Yvonne Pedretti – farewell to a gracious lady

even in Kyoto
when I hear the cuckoo
I long for Kyoto

 

 

 

 

kyo nite mo
kyo natasukashi ya
hototogisu

Basho

My Movie Star Pin-Up

is this fella, Joncol. He won the Irish Hennessy yesterday, by a neck from Cooldine. Just after that all went off I watched a film following three inmates at the Paul Nolan yard: Joncol, Cuan Na Grai and Ardalan.

Of the three, the stand out personality is probably Cuan Na Grai who would definitely be a “thinker”. Ardalan is a cheeky lad, just a bit slow and too small to fill the chasing role they end up diverting him to. Joncol is a gentle giant, described by the yard as a “Christian”, but watch him on the gallops and he knocks your eyes out.

I don’t want to spoil the film – word is that it will be shown on terrestrial television at some point – but I can say that Joncol won his debut chase in dramatic fashion which the audience applauded in a cinematic first for me. It was like going racing five or six times in an hour and half, but more comfortable, less expensive and just as exciting.

Recommended

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Appalling selections yesterday – best finish 4th and lucky that Joncol saved the day.
5.00 Wolv – Hunters Belt
4.40 Sout – Fidelor
1.20 Ling – Mzuri Bay
4.50 Ling – Graduation Night (half-brother to Sergeant Cecil so although there are other likely types on paper it’s a “has to be done” scenario)

NB the two Lingfield bumpers are being run on AW surface not on the heavy going.  One of the flashiest horses in training goes to post there at 4.20 – Pancake is fitted with a tongue-tie for the first time today as well as blinkers that have been tried before.  It’s a shame, but he seems not to be enjoying racing at the moment.  Fingers crossed for him today although I can’t see him as a gambling proposition…

The case for double-glazing

Charming!

 

As the youngest is not au fait with the mark of exclamations yet, and the dog and cat are lacking the necessary opposable thumbs, by an exacting process of elimination – I blamed the eldest.

She, naturally, adopted the default position of not guilty until confronted with the evidence-based case against her and caved in as quick as you like.

Have a word Emily, she looks like she shares her mother’s weakness for exuberant punctuation!

2.40 Sout Just Mandy
4.50 Font Poppy Come Running
4.30 Muss Robbie
4.50 Leop Sunset City

edited to add: I am going to see a film about Irish NH racehorses today at the ICA and a friend has just told me it is following Paul Nolan’s yard and specifically Joncol. Joncol runs today in the Irish Hennessy and has never been beaten on going described as heavy. That’s good enough for me and I’ll chance my arm on the coincidence.

Japanese Haiku

Have strong seasonal and nature-related imagery. There is one about a plum that I love, but I can’t lay my hands on the book my mum bought me just now, so you will have to make do with one I wrote earlier. The Japanese also aim for a change of mood or tone in the last line, something I have not achieved entirely here.

Where winter birds wade,
tide’s salt and brown water wash
the great mud-glossed mouth

Estuary Mud

I confess today’s theme has been lazily borrowed from the Walking Ollie blog and I don’t even know where to start with the horses today, so I won’t.

Hoxton Market Fly (after Ogden Nash with apologies)

I woke up with London on my mind. Hoxton, if you take a trip down there these days, looks like a nondescript street market dying on it’s feet. In this weather it’s probably ashen grey-faced too, like an old git who smokes in bed. To me though, it is like the land of the yellow-brick road (Oz not Elton) and full of munchkins, green monkeys and jewelled shoes.

Hoxton is made up of two areas to my mind, the two divided by the road with the Geffrye Museum. The street market of which I speak and the “posh” bit that is heaving on the weekends. I drive through the new clubland sometimes and look at the skinny-legged pointy booted ones spilling onto the pavement and just think – you are so late.

Anyway, back to the market:

A thing of beauty is the fly
Though you may frown and wonder why
Despite his blue and bottle name
He’s keenly green with wings aflame.

4.30 Catterick Bumper – Knockaveen/Pickworth – win/place
Wolv/Ling Maidens – Simcock/Johnston shorties can’t be faffed to oppose

Notebook

I have a new one for this year having used, abused and finally misplaced my last moleskine one. I back up my mental and hard copy notebook with an online “nag me” service from gg.com, whereby if you want to follow a horse you they email you when it is declared to run. The problem is that I usually forget to update the email list and it mainly consists of aged NH horses: Danehill Willy who won at the July course in 2006 and has since won at Ffos Las over obstacles, or Souffleur who was handy on soft ground at about 1m4f for Michael Bell but has done less over hurdles for another trainer. In short, I am not working the list properly.

