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Your Favourite Uncle Smart Arse's Unofficial Blog

Not the best day on the betting front - had a bit on Zurich in the opener at Cheltenham, but it was Springs A Girl I wanted for the dollars.

Nothing else went that well - Olivers Travel beat half a length - but a system bet that I won bombs (ROI 15%) with last year, but has done no more than keep its head above water this year, delivered this afternoon to fund the losses.

So it was a no real damage done day, but I definitely haven't won (unless something crops up on the AW in the remaining races).

Looking forward to tomorrow - Aintree, Fontwell, Galway, Wexford....and Saint-Cloud!
 
Ian_Davies said:
a system bet that I won bombs (ROI 15%) with last year, but has done no more than keep its head above water this year, delivered this afternoon to fund the losses.
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It's been an absolutely banging day and I don't care who knows it.

The above delivered for the second consecutive day plus I bet a 12/1 winner at Aintree - hardly my biggest bet of the year, but enough.

And my "Derbfolio" was boosted when Pierre Bonnard won at Saint-Cloud.

Tbh, I don't think it was all that of a race - and the form is a good stone below Classic standard - but he's a cracking colt and just the sort to progress from two to three.
 
Now and then even I have a lousy day on the betting front.

It wasn't like I did my absolutes, but every project I've run today has finished behind.

And to top it all, "Leafy" last night said: "I think I've found one at Galway," I had a butchers and said: "It wouldn't really be for me, but seeing as it's you I'll have a FOMO on it," I didn't even do that and it won @ 8/1.

Not heard from him literally all day.
 
To say I'm excited about the weekend's racing (especially the Breeders' Cup) would be to make the understatement of the year.

That is all.
 
I'll offer my data model's numbers along with a few thoughts of my own on Saturday BC cards this (Friday) evening.

But in the meanwhile, FWIW, I thought Diamond Rain ran a cracking race and seemed to handle the fast ground really well at Woodbine.

And Mindframe has twice finished in front of Sierra Leone and shows he gets the 1m2f trip when runner up to Dornoch in the Belmont last year.

A lot depends on the pace imo - Sierra Leone, in my book, needs a really strong pace (I had one of my best results this year when opposing him at Fair Grounds in March when it seemed unlikely to me he'd get a severe enough test) and, if Sierra Leone doesn't get that crucial attritional tempo ahead of him early doors, IMO he's vulnerable to numerous rivals, including Mindframe.

More later.
 
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Brussels, Ground Support, Vahva, Ag Bullet, Imagination, Nitrogen, Rebels Romance, Sierra Leone, Formidable Man, She Feels Pretty - I bet nine seconds and a third, many at decent, or even monster, prices win only at Breeders' Cup 2025.

I had my successes - Ted Noffey, Gstaad, Notable Speech and Bedtime Story to be in the six, but it was not a winning meeting.

Fortunately, I had bet Pep Talking at 16/1 on Friday and he made fitness count at Wetherby, plus I rode my luck with my system bet in the afternoon.

But when the dust settles, I don't expect to
have won the last two days.

But that's the game, it's been a cracking Breeders' Cup, so onwards and upwards!
 
I didn't win this week - gutted - and despite a solid winning day today.

I was only ever so slightly down, but even so.

Still well in front on the year, but I'll need to fly the next two months to end up doing anywhere near as well as last year.

Not to worry.

The Breeders' Cup will be at Keeneland next year and at a by-then renovated Belmont Park in 2027.

But somewhat ahead of all that there's tomorrow's racing and a week ahead that culminates in the November Handicap, the Grand Sefton and the Badger Beer on Saturday.

Can't wait.
 
One of my personal rules is that I never put up a bet here unless I'm prepared to do that bet myself.

I don't often do Tricasts and Forecasts - the bookmakers control the Maths - or even Trifectas and Exactas (though potentially better if you cop with "rags," the take out is hefty) but "don't often" doesn't = "never" and I gave the November Handicap the treatment today.

The forecast wasn't too bad and the Exacta was even better, but I was beat a neck for copping the lot with the Tricast and Trifecta too - it is, for sure, a game of fine margins.

I did some cooking before racing - it's a new recipe I invented this week - but more about that tomorrow.

For now, it's been a good day on pretty much all fronts - the aforementioned bet, I copped with a few winners too and my two ante-post football bets are looking better.

