.
 
Blood Conti 10/1
Grumetti 25/1
Croco 25/1

All e/w with Lads. So much value against McCoy.
 
Diamond Geezer said:
You can bet your life Alan King has Grumeti ready for this, large bonus for any horse winning at Plumpton on the 4th January and the Festival.


Edit And first time blinkers for anyone following the Festival system on other thread
Click to expand...

You've only gone and predicted Pricewise you big Shroodie! Glad I read this now, nabbed the 25/1 in the shops.
 
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Alan King applies blinks to a horse for the first time and it romps in? Sounds a bit like something that happened today doesn't it?
 
There's also a slightly peculiar thing with the Grand Annual regarding how horses are campaigned throughout the season and handicap marks managed.

In hurdles races it's quite common for a horse to win at least once, often more these days, in order to get in. Winner are frequently raised close to a stone from September 1st to the race date. The Grand Annual observes a totally different set of rules. Fluctuation in a handicap mark from the start of the season is negligible. Of the last 15 renewals onyl 13 can be assessed but 10 of those 13 had altered no more than 1Ib down or 2Ibs up. Alderwood and St Pirran are the biggest weight risers I could find in 15 years, and they were only raised 5Ibs each. It seems to indicate that the handicapper has his say above this level. If you've been good enough to imrpove 14Ibs already, you probably need to be good enough to improve at least another 8Ibs on top of that. It certainly happens in hurdles, and you get a few outliers in chases like Dun Doire and Hunt Ball, but they were well telegraphed in advance. So far as yet thought, the Grand Annual has no track record of falling to these types of stellar improvers. It's tended instead to fall to novices allocated their first mark, or seasoned 2 mile chasers who simply have their day when all the stars and planets are aligned
 
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