Enjoying a nice surprise

Racing throws lots of surprises at you but unfortunately most of them aren't that good with horses getting injured and things going against you but, luckily for us, we were in for a nice surprise this week as Silver Alliance defied a career-high handicap mark to win at Yarmouth on Tuesday. You'd be forgiven for thinking he would struggle for a while to win after such a great 2013 with three victories but the old boy found another gear to win with a bit in hand. Hopefully he can surprise us some more soon.

Silver Alliance & Shelley Birkett win at Yarmouth

 

As I said last week, there are definite signs that the horses are getting into top form now and I hope they can show their well being on the track this week. We won't be at the races until Friday though when Tiger's Home and Attain head to Brighton.
Attain has run well at the track before but does need soft ground to show his best. He can run well on firm going too though so he should be in with a shout.
Tiger's Home has tonnes of ability but hasn't shown it as often as I'd like. She did win at Bath last season but disappointed us last time. Hopefully she can bounce back and show us what she has really got at a track which can get the best out of some tricky horses.

Tiger's Home (Shelley) & Attain (Graham)

 

Also entered on Friday is Avidly at Newmarket. She is also in at Nottingham on Sunday though and we will go where ever the firmer ground is. Her last run was a definite step in the right direction and I think we're beginning to get a handle on her as she is not completely straightforward. The handicapper has given her a real chance too and I think she is more than capable of winning off her current mark.

Avidly (Ross)

 

Luhaif is another who has tumbled down the handicap so hopefully he can shows his best at York on Saturday. He was a very good two-year old but his peers have caught up with him now and he isn't top of the class but he still has plenty of ability and still has a big race in him when things fall right.

Automotive (Reno) & Luhaif (Ross)

 

Meddling was going to hit the track again this week for the first time since she won but her back was a little out and the physio needed to give her a good massage so it's best to give her a bit more time. She is flying at home since the win and certainly seems to know she got her head in front. There is still a lot more to come from her this year.

Meddling (Shelley)

 

I was a bit angry about the rating the handicapper gave No Such Number as I think 115 is a tad high on what he has shown so far. Having said that, after arguing with the man, he said he was going to give him a mark of 125 before his last run so it could have been worse. There is a nice race for him early next month back at Southwell - the track he won at on his hurdles debut last year.

No Such Number (Reno)

 

Bethan (Danny) & Opus Too (Ryan)

 

Candesta was castrated two weeks ago and he has come out of the operation fine and is back to doing normal canters now. Hopefully it will get his mind back on the job and he can recapture the early promise he has shown.

Candesta (Reno)

 

Celestine Abbey made an encouraging racecourse debut a few weeks ago and she was our first juvenile runner of the year so it gives us a marker for the rest in the yard. Duke Of Diamonds did his first serious gallop on Saturday and, although he was very green, he still showed plenty. He'll probably run in a seven furlong maiden and they don't start for a while so there's plenty of time still  to get him race-ready.

Duke of Diamonds (Graham) & Bushy Glade (Adam)

 

THREE TO FOLLOW UPDATE
Although it didn't effect the leader board too much, Silver Alliance's win has put plenty of players into contention and just off the lead. Still in front with 11 points are: Geoff Walton, Stephen Broadley, Linda Wright and Rob Wright.

Things on the up

Although there were no winners on the board this week, the yard looks to be definitely turning a corner recently after a few were coughing last month and they all seem to be in better form now.
We had been waiting for some decent ground to let Honeymoon Express loose on her seasonal reappearance and she was worth the wait after running a blinder to finish second at Newmarket on Friday. She got a bit tired and had a good blow after the race so she'll definitely improve for the run and I think she could be heading for big things, given her rapidly improving profile.
Remarkably, there are still a load of shares available in her and for just £1500 for a 10th share, you could be part of what will be a success story.