East Kilbride, who I've got 11/4 about, closed the gap on Spartans and even better news "dahn sarf" as I've got 9/1 and 8/1 Folkestone Invicta and they went top of the Isthmian Premier today.
 
maureen said:
Loved that series! ( it was on at teatime on Fridays!)
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So did I!

And yes, it was a Friday afternoon/early evening ritual - on BBC, I think circa 6pm.

We often had a Chinese takeaway Friday evenings as well, so I associate it with duck in plum sauce with egg fried rice!

I particularly liked the music on the closing credits too - my personal search for Gandhara, my very own utopia, continues to this day!

 
Kaliane Bradley, author of The Ministry of Time, joins John and Andy for a tour of Monkey King: Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en, the sixteenth-century fable widely regarded as one of the most important Chinese novels ever written, newly translated by Julia Lovell. The Monkey King's powers include shape-shifting, immortality and "being incredibly rude"; listeners of a certain age will be familiar with his legendary exploits - and those of his travelling companions Pigsy, Sandy and Tripitaka - from the 1980s cult TV series Monkey, a staple of BBC2's week-night schedule. The book itself is a hugely entertaining combination of action caper, farce and religious allegory, analogous in some ways to The Pilgrim's Progress but with a lot more jokes and fighting. We throughly enjoyed chatting with Kaliane about Monkey King, her own writing and also her day job as an editor at Penguin Classics and we think you will feel the Monkey Magic too. All together now: "the spirit of Monkey was irrepressible!"
Must relisten to this Backlisted podcast…
 
I've actually had a solid winning day today - but that was all down to the system bet that served me so well in 2024, but had barely been in front in 2025, returning to last year's form.

Hopefully that can continue for the rest of 2025 and into 2026.

As for my other bets, backed the second, third and fourth in the opener and Matata ran alright given the price I got, but L'Eau Sud was travelling all over it from a long way out.

Hoping the weekend racing is all on, as I have got some decent prices about a few.
 
What....a....day.

If you're me, you spend most of the year ducking and diving, nicking a few quid here and there, trying not to do too much damage, two steps forward, one step back, while the reliable but very low ROI stuff in the background keeps grinding it out to help you keep your head above water.

And all of that is vital because, on the really good days, you want to be storming further ahead on the year, not recovering losses.

Plus, inbetween the really good days, you absolutely don't want to be giving it back.

Hung Jury was such a good bet at 40/1 - I made it value at anything above 12/1 - it ticked so many boxes in the kind of race where I feel I have an edge.

People obsess about the relative merits of pro jockeys when there really isn't that much to choose between them.

Yet they lump amateurs together when there's often loads to choose between them.

It wasn't my only winner either - I nicked on a few races then had a really unexpected long-priced winner later on the card.

I was looking at the machine odds just before post time and asking myself which horse winning would annoy me most.

Well, I'd lost a few quid on the yard's hapless 3yo hurdler in the opener, I knew this beast was lobbed in in the form it had been showing on the Flat this year, Lavender Mill Mob probably wouldn't win, but 50 was just the wrong price.

So I backed it.

And the rest is history.

I'm all sorted for tomorrow and I've had a look at the races that interest me on Monday in the UK.

So that's me done for the night.

It was actually really nice getting so much positive feedback on the forum today.

I feel like a lot more people get what I'm about than used to be the case.

The tongue-in-cheek narcissism is exactly that - and I sense I'm putting a few quid in pockets, which never hurts in terms of acceptance.

But it's pleasing nonetheless - there's people on this forum who I've felt have disliked me for years, that I'd never turn it round with, and yet it seems I have.

That's not something I ever needed, or even particularly wanted, to happen, but now it seemingly has it actually pleases me no end.

Roll on tomorrow.
 
Another really good day.

At home with nice food and drink, Cheltenham, Navan, Auteuil and Fontwell Park and, largely (but not solely) due to Alexei, I won again.

It's actually been just about my best week of the year in terms of betting profits.

Monday tomorrow and, apart from a few bets I've already organised, that means the entries for Saturday and Sunday.

I do like Mondays.

Right, got two Tuesday races to look at now, so I will leave it there.
 
Did you go under another name?
It says you joined 2023 but I've only noticed you a few months ago although I know time goes fast so it could be longer.
And did you know I used to be good at picking winners.you wouldn't believe it lately.
Lost interest in racing to a point.
 

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