PART I
DIARY – CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2014
DAY THREE
FEATURING THE WORLD HURDLE
THURSDAY 13 MARCH 2014
|
My star of Day 3, Part 1, is Uxizandre (ridden by
Choc today) who put up a very game front-running display to go
down fighting to the AP McCoy-ridden Taquin Du Seuil in the Grade 1
JLT Novices’ Chase FOG!!! The sunny days, and lack of a
breeze, had combined to produce a thick fog this morning. It had been forecast, but it is never
welcomed ahead of a long journey. The
visibility at home had been extremely poor during the night, but had appeared
to have cleared somewhat by the time night met day so I was unperturbed as I
prepared for the day ahead. As usual I’d risen early, before
04:30, showered and washed and dried my hair.
This was followed by a breakfast of two Weetabix with raisins, plus a
cup of tea. Having applied my make-up
and dressed, I departed at 06:17. Today’s outfit was a black
M&S thermal vest, black BHS long-sleeved vest, a long-sleeved thermal
M&S t-shirt (I can’t recall which colour on this occasion, but the odds
are it was the violet one), cerise frill edged cardigan (my favourite),
bright purple fleece, black gillet, navy skirt with rear hem detail, navy
tights, burgundy wedge shoes, navy woollen M&S scarf, black and white
horse snood, cerise jacket, the large burgundy handbag yet again (which I’d
use on all four days), and my Fired Creations turquoise, cerise and bronze pendant
necklace (it may still be illustrated on here – PSS 2340). I really must book myself in for a dichroic
glass jewellery workshop so I can make my own pendants and earrings! Anyway, the fog having appeared
to have cleared somewhat, I was not happy to discover that once I’d driven
down the hill on the far side of the city, it became very dense. Damn.
Would it affect my journey all the way to Cheltenham I wondered? I was soon to find out! I can recall having to drive to
the Festival in fog on one previous occasion, Day 3 of the 2012 Festival in
fact. And, because I use my car so
little and my memory is going, I couldn’t remember where the rear fog lamp
switch was; strange really, as I can still recall its location on my previous
car! Poodles. I’d have to survive without it, using just
headlights and rear lights, as I had no intention of stopping enroute to look
in the manual which I store in the glove compartment. My route took me through Hemel
Hempstead to join the A41 bypass; it was amazing how many vehicles were
speeding along the road despite the very poor visibility. I probably went to little faster than
recommended, between 55 and 60 mph. As
I slowed down approaching the roundabout at the far end of the dual
carriageway, I noticed blue flashing lights through the gloom. And, as I drew nearer, I saw a fire engine
and an ambulance parked beside it; the roundabout was one of those raised
ones, about a metre high, with white bricks around the side. Then, on top of it, I noticed a white car! Ooooops ... Someone had been travelling far
too fast for the prevailing weather conditions, perhaps not even knowing the
road layout, and had ignored the roundabout signs and ‘countdown’ signs relating to the obstacle ahead. There are also yellow lines upon the road
surface to warn drivers of their approach, which you can clearly hear as your
tyres pass over them. So it was
surprising that the driver failed to stop in time. Fortunately the emergency
vehicles were positioned so as to avoid blocking the entry and exit from the
bypass, so I was not held up by this accident. My route took me through Aylesbury and
around their ring-road, before joining the A41 once more and travelling
through Waddesdon and Kingswood to reach Bicester. All this was done in slow motion, as
visibility was still poor. Having negotiated the Bicester
bypass, I turned left to head down the dual carriageway towards the M40
junction. I decided not to take the Wendlebury
option, as travelling along winding country lanes in thick fog was not my
idea of fun! I couldn’t actually see
whether the tailback from the motorway junction was long or not but, as it
transpired, it was shorter than Tuesday but not as short as I’d been hoping. Traffic was travelling more
slowly than normal along the A34 due to the prevailing weather conditions,
but I’d soon reached the Peartree Interchange and left via the sliproad to
reach the roundabout upon the A44. Once
again, and for the third day running, traffic was almost stationary around
it, but eventually I managed to cross through into the second lane and
travelled down the next short stretch of road to reach the Wolvercote
roundabout. A right turn took me onto
the A40; the time was just before 08:00. The journey was slow over the
Cotswolds today, due to the fog, with none of the usual landmarks I’m
accustomed to being visible. However,
I eventually reached Cheltenham, taking my now familiar route up Greenway Lane,
down Harp Hill, along Priors Road, up Bouncers Lane, across the double
roundabouts into Tatchley Lane, New Barn Lane, Swindon Lane and into the car
park. I had arrived at 09:10 but, the
fog having delayed many travellers, there was still space in the lower field
to park, although I was fairly high up on the hill. Once again I left the car in reverse gear
for safety. Whilst waiting in my car
before heading to the turnstiles, I decided to search out the car manual and
discovered how to operate the fog lamps; hopefully it would hold me in good
stead for the next time I’d need them ... at this stage little did I know it
would be the following morning!!! When the gates opened at 10:30 I
purchased a race-card at the kiosk opposite the turnstiles and headed to the
loo; for the third day running my early morning cup of tea was causing havoc
and I was dying for a wee!!! I then
headed down the concourse to the Parade Ring, waiting in the area opposite
the Weighing Room. I soon spotted Choc; it was
becoming a fixture this Festival to see him having a cigarette break whilst
standing outside the Weighing Room.
