Trials Day

jinnyj said:
Jonbon was very hyped up in the paddock beforehand (although I know he does get stressy). I think possibly being a fairly full-on horse maybe the extra week tipped him over?
He fair mullered that fence and Bowen did well to stay on. I thought he did right giving him time to recover and it was a shame that he had had to send him on when he did. The last fence mistake didn’t help and I do slightly put that down to jockey nerves....but he will learn from that and no doubt be kicking himself. I imagine that’s got to be his highest pressure ride so far and it didn’t come off. He will be very down tonight as a result, of that I am sure. Getting beaten on the yard hot pot at odds on isn’t a good feeling.
Click to expand...

Remember Mick FItz writing about the day he put Remittance Man on the floor in QMCC.
NJH was not a happy bunny but Raemylette winning Cathcart for LLoyd Webbers the next day did nicely.
 
I made my first visit to the Festival mainly to see Remittance Man run in the QMCC, and Fitzgerald did indeed put him on the floor, the useless bast*ard.
 
Highly amusing listening to Ruby talking about which race and what is best for the horse :lol:

Dear God!
 
In a normal year Lossiemouth would be aimed at the Champion Hurdle buy as we know.

As for Jonbon...I am not a fan of James Bowe guy worries me when the cash is down

Tingle Creek not a semblance of a mistake under Nico

Clarrence House Bowen too close at the 3rd Ballooned the 4th, slow at the 7th and 8th (lost a length at both) 4 out near disaster, Horse had to put himself right at the last cost him the race..
 
Tanlic said:
In a normal year Lossiemouth would be aimed at the Champion Hurdle buy as we know.

As for Jonbon...I am not a fan of James Bowe guy worries me when the cash is down

Tingle Creek not a semblance of a mistake under Nico

Clarrence House Bowen too close at the 3rd Ballooned the 4th, slow at the 7th and 8th (lost a length at both) 4 out near disaster, Horse had to put himself right at the last cost him the race..
Click to expand...

That was my impression of his ride on Jonbon watching on course too but need to watch it back. I remember saying to my wife there’s no way Nico would have been beaten


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Since his novice days Jonbon has run twice on g/s ground, once at Sandown off a searing pace, which he won despite a bad blunder at the 4th fence, and yesterday off much steadier, where he made a horlicks of quite a few obstacles.
The best he can hope for is deep ground for the QMCC,imho.
 
reet hard said:
Since his novice days Jonbon has run twice on g/s ground, once at Sandown off a searing pace, which he won despite a bad blunder at the 4th fence, and yesterday off much steadier, where he made a horlicks of quite a few obstacles.
The best he can hope for is deep ground for the QMCC,imho.
Click to expand...

Only 4 races to go on there. As a contrary argument (equally suspect) he beat El Fabiolo on good/soft and lost to him on soft, so hope for decent ground :)

As far a yesterday goes, he jumped poorly throughout and was either having an off day or not getting the right assistance from the saddle. I said earlier that Nico has handled his quirkiness best by his “I just let him get on with it” approach. Maybe James Bowen tried the same and it was all down to Jonbon, or maybe not.

PS: I’ve taken 4/1, anyway.
 
Last edited:
granger said:
These WITPs don't like it up them
Click to expand...

Interesting observation, granger. Any supporting evidence?

Awa from, Cheltenham, what do people think of the ride the boy gave Annual Invictus?

I think the jockey on Mister Coffey felt the pace was too strong and let him get on with it on his own. I think even the boy himself wondered if he was going too fast when he looked round at one point. He held on and I felt he was just responding to FP's challenge in the last stride or two and they were strung out behind.

He won, so was it a brilliant ride but had he lost in a bobbing finish would he have been criticised for going a fraction too fast?

I look forward to seeing the sectionals, as ever, but they did break the track record on ground that wasn't necessarily conducive to it.

I think the front two will know they've been in a race and I'd worry about them bouncing.
 
Last edited:
Desert Orchid said:
Interesting observation, granger. Any supporting evidence?

Awa from, Cheltenham, what do people think of the ride the boy gave Annual Invictus?

I think the jockey on Mister Coffey felt the pace was too strong and let him get on with it on his own. I think even the boy himself wondered if he was going too fast when he looked round at one point. He held on and I felt he was just responding to FP's challenge in the last stride or two and they were strung out behind.

He won, so was it a brilliant ride but had he lost in a bobbing finish would he have been criticised for going a fraction too fast?

I look forward to seeing the sectionals, as ever, but they did break the track record on ground that wasn't necessarily conducive to it.

I think the front two will know they've been in a race and I'd worry about them bouncing.
Click to expand...

