Waiting for a winner

It sure is a lot easier to write this blog when we've had a winner and I thought I'd be struggling for material this week after a number of disappointing runs from some of the horses, although they did have their excuses.
As some of the young and exciting horses didn't fire, I wasn't holding out much hope that our last runner of the week at Nottingham would be able to put a smile on my face as it was wise old boy Handheld who hadn't been trying too hard in his recent runs.
However, the cheekpieces which managed to get Silver Alliance's head in front last week also had the same effect on Handheld as he got up late in a photo finish under Shelley Birkett. Hopefully this win will do his confidence some good and he can come home first again soon.



Handheld wins by a nose at Nottingham

With a spring in my step, I went up to the gallops to watch the horses go through their paces. The week had been a dry one and the grass was a bit too firm so the gallopers had a spin on the all-weather.
Sheila's Heart was a big and gangly juvenile last season but has strengthened up over the winter and is going well now. He had his first serious bit of work on Saturday alongside Sancho Panza and seemed to handle it well.
Sancho was meant to run at Yarmouth during the week but the ground was too firm for him. He is in good form and will be out before the end of the month.

Sancho Panza (Billy) & Sheila's Heart (Ross)

Old boy Spirit of Sharjah will probably retire from racing at the end of the year but he still maintains all his enthusiasm for the game and pointed his toe up the gallop.The ground might be a bit firm for his liking at the moment but he runs at Newmarket on Friday. It's hard to predict when he'll win as everything has to be right for him but he is becoming well handicapped now.

Spirit of Sharjah (Reno)

Another running at Newmarket this week is Bushy Glade on Thursday. She will be making her racecourse debut and will come on for the run. She has done plenty of work at home and handles the starting stalls fine but the race will really wake her up and she looks like she could be a nice two-year old this season.
I can't wait for Brighton to get racing again after the course had to reschedule its early meetings due to bad grass growth and I've already got a few pencilled in to run on the 21st May. Believe In Me will definitely be going to the track this year and she is gradually getting back to peak fitness after her winter holiday. She didn't grow much over the winter but can hopefully give her owners some fun in the coming months.
Another who should be in the winner's circle soon is Honeymoon Express. She didn't show much in one run last year but seems a lot more professional at home now and put in a really good bit of work on Saturday. She is still about a month off a run though.

Belive In Me, Bushy Glade (hidden) & Honeymoon Express

Our apprentice Shelley Birkett has been in good form recently with a couple of winners and hopefully she can work the magic on Tiger's Home at Wolverhampton on Monday. The filly ran a blinder on her seasonal reappearance but then flopped the next time. She seems fine at home so can hopefully get back to form. Also at Wolves is Omega Omega. The track, trip and handicap mark all look spot on so I wouldn't be surprised should she run well.


Kevin 'Tolly' McGuinness was a good friend of mine and also owned The Ducking Stool. Many of you may have seen him in the yard as he doted on his mare and always had a cheeky smile on his face. Sadly, he passed away a couple of weeks ago after a battle with cancer and his funeral was held on Thursday. Fittingly, his wife decided The Ducking Stool should lead the hearse to the ceremony and it was a magnificent sight to see her with all colours blazing leading the parade. It was definitely what Tolly would have wanted.