Today he was wearing his long black coat, with white shirt and red tie
as usual! I later discovered he’d
already been interviewed by RUK’s Oli Bell; I found the interview within
Thursday’s Mark Your Card programme (following a clue to this from Lydia
Hislop later in the afternoon!). I
must have just missed this due to my visit to the little girls’ room, as all
interviews are broadcast with a few minutes time lapse delay, and this was
timed as beginning at 10:43. Of
course, Choc was looking as gorgeous as ever! During the interview, Oli spoke
about Sire De Grugy’s win the previous day and the reception Jamie Moore had
received from the jockeys upon his return to the Winners’ Enclosure. Jamie had mentioned that Ruby had offered
him good advice during the race, telling him to follow Special Tiara. Choc
admitted that Ruby had also given him advice turning into the home straight during
the RSA; he told Choc to kick on if his horse stayed, which he did ... but he
got beat. Choc said “but what does Ruby know?” and he
laughed. It transpired that Choc hadn’t
been to walk the New Course yet so, having put on his green wellies, he set
off to do this at 10:45, taking around 25-30 minutes. He was accompanied by a young lad who, at
the time, I didn’t know; but in hindsight I think it may have been Archie
Bellamy, son of ex-jockey Robert and brother of jockey Tom. And that’s because Archie tweeted Choc
later in the evening to say my favourite jockey had forgotton to give him a
lift home, having given him a ride to the racecourse in the morning! Choc apologised for being absent-minded;
Archie joked that he’d contact Social Services! I had been hoping to meet up
with fellow Choc fan Sally Meek but, in the event, she was unable to make it
today due to unforeseen circumstances.
I’d been looking forward to having someone to chat to today; but
hopefully we’d be able to meet up at Cheltenham in the future, perhaps later
in the year. I had been worried that it would
be ‘mascara running’ weather today,
but it must have been dry fog, rather than wet fog, because it had no adverse
effect on my make-up! The usual Pre-Races Preview took
place in the Winners’ Enclosure, presented by Martin Kelly. Today’s guests were Tony O’Hehir, Irish
Correspondent of the Racing Post; Paul Nicholls; Davy Russell; and David
Chapman of Ladbrokes, representing the sponsors of today’s feature event, the
World Hurdle. In light of jockey Bryan Cooper’s
broken leg sustained the previous day, there were a number of jockey changes
announced. Davy Russell would replace
Bryan aboard Mozoltov in the first race, Ruby Walsh would ride Seefood in the
Pertemps Final, David Casey would deputise aboard Rathlin in the Ryanair, and
Brian O’Connell would ride Rule The World in the World Hurdle. Liam Treadwell would ride Bennys Mist in
the Byrne Group Plate in place of Paul Carberry. Mindful that I might become
trapped upon the steppings as punters arrived to view the runners in the
Parade Ring ahead of the first race, I set off in good time to find my usual
vantage point beside the course-side rails.
Although visibility had improved a little, it was impossible to see
Cleeve Hill; the highest point in the Cotswolds. Alan King had one runner in the
first race, Uxizandre to be ridden by Choc.
