Lady Luck was definitely not looking our way this week as we had some horrendous misfortune. First of all, Rathbawn Girl was drawn very wide at Wolverhampton on Monday and, to make matters worse, the horse on her inside hung violently around the home bend and virtually eliminated any chances we had of winning.
Next to go on the unlucky list was Little Meadow at Brighton the following day. As her name implies, she is only a tiny filly and obviously came off worse when four horses, including her, had a barging match at the top of the Sussex-venue’s hill. She came home worse for wear with stitches in her back leg and a bang to her head.
But hey-ho, that’s racing and there will be better days for the pair.
My daughter Shelley’s first ride under rules at Salisbury on Thursday was a nerve-racking occasion. I always get nervous when one of my blood ride in a race, not for their incompetence but for the inability of others. The standard of riding in amateur races varies wildly and you could be a fully capable pilot but be interfered with by an out of control novice. My fears were misplaced however as both came home safe and sound in fourth with Shelley learning a lot for the debut.
This week is a big one for my son Ross. At the weekend he is representing Great Britain in an amateur race challenge at Goodwood and Windsor where riders are selected from various European countries in a one-off event. Ross will be wearing a special Union Jack pair of silks at Goodwood and I hope he can get some glory in them. Then on the Bank Holiday Monday, he rides Bavarica at Epsom in the Gentlemen’s Derby.
Amongst the other runners is Beseech who sees a racecourse for the first time at Kempton on Monday. She has plenty of ability but we’ve had a few setbacks with her, hence the delay until her first run and it will be intriguing to see how she performs. Khalaajy, at the same meeting, should have a good chance if he can put last time’s disappointing run behind him.
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