Honeymoon Express (right) finishes 2nd at Newmarket

 

After loads of runners recently, we don't have many for the next few days but not a Yarmouth meeting goes by without us making a visit and we'll be there with two on Tuesday.
Silver Alliance won three races last season but has gone up in the handicap as a result so things are a bit tough for him at present. He'll be there giving his all though and will hopefully earn some more prize money.
The Ducking Stool has come out of her run at Doncaster last week fine so she'll head back to her beloved seaside track this week. She always runs a great race and won't be far away.

Bethan (Graham) & Silver Alliance (Ross)

 

Both Bushy Glade and Opus Too were backward juveniles last season but have come from their winter breaks a lot stronger and are showing good signs on the gallops. Neither of them are far off a run and it'll be great to get their careers kick-started.

Bushy Glade (Shelley) & Opus Too (Ryan)

 

The vet paid a visit to the yard this week to castrate two of our colts and they have come out of the operations very well. Candesta had been showing signs recently that his mind wasn't on the job so the procedure should do him the world of good and he won't be on the sidelines long before running again.

Veeraya (Danny) & Candesta (Reno)

 

The other to be gelded was the two-year old by Acclamation we have. He was starting to get a bit colty and it was the best thing to sort him out early before things got out of hand. He needs time to grow a bit more so after he had fully recovered I put him in the field with the other boys and he seems to be enjoying himself in the sun. I'll give him a few months out there and then start making him into a racehorse again.

Acclamation colt, Vastly, Archipenko colt & Observatory colt in the paddock

 

Our Sir Percy foal which arrived last week has settled in really well and is already starting to push the limits with his mum, Emma's Gift. He is a real character and hopefully that spirit will be shown to good effect on the racecourse in two years time!

Emma's Gift and her foal

 

Our jack russell Mary has taken a real shine to the little man and loves just sitting in the field next to him.

Fun for all ages!

We've been lucky enough over the past couple of years to be able to accommodate not just the horses in training but also some youngsters thanks to the 30 acres of grass paddocks that we have at the yard.
It all started with Celestine Abbey and Mercy Me who we bought as foals two years ago and it's hard to believe that they are now full racehorses ready to begin their careers.
Last year, our two mares Bavarica and Bushy Dell gave birth to a foal each and those two have been developing nicely and will be ridden for the first time in the autumn.
The latest recruit arrived this week as our star mare Emma's Gift returned to the yard after giving birth to a lovely colt by Sir Percy. He is a real character and whizzes around his field at a good rate so hopefully he'll be able to reproduce that when hitting the track in 2016!

Sir Percy colt meets our other miniture Bonnie

 

Despite a load of runners over the past fortnight, we still have a few to run this week as the turf season really gets into full swing.
At Doncaster tomorrow, old reliable The Ducking Stool runs in a fillies' handicap. All her winning has been done at Yarmouth but Doncaster is a very similar track so should play to her strengths. She is a bit high in the handicap after a great 2013 but she usually gives her all so can't be far away.

It'll be nice to have a couple of runners at our local track Newmarket on Thursday as Avidly and Automotive run in the same race that evening. It isn't ideal to have them taking on each other but there aren't many ideal races for either of them in the near future. There is very little between them at home and they are rated near enough the same so it would be hard to say which one is better. They both have their quirks so it will be about who feels up for it on the day.

Avidly (Graham) & Automotive (Reno)

 

I can't wait to see Honeymoon Express make a return to action at Newmarket too on Friday. She ended last year on a high with two wins and has done really well over the winter. She does need firm ground so hopefully it will be a dry week. The race doesn't look a great one at this stage and we have a good apprentice in David Parkes booked for this race which is limited to jockeys who have had less than 10 career winners.

Attain (Ross) & Honeymoon Express (Shelley)

 

Also at HQ on Friday will be out first juvenile runner of the year as Celestine Abbey makes her debut. She has really come on in the past few weeks and goes well enough at home but this will probably be a hot maiden and she will need the experience so it's fair to say she will improve for the run.