The horse is owned by JP McManus but AP McCoy had chosen to ride the
Jonjo O’Neill trained Taquin Du Seuil.
Uxizandre needs to race left-handed, and the cheek-pieces were back on
again today; his odds were 33-1, the second longest odds of any of the 12
runners. The race favourite was Felix
Yonger, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Ruby Walsh. The starting gate for this event
is part-way down the mid-course chute, with two fences to be jumped before
the far turn. Having exited from the
horse walkway, the runners cantered across the home straight and up along the
all-weather strip around the top bend to reach the in-field.
Having
exited the in-field and walked onto the track ahead of the race, Choc ensured
that his mount jumped off at the head of affairs and that he also claimed the
inside berth. And then they were off; there
was a roar from the crowd as soon as the commentator Mike Cattermole
announced that the race had begun.
Sizing
Gold held a very narrow advantage as they headed to the first, with Uxizandre to his inside, and Djakadam
and Double Ross to his outside. The
leader reached for the fence and, as a result, was a little less fluent than
those around him. Near the back of the
field, Oscar Whisky fell; Mozoltov made a very bad
error, unseated his jockey, but remained on his feet despite colliding with
Barry Geraghty’s mount, which appeared to roll
completely over as a result. And,
caught in the backwash of this carnage was Vukovar
who was severely hampered, but his partnership with Noel Fehily
survived. The horses and jockeys were
fine following the incident. Uxizandre had assumed the
lead as the remaining runners headed towards fence number two, which they all
cleared safely. Double Ross now
travelled in second position, from Djakadam, Sizing
Gold, Wonderful Charm, Off The Ground, Taquin Du Seuil, Felix Yonger, the 200-1
outsider Captain Ocana and the unlucky Vukovar. The
runners crossed over the New Course and headed around the far turn; Choc’s mount was enjoying himself at the head of affairs,
ears pricked. The horses cornered
quite wide, as they had been travelling downhill at speed and it was a tight
turn. However, Choc soon regained the
rail and headed to fence number three.
At the rear of the field, Captain Ocana made
a slight error here. The
horses travelled on to the next, where Taquin Du Seuil got a little close to it. Having jumped the fourth fence, the runners
joined the New Course to continue their journey. Uxizandre
continued to bowl along at the front of the field, from Double Ross, Djakadam and Sizing Gold.
These were followed by Wonderful Charm, Off The Ground, Felix Yonger, Taquin Du Seuil, Vukova and Captain Ocana. Wonderful
Charm got a little close to the next fence.
The runners cleared the sixth fence and then headed uphill past the
Best Mate Enclosure; Uxizandre’s lead had been
reduced but he was still travelling well within himself. The
field negotiated the top turn and entered the back straight. There were no mishaps at the first in this
line of fences, although Vukovar did jump out to
his right and Captain Ocana was beginning to
struggle and had begun to lose touch with the rear of the field. The following fence is the water-jump; Uxizandre continued to lead and his ears pricked each
time a fence approached. The
next fence was the first of the open-ditches and there were no noticeable
jumping errors here; although Taquin Du Seuil was now at the rear of the main group, with just
the outsider behind him. The runners
moved on towards the next fence, a plain one, which Wonderful Charm got a
little close to; he had lost a few places and now travelled third from
last. Uxizandre
continued to lead the runners as they negotiated the dog-leg turn and headed
to the final open-ditch; again on the outside of the field, Vukovar jumped out to his right. There
is one final fence before the top of the hill and, not for the first time, Taquin Du Seuil was a little
slow here. Having reached the far
corner, the runners turned left-handed to begin the journey downhill; the
fourth last fence met shortly afterwards.