Even if it had got beat it was still a good ride.i dont think Chris Gordon will be bothered if it bounces after winning 56 grand with his son winning on it.job done.
As for Mister Coffey I will continue to back it,might drop another couple of pounds.
Ultima or kim Muir?
 
Outsider said:
Even if it had got beat it was still a good ride.i dont think Chris Gordon will be bothered if it bounces after winning 56 grand with his son winning on it.job done.
As for Mister Coffey I will continue to back it,might drop another couple of pounds.
Ultima or kim Muir?
Click to expand...
Kim Muir for me. Isn't the ultima 3 miles & the Kim Muir 3'2? He definitely needs further & the old course that the ultima is run on wouldn't suit him at all.
I'm like you in following this horse off a cliff - backed him NRNB for the Kim Muir
 
DannyB said:
Kim Muir for me. Isn't the ultima 3 miles & the Kim Muir 3'2? He definitely needs further & the old course that the ultima is run on wouldn't suit him at all.
I'm like you in following this horse off a cliff - backed him NRNB for the Kim Muir
Click to expand...

You are probably right.ultima is 3m 1f kim Muir 3m 2f.
 
Desert Orchid said:
Interesting observation, granger. Any supporting evidence?

Awa from, Cheltenham, what do people think of the ride the boy gave Annual Invictus?

I think the jockey on Mister Coffey felt the pace was too strong and let him get on with it on his own. I think even the boy himself wondered if he was going too fast when he looked round at one point. He held on and I felt he was just responding to FP's challenge in the last stride or two and they were strung out behind.

He won, so was it a brilliant ride but had he lost in a bobbing finish would he have been criticised for going a fraction too fast?

I look forward to seeing the sectionals, as ever, but they did break the track record on ground that wasn't necessarily conducive to it.

I think the front two will know they've been in a race and I'd worry about them bouncing.
Click to expand...

Maybe a day I have more time I'll look into it but as a start.

He produces beautiful looking horses who are often standouts in appearance.

His progeny get hyped like none else and if good, they tend to have enough class to easily beat the opposition without needing to be tested.

The other side

His most famous progeny don't have great longevity, are not prolific stayers and just look to lack the grit for battle.
 
Last edited:
barjon said:
Henderson reckoned he only saw one jumping mistake, but he must have been watching a different race to me - I thought he ranged from the ponderous to the downright iffy.
Click to expand...

To be fair Nicky’s eyesight is more than a little dodgy


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I just came across a fence by fence artiicle re Jonbon's performans and it is almost like he read what I wrote and copied it. I can only assume Nicky is protecting his Jockey decision. Someone needs tell him he got the wrong brother.
 
I had a conversation with Tim Vaughan yesterday as I was reporting at the point to point where his 16 year old son Ed was riding (he's doing really well and yesterday was his 6th winner of the season). Tim was absolutely thrilled and I remarked that he looked like he was getting more pleasure out of training pointers than under rules which he completely agreed with. He obviously is one very proud father and I said what a great grounding pointing was to get young jockeys going as the pressure was far less and they could gain so much experience without it. He said "yes and look at the criticism James Bowen has faced over Jonbon!" He went on to say for Hendo to firstly pick such a young jockey out of the pointing sphere and give him such opportunities as well as put him up on horses like Jonbon shows just how highly he rates him. He said these things happen and other much more experienced jockeys have ridden poor races which they would have wished they had done things differently.

I think its right that Hendo is defending him publicly. I am sure that they have gone through the race fence by fence together to look over what went wrong and Bowen has also probably watched it a million times with Mick Fitz who is his mentor (or was). Nobody will be feeling worse than this lad right now. But its happened before both NH and Flat. I'm a huge fan on the younger Bowen, far more than his brother as I prefer the softer way he rides.
 
Ofcourse Hendo will defend him publicly he put him on the horse and he's hardly going to say otherwise.

Michael Dickinson was known to defend "his lads" publicly and bollock the ass off them privately for making the simplest of mistakes even when they won.

Long term will tell if james Bowen ever becoes 1st jockey at Seven Barrows I have my doubts
 
Last edited:
I think you’re being far to harsh, tan, I suspect Henderson knows far better than you how James Bowen stacks up, that’s why he got him in the first place and is using him readily whilst Nico is on the sidelines. Since Jonbon is reportedly a bit quirky I doubt he would have been tossed up on Jonbon’s back without a fairly solid briefing on how to ride him. I don’t think that he would just ignore that and do something different.

What we do know is that Jonbon jumped in a most unJonbonlike fashion for some reason. That might be down to him, or the guidance he was getting from the saddle, or some combination of the two. I do wish I had an ear to their debrief to find out :)
 
Back
Top