So, in an effort to be more organised, I entered Golden Tiger after I backed him against a Johnston hotpot at Southwell just before Christmas where he finished an eye-catching second. My email duly arrived yesterday, although as I look at the maiden cards anyway I was in a sand to Southwell position. Annoyingly, so is Golden Tiger. He is entered in a small field with one non-runner already and the price is going to be pants because everyone (apart from Gary or whoever was in his Today seat this morning) has noticed and tipped him.

Nonetheless, he’s a fair bet and I can’t see him beaten in the 2.30 @ Southwell.

I like the notebook, but I wouldn't wear the earrings

I want that one

This is the distilled system in the ceaseless quest for a maiden winner.

Arry’s Horse 1.40 @ Lingfield – owned by Harry Redknapp, but that is not a contributory factor in the selection, merely a point of information. Likely to be a fav too, also not a factor.

Killing Moon 6.00 @ Kempton

I joined the Facebook group…

…I’m like a Dog with a Bone, Can’t Pick My Own Nose (Let Alone A Winner), I Get Knocked Down but I get up again, Why does the Horse I back 4get to use its Gym Membership, Tubthumping is the 3rd Way and so on. nOTe that RAnDOm use of CAPS is de riGEur when setting these things up.

I think the kids are having all the fun on that social networking site. This is a selection of some of the “groups” a younger relative has been joining (anonymity guaranteed luv).

We’ve had a wintry winter so we should have a summery summer, Why the hell can’t I run when I’m beng chased in my dreams? My bed is so possessive, every morning it does not want me to leave. And so on.

The FB’ker also took the following quiz on there for amusement. “Which is better – Spurs or Shit?” Well that’s a real either / or head scratcher.

My point? Well maybe it’s – why are we reducing our lives to virtual soundbytes? Or maybe, that’s a really good idea when you’re young, tired, busy, old whatever. It allows you to mark out your identity when you are in danger of being subsumed by life and belong to a cockle-warming club at the same time. So, for today only, I’ll give it a go.

Makemeadiva joined the group Picking Maiden Winners At Southwell Is Like Finding Diamonds in the Sand. I also took the quiz “Will Mark Johnston win the 4.00 with Ancient Times”. I answered probably, but I’d rather back Balcombe.

I am aware of two FB groups that enjoyed some success: the Rage against the Machine campaign for the Christmas No. 1 and the Bring back Cadbury’s Wispa Bar. Given the number of groups out there, the strike rate ain’t too good and the percentage call has got to be a lay.

I joined the group FB Groups will never rule the world.

A Hot Maiden (and an insight into my tortured mind!)

It’s not a phrase usually associated with a twilight race at Wolverhampton, comparatively speaking. Especially on a Monday in February, but that’s exactly what we’ve got this afternoon given this is the sole surviving meeting in the UK and Ireland.

12 runners declared, but as I’m ahead of myself today (bucking the weekend’s trend) any non-runners are beyond the blog’s control.

Normally you’d be looking hard at the Master of Middleham’s offering in one of these contests, but this affair has got some other big stables fielding runners, so there’s not much confidence here that the unraced Hacienda will hack up. We also have Hills, Prescott and Cumani in the mix which rather complicates matters.

I can’t see a stand out win bet. If I were feeling lazy I would just say Hacienda. I am not feeling lazy though, I am feeling incisive “ish”. So of the two unraced colts (there is one unraced filly that I have put a line through) I would perhaps just favour the Hills colt Blues Music over Johnston’s Hacienda. The reasoning being that the 7f might just be at the outer edge of Hacienda’s stamina at this point in his career.

Of those with experience under their girths I have had a hard look at Mental Reservation. It’s an interesting name and he is by the speedball Dayjur, of which we see few enough these days. My mental reservation is, again about seeing out the 7f. The other raced horse is now favourite @ 2/1 Mnasikia from Cumani and although not inclined to favour fillies over the colts in maiden races it is probably hard to pick too many holes in her chances.

So I have reduced the field of 12 to 4 – Blues Music, Mnasikia, Hacienda and Mental Reservation. At the prices now it will be hard to make a profit if they are all backed individually. I have ignored another who will be up there in the market: Meehan’s Penrod Ballantyne. This may be foolish. I need a break.