It’s a tricky fence, with the ground running away as the horses land;
it certainly caught a number of the competitors napping. In fact, Double Ross
pecked, as did Vukovar to the wide outside and
Felix Yonger back in the field. And one departed, namely Djakadam who crumpled on landing; he hampered Sizing
Gold, Taquin Du Seuil and
Wonderful Charm, the latter having to negotiate the prostrate jockey. Having tailed off, Captain Ocana was pulled up after this fence. The
remaining eight headed down to the third last at speed, with Uxizandre still holding the advantage; he got a little
close to this one but continued to lead as the runners headed towards the
final turn. Double Ross held second
position, with Taquin Du Seuil
making progress under pressure to close upon Sam Twiston-Davies’
mount. Crossing the pathway, Uxizandre led by three lengths. But both his pursuers had closed the gap to
around one length by the time they cleared the penultimate fence. The
three warriors headed to the last fence, now line across the track. Uxizandre
continued to fight to the inside, Double Ross travelled to the outside, with Taquin Du Seuil between them;
none wishing to concede. They jumped
the last, Choc’s mount the most fluent, Double Ross
the least. It was now a three-way
battle to the line. Double Ross was
the first to crack with half a furlong to go and he dropped back; AP’s mount
was now neck and neck with Uxizandre. Then,
in the final 50 yards, Tarquin Du Seuil finally got the upper hand, staying on to win by
three quarters of a length. The brave
and game Uxizandre had finished 2nd, with Double
Ross a length and a quarter away in 3rd.
Felix Yonger stayed on to finish 4th. What
an absolute shame; it happened for Nico de Boinville and for Brian Hughes. A winner after a close second ... but Choc
was out of luck again having gone so close yesterday aboard Smad Place, and it was now more of the same with Uxizandre. L
With
visibility being compromised on the static cameras, much of the race was
covered from a camera vehicle travelling just ahead of the horses whilst
being driven on the emergency vehicles’ roadway to the inside of the
track. So, with Choc leading for much
of the race, there were lots of lovely close-ups of him. J
I
returned to the Winners’ Enclosure to see Choc and Uxizandre
arrive back. AP
was severely lame, having jumped off of Taquin Du Seuil; a legacy of the previous day’s incident when his
mount Goodwood Mirage was brought down during the
Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle.
Uxizandre would gain
compensation when winning the Grade 1 Manifesto Novices’ Chase at
Aintree. But, unfortunately, AP would
pilot the horse that day. Having
re-watched the recording of this race and the Aintree race too, Uxizandre had become a favourite of mine. I like him because he loves to front run
and pricks his ears when he sees a fence, obviously enjoying himself when in
front; the connections having discovered his preferred style of running
during this season. Hopefully Choc
will get further opportunities to ride him.
I
didn’t pay particular attention to Taquin Du Seuil until I saw him at Sandown at the end of April for
the season finale parade; it was then that I realised he is a staggeringly
beautiful horse to look at ... and very talented of course! Having
seen Choc return to the Weighing Room, I set off back to the course-side
rails ahead of the next race. The
race favourite was the Philip Hobbs-trained Fingal
Bay, ridden by Richard Johnson; priced at 9-2. In fact the trainer had 5 entries in this
race, the others being If In Doubt, Uncle Jimmy, Pateese
and So Fine. The
starting gate for this event was at the beginning of the back straight; the
horses exiting from the horse-walk to canter across the home straight and
head up around the bend upon the all-weather track to reach it.
Having
waited for what seemed like an age at the start, with the horses jogging
around in a clockwise direction upon the uphill section of the track, finally
they were off. The runners were led
away by the pale grey Grand Vision, to his inside the visored
Cross Kennon and the hooded Top Wood, to his
outside Crowning Jewel and wider still the hooded and blinkered Quartz De Thaix. At
the first, one of the Irish competitors Vics Canvas
fell whilst in mid-field; he hampered the grey mare Mickie,
Mister Dillon and also the second-string JP McManus runner Josies Orders. The
loose horse got up and galloped away; the rider was okay too. The runners headed to the second flight,
with Grand Vision to the inside disputing the lead with Quartz De Thaix to the outside.
