A long trip to Newcastle for the all weather bumper on Monday and a little disappointed that the all weather surface was made deeper than we expected which wouldn’t have suited either of my runners. However, they needed a run and it would have ridden better than the turf at the moment. Both were making their debut and pleased me.
The pace was a slow one and Richard Johnson settled Black Panther in mid division and, although the first two got first run on the rest of the field, he showed a great attitude to battle up the straight to finish 3rd closing on the 2nd all the way to the line to be beaten 3 1/2 lengths and a neck. Richard was very positive about him and also loved his attitude and said to run him next on better ground on a flat track and he liked him a lot. Poor Richard suffered a broken arm yesterday at Exeter so we are absolutely gutted for him and wish him a speedy recovery. He’s trying to get back for The Festival and, as he’s as tough as they come, you’d not bet against it.
Ten Past Midnight would have preferred better ground and would also have preferred a solid gallop but will have learnt a lot from his experience and wasn’t beaten very far either. Patrick Cowley was pleased with him and we’ll look to run him again in a month or so. They both seem A1 since their run.
I have a phone again so can be contacted! A frustrating 48 hours without a phone – we forget how much we rely on them.
No runners today but a busy few days coming up.