*****************************************************************************

I have had a break at work and am now re-considering the issues. A market check reveals a little bit of morning money for the Meehan runner but much more for the Evans/Hanagan horse – Blues Forever. In from 20s to 9 at lunchtime. More hmmms. I feel like Winnie the Pooh. This is meant to be easy. If you are really intelligent you should know the answer to this high IQ test “Teeth is Hens as Nest is to what?”. Winners are rarer than hen’s teeth round here, but I can’t get the what. Clearly I am not that bright!

Ok, matter at hand. Follow the money, but for these additional reasons: Evans is a money stable, the Johnston horse has drifted a touch, as has the Hills offering. Holding their prices well are the filly Mnasikia and Penrod Ballantyne, but I have question marks about both these winning now. The deal-clincher for me is that Blues Forever is by Oratorio. Oratorio’s all-weather stats are significantly better than the other horses’ sires on offer in the race. Blues Forever is also being dropped back in trip after not quite seeing out the 1m at Lingfield which I see as a positive. Running over further in a race can bring them on. So that’s that then. I am taking the 9s on Blues Forever each-way @ 5.20 Wolves. Main dangers Hacienda and the Cumani filly with a funny name.

NB There is also Blues Music (Hills) that I mentioned earlier. I was keen on this this morning. I am not backing it now. It will probably win.

Answers please on the IQ test – I give up.

My kind of hen (ok it's a bantam)

Not enough hours in the day…

…that is what I blame my abject punting display yesterday on.

Once again the world turned and I was slightly behind it.  Leaving late on account of the 8 a.m. inspection, missing the first and not being able to get a copy of the Post until I was on course all meant I had no chance for some proper study.  This is what you need when entering the bear-pit and I had a)  forgotten b) little opportunity – which was my own fault.

Time was on a Saturday, when the girls were little and had naps in the day, that I would take the dog out early doors and buy the Post.  I also used to buy the ill-fated Sporting something or another in its brief life.  Then I would read the form and read the trainers’ comments which, as a novice, I set great store by.  Then I would take the dog out again via the bookies and place my bets.

The kids never sleep during the day now, not even when they are ill.  On weekends they like to do stuff.  Come on dog walks, hang out, watch films.  I knocked the sticking my head in a paper habit on a Saturday a long time ago because it was selfish and didn’t read well.  Consequently, I have come to terms with Saturday, the biggest punting day of the week, being my missed opportunity so to speak.  I’m ok with that in the comfort of my own home.  Doing a nearly 8 hour round trip with your dear mother counting her wonga in the dusk is a little harder to take!  I don’t begrudge anyone a winner though.

I was able to read the Racing Post last night at bedtime.  Therein were  some of the nuggets I could have done with on course.  In one small field hurdle race I had a nice theory about the well-bred Fiulin, trained by Evan Williams (in form) and was somewhat seduced by some fancy entries (Champion/World Hurdle).  This fella downed tools before the home turn on the hill and came home last.  As he dragged his sorry, and as it became evident fat, arse past the stands to explain himself to his connections I popped him in the mental notebook “will come on for the run”.  If I had acquainted myself with the trainer’s view I would have know this:

“Time has conspired against us. It’s now the end of January and we haven’t been able to run him, so instead of going for a Mickey Mouse race and learning nothing, we are going for a good race to hopefully find out where we are with him. He has done a lot of schooling (makemeadiva notes: the beast jumped nicely it must be said), but he is a big horse and will come on a bundle for whatever he does here.”

So basically, I paid money to find out what I had already paid money to find out when I bought the paper.  This, incidentally, is what trainer, Robin Dickin, said of the race winner Restless Harry who laid it down from the front and earned the only applause of the day from me.

“I have been riding horses for 40 years but the feel he gave me when I rode him on Tuesday was the best I’ve had. It was an extraordinary piece of work so I have to be expecting a good run. He is in better order than before (his last race) and was hardly trained or fed – this time he’s highly trained and well fed, so I hope I haven’t messed him up!”

Of course, not all trainers’ comments are equal.  Paul Nicholls did not fancy Taranis, who delivered at 20/1 (well done to one Ms AMB )after 766 days off the track since breaking down in the 2007 King George, saying:

“…it’s been a hard road back and I have yet to see the old ability’s still there.”

Yep the ability’s still there Paul and Fiulin is porky sort who thinks he doesn’t fancy actually running fast after about 1m6f. 

It was all there, shame I didn’t read it first.

On the upside, I saw a Red Kite and Buzzard on the way out (these are impressive birds of prey and deserve to be proper nouns).  I met some old and new friends on course and saw a fantastic yellow moon on the way home. 

Oh, and mother bought the chips.

Mine was on the M40