Only about 5 weeks left in the 2008 flat season now but we still have plenty to look forward to, most immediately the big races at Newmarket and Longchamps this weekend. In the meantime though there are 4 flat meetings scheduled in the UK on Wednesday although not a great deal that I can find to write about.
There are 4 runners from my list to follow in action up and down the country. Ruth Carr’s Moheeb won at Hamilton last week but to say he had been expensive to follow would be an understatement as he has previously been unsuccessful in 14 runs this season. He runs in the Brandling House Christmas Parties handicap at Newcastle tomorrow at 4.15 where he will carry a 6 lbs penalty for that Hamilton victory. He is effective over a mile and also 9 furlongs and is best with some ease in the ground. His record at this standard is quite good and I would expect him to run well.
The other “list” runners are Charles Parnell (Nottingham 1.50), Sheer Bluff (Salisbury 1.30) & Stalking Tiger (Salisbury 3.35).
There are a few 2 year olds that caught my eye. Alanbrooke who runs in the Newcastle 3.45 is well related and did enough when 5th on his debut to suggest that he could win a race. Ouqba looks the one to beat in the Salisbury 4.05 while Hesketh has an each way chance in the 5.00 at Nottingham.
Although there are no UK jumps meetings tomorrow the season will soon be gathering pace. I will be coming up with some horses to follow over the next few weeks. One horse that is likely to find his way onto that list is Pancake, trained by Philip Hobbs. This horse has some very unusual markings and is very easy to spot in his races. He also has a bit of a double in the dual purpose horse Mr Ed. See what you think. This is Pancake.
This is Mr Ed.
Today’s painting is by the artist Nick Fegan and the 2 photos are courtesy of Tracy Roberts (Turfpix).
Bye for now.
ahorse 