At the rear of the field, AP McCoy’s mount If In Doubt jumped the
flight slowly. The
runners headed to flight number three, where Trustan
Times travelling to the inside of the field in seventh position made a
mistake. The horses negotiated the
dog-leg turn before jumping flight number four; there were no mishaps
here. Having reached the top of the
hill, the horses turned the corner and headed downhill to flight number five;
Grand Vision and Quartz De Thaix continued to lead
the way, from Cross Kennon, Top Wood and Crowning
Jewel. Trustan
Times and Fingal Bay travelled behind these; at the
rear of the field clearing the next flight was On The Bridge. Ears
pricked, Grand Vision led the runners into the home straight on the first
occasion. Cross Kennon
and Quartz De Thaix disputed second, from Trustan Times, Top Wood, Crowning Jewel, Utopie Des Bordes, Jetson, Fingal Bay, Southfield
Theatre, Mickie, Seefood,
Pateese, So Fine, Uncle Jimmy, First Fandango,
Broadway Buffalo, Mister Dillon, Pineau De Re, If
In Doubt, On The Bridge and Josies Orders. Broadway Buffalo flattened a panel in the
hurdle in front of the stands. The
runners headed uphill and through their starting point before entering the
back straight once more. Cross Kennon led over the next flight; in rear at the next were
Pineau De Re and On The Bridge. The field continued its progress down the
back straight, with Fingal Bay having improved his
position to the outside of the field, Uncle Jimmy and Josies
Orders also. They cleared the ninth
flight without incident, negotiated the dog-leg turn and headed over the
tenth at the top of the hill. Having
reached the far corner, they turned left and headed downhill; Cross Kennon led narrowly from Grand Vision, Fingal Bay, Josies Orders, Jetson, Uncle Jimmy and Trustan
Times. Although under strong pressure,
Cross Kennon continued at the head of affairs as
they galloped towards two out. On the
outside of the field, If In Doubt had made significant progress, as had Southfield
Theatre, Seefood and Pineau
De Re. The
leader jumped out to his right at the penultimate flight; Grand Vision
disputed second with Fingal Bay; meanwhile in
fourth position Uncle Jimmy stumbled after the flight and lost ground as a
result. Heading around the final
turn, it was Fingal Bay who came to lay down a
challenge to the leader. Disputing
third against the rail was Grand Vision just beginning to fade, and to his
outside Jetson, Trustan
Times, If In Doubt and Southfield Theatre. The
leaders headed towards the last; Cross Kennon soon
headed by Southfield Theatre, Fingal Bay, Trustan Times and Jetson. Staying on just behind these was Pineau De Re.
Daryl Jacob’s mount jumped the last flight marginally ahead of Fingal Bay; the latter flattening a panel and losing
momentum. However, under a strong
drive from Richard Johnson, his mount began to gain upon Southfield Theatre
as they headed up the hill to the line, with both Pineau
De Re and Trustan Times gaining on them as they did
so. Photograph. The
result was eventually announced; Fingal Bay had won
by a nose. The top-weight had beaten
the second-top weight. Daryl Jacob was
devastated and in tears after the verdict was announced; he was totally
gutted. Richard patted the losing
jockey on the back but, for the moment, he was inconsolable. Pineau De Re
finished a neck 3rd, with Trustan Times a further
neck away in 4th. Jetson
was 5th and, having spent much of the race struggling at the back of the
field, On The Bridge kept on to finish 6th.
I remained beside the course-side rails ahead of the next race. NEWS FROM
THE STEWARDS ROOM: The Stewards held an enquiry into
the use of the whip by Richard Johnson, the rider of the winner, FINGAL BAY (IRE),
from approaching the last flight. Having heard his evidence and viewed
recordings of the race, they found him in breach of Schedule (B)6 Part 2 in that he had used his whip without giving his
horse time to respond on the run to the line. The Stewards suspended Johnson
for 3 days as follows: Sunday 30 and Monday 31 March and Tuesday 1 April
2014. Choc’s
mount in the next race was the grey Medermit; the
10-year-old having returned to action at Ascot last month having missed 22
months due to injury. He’d finished
third in this race in 2012. The
favourite was another grey, Dynaste, ridden by Tom Scudamore and trained by Martin Pipe; priced at 3-1. There were three greys in the race, the
other being Al Ferof. Menorah wore first time cheek-pieces. The starting gate for this event
was at the beginning of the mid-course chute, with three fences to be jumped
before the far turn. Having exited
from the horse walkway, the runners cantered across the home straight and up
along the all-weather strip around the top bend to reach the in-field.
