Another busy Saturday morning. Sam Shea and her friends were the winning bidders for a Morning on The Gallops with a Champagne Breakfast at Cheltenham Racecourse last April when the Ceres Events organised a Charity Luncheon in aid of The Matt Hampson Foundation & The Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation. They chose this morning to come up and they brought with them Derrick and Janie Blake and it was great to catch up with them too. Derrick was a very well renowned Clerk of the Scales and Belinda recalled Janie knitting both Freddie & Harry gorgeous jackets, hats and booties when they were both born. Great to catch up with them all and a really fun morning that, after receiving lovely messages from a few of them, they obviously also thoroughly enjoyed.
Tyrone Hanlon was in first lot to watch his and Mark Boothright’s Debden Bank do his final piece of faster work ahead of his intended racecourse debut next Wednesday at Hereford. They have both been very patient with Debden who was ready for a run at the end of last season but the ground wasn’t ideal so we all agreed to put him away. We did the same with Ben Buie who came out and finished a very good 2nd at Ascot recently and had his form franked when the winner won again yesterday very cosily so we are hoping the patience is repaid with Debden too.
Mark Caswell and Harry Greasby were also in as was Emma Reed whose ambition is to ride in a Charity Flat Race next March and so she was here to see if it was for her. It’s always so different riding racehorses to general purpose horses because you ride so much shorter and in a different saddle too so there are quite a few times that it hasn’t worked out. She wasn’t put off though and although there is a little way to go for her to achieve her dream, we’ll do all we can to help her.
No runners today although there is lots of great jump racing on the tv. Harry’s football team, Northleach Under 9s, won their football 4-3 and he scored so we have a winner in the house tonight!
Tomorrow we’re off to Uttoxeter with HRH The Princess Royal’s Chequered View. She’s in good form and needs to settle under Sam Twiston-Davies but I think she’ll run better than her price suggests.