Festival time

Newmarket is set to come alive this week with the town's July Festival kicking off. Although I won't be represented at the racetrack, I'll still have plenty to keep me busy as it is also the July Sales at Tattersalls. I've been lucky at this auction in the past and you can sometimes find a bargain there...fingers crossed the same can happen this time around.

Runners-wise, we just have the two on Tuesday. Meddling goes to Wolverhampton and I hope she can get competitive again now she is back down to 0-60 class. She usually wins at this level, goes up in the weights and then struggles until she goes back down in grade. She is in good order at home and didn't stay the one mile up Newmarket's stiff finish last time, plus she has a good draw for a change.
The other runner on Tuesday is Inauguration at Brighton. She goes to the sales later on in the week but it'd be nice for her to go there with a bit of form to her name. She seems fine at home but she has been quite disappointing so it's hard to know what to expect at a track she didn't seem to like before.

The heat wave has meant the grass gallops are a bit too firm at the moment so all our work has been done on the all-weather. We are very lucky in Newmarket to have some of the best gallops in the world. The sand walkways can also get very dusty in the summer but the heathmen are out at 5am each day to water them and the careful maintenance of each canter means it is usable and consistent year-round.

On Saturday we just had a few stretching their legs on the Cambridge Road polytrack.
Attain really loves soft ground and I had him in on Saturday in the hope the thunder storms would bring us some rain but it sadly wasn't enough. He's down to a good mark now and will be ready to strike when conditions are right.
Likewise, Vastly is ready to go but after his leg issues, I don't want him to comeback on the firm ground and hurt himself again. He's in good order and ticking over nicely.
One who doesn't mind rattling ground is Guising. His aim for the year is the historic Newmarket Town Plate. His owner Carol was meant to ride him but a change of heart has seen my brother Nick step into the plate. He is now a groundsman at Godolphin but he was a jockey back in the day and rides out for me regularly. I've told him the horse will be fit enough for the day, he just needs to make sure he is! The race isn't until the end of August so there's plenty of time for him to get ready.

Attain (Mark), Vastly (Luke) & Guising (Tess)

Automotive (Ross)

Duke Of Diamonds (Caitlin)