And
then they were off. It wasn’t a
surprise that Kauto Stone led the runners away,
from Hidden Cyclone; both horses jumped out to their right over the first
fence, with the former hampering Al Ferof slightly
in the process. Benefficient
travelled upsides Daryl Jacob’s mount; next in the field were Hunt Ball and
Menorah, then Rajdhani Express and Rathlin, and in rear Medermit
to the inside, Dynaste to the outside and Boston
Bob centre. Medermit
got close up behind Radjhani Express as they
cleared the next, Choc steering his mount back to the inside of the latter as
they headed away from the fence. The
mid-course chute crosses the downhill section of the Old Course prior to the
next fence; which all the runners cleared without incident. They then galloped across the downhill
section of the New Course before heading to the far turn; Kauto
Stone continued to set a good pace at the head of affairs, from the hooded Benefficient and Hidden Cyclone. Al Ferof, on the
inside of the field, was shaking his head as he negotiated the apex of the
turn; and he may have slipped slightly too.
Having
entered the home straight on the first occasion, the runners headed to fence
number four; they all jumped this well, Boston Bob bringing up the rear. After having cleared one more fence, the
field joined the New Course proper and headed to fence number six; travelling
near the rear, Medermit hit this one. The horses began to bunch up as they
travelled to the next; Kauto Stone still holding
the advantage over Benefficient and Hidden Cyclone
as they jumped it. The
runners then headed away from the main grandstands and up the hill. Leading was Kauto
Stone from Benefficient, Hidden Cyclone, Al Ferof, Menorah, Rajdhani
Express, Rathlin, Hunt Ball, Dynaste,
Medermit and Boston Bob. Having entered the back straight, the horses
travelled to fence number eight; they all cleared this well, although Al Ferof was shaken up briefly as they travelled towards the
next, the water-jump. Kauto Stone touched the top of this one. They
headed to the first open-ditch, where the leader jumped out to his
right. Medermit
was now being pushed along slightly, near the back of the field. Hunt Ball wasn’t particularly fluent at the
following fence and, having cleared it, Choc administered a couple of
reminders to his mount as they negotiated the dog-leg turn. The following fence is an open-ditch and,
having jumped it, Menorah came under pressure and lost his place. The
runners were now heading to the fence at the far end of the back straight,
number thirteen. Hidden Cyclone took a
narrow lead here, Kauto Stone now in second, Rajdhani Express close up in third and Hunt Ball likewise
in fourth. Having negotiated the far
turn, the horses began to travel downhill; meeting the tricky fourth-last
shortly afterwards. Hidden Cyclone
flew this one, with Rajdhani Express in hot
pursuit; the weakening Kauto Stone made an error
and dropped back. Hidden
Cyclone led the runners down the hill and over the third last; he was
followed by Rajdhani Express, Hunt Ball, Rathlin, Benefficient, Dynaste, Al Ferof, Medermit, Boston Bob, Kauto
Stone and the tailed off Menorah.
There was no change at the head of affairs and, having turned into the
home straight, Hidden Cyclone began to pull away from his nearest rival, Rajdhani Express. However,
to the outside of the runners, Dynaste had made
steady progress and was just a length behind the second as they jumped the
penultimate fence; Hunt Ball in fourth position, hit this obstacle. The runners headed to the last, the leader
less than a length ahead of his rivals as he jumped it. Then began the battle to the line; Dynaste soon driven to the front, with Hidden Cyclone to
the far side wandering under pressure and slightly impeding the challenge of Rajdhani Express. The
grey galloped on to win by 2¼ lengths from Hidden Cyclone; Rajdhani Express finished a further 2¼ lengths away in
3rd, and Hunt Ball 2¾ lengths back in 4th.
Medermit completed in 8th. Benefficient was eased and
pulled up before the last fence; retirement beckoned having sustained a serious
leg injury.
I
remained beside the course-side rails ahead of the next race. NEWS FROM
THE STEWARDS ROOM: The
Stewards noted that HIDDEN CYCLONE, placed second, had interfered with RAJDHANI
EXPRESS, placed third, on the run in, but after viewing a recording of the
incident they were satisfied that it neither involved a riding offence nor
improved HIDDEN CYCLONE (IRE)’s placing. WHY THEY RAN BADLY: The
Veterinary Officer reported that AL FEROF (FR), placed fifth, trained by Paul
Nicholls, had been struck into right fore. That’s it for the first half of my Day 3 diary
... |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