Previous Acclaim (Ryan) & Celestine Abbey (Shelley)

Meddling gets gold

I thought we'd be able to get a winner from the runners we had last week but I didn't expect to have to wait right until the end for it. The horses all ran respectably, notching four places between them and collecting a bit of prize money.
Meddling is a horse who has always worked well at home since we bought her from Sir Michael Stoute last autumn but had been incredibly frustrating by not reproducing that ability on the track. However, she had been getting very upset in the stables at the races and must have used up a lot of energy before the race through nerves. This time, we got to the races as late as we could so she had less time to worry and it worked as she remained cool in the preliminaries and manged to make all the running to score her first win. The win should do her confidence some good and this could be the start of good things now we know the key to her.

Meddling and Shelley win at Lingfield

 

Despite a load of runners last week, we still have a few more to send to the races in the coming seven days and the horsebox will be racking up a fair few miles in the process.
No Such Number has been running well on the flat all winter without winning but he did score over hurdles. He's going hurdling again on Wednesday at Worcester and I think he has a great chance in what could be a weak selling race. We are not particularly keen to sell him or anything but he is running in this race because there aren't many other options for him until he is handicapped and he enjoys jumping the French-style hurdles that this track and Southwell have.

No Such Number (Reno) 

 

Another long trip will be made the following day as Luhaif heads to Chester's big May meeting. He has been a bit off the boil recently but we've been doing little things at home with him to perk him up and he'll even have a little pop over some jumps tomorrow just to get the fire back in his belly. The signs are good as he has been working much better at home and with blinkers on too, hopefully he'll be hard to catch from the front and get us a big winner.
Avidly is entered at Nottingham on Saturday but she would not want the ground softer than good as she can't handle deep going. She too seems to be going better now and can hopefully make up for some below par runs recently.
On the other hand, Handheld is entered that same day but won't run if the ground is firm. He has been shining recently with some really brave efforts and deserves to win again soon.

Avidly (Graham) & Luhaif (Ross)

 

Completing the runners list is Tiger's Home at Nottingham on Friday. She ran a perfectly good comeback race last time but got very tired. The drop back to six furlongs will help her and I think she has a great chance of winning another race.

Our other speed queen Honeymoon Express is well on the way to her comeback and may be running in a couple of weeks. She needs firm ground so we will have to pick the right day to run her but she is flying at home and I'm excited to run her again.

Honeymoon Express (Shelley)

 

 

Bushy Glade (Shelley) & Celestine Abbey (Adam)

 

We had a fantastic visit from world-renowned horse whisperer Gary Witherford on Friday as he gave a demonstration at our yard to a group of Chinese apprentices. I've seen his work before but you are always sceptical as to what he is doing because he usually works with one of his own horses. However, this time he used our very own star mare The Ducking Stool and I couldn't believe what I saw! He can form a connection with a horse unlike anything I've seen before and he had Ducky doing circus tricks like a pro! It was fascinating to watch and I fully recommend you watch him if he is giving a demonstration at a racecourse near you.

Gary Witherford in action

 

The boys in the yard love a good bit of competition and the annual Heath Run gave them an opportunity to flex their muscles on Thursday evening. With specially made Team Feilden t-shirts and headbands, they certainly looked the part and they put in some decent times. Unfortunately they couldn't go for the team prize because there was no girl as Shelley was away racing but they may have had a chance of winning it if they did. Marathon man Ross found the 6km trip a bit sharp but came home in 3rd place, Danny made a sparkling debut in 25th, Ryan showed that no training and smoking like a chimney does you no harm by finishing 34th and Graham got the time he was aiming for in 63rd. Out of the 200 runners that took part, it wasn't bad going!

Team Feilden

 

 

Three To Follow Update

There wasn't much to write about after a slow-scoring month but now the runners are beginning to find their positions and in the joint lead with 10 points thanks to the win of Meddling we have: Geoff Walton, Stephen Broadley, Linda Wright and Rob Wright.