Races That Were Better Than They Looked!

Another hectic couple of weeks, each horse ran, both produced performances that if you had shown me the results alone I would have been disappointed, but both runs gave us plenty of hope for the future.

As well as releasing my September podcast, we also needed to record early for October and it has been head down working through the task list the last couple of weeks.

There is a possibility that Bella Cavalla could run later in the month, but the way races are at the moment she will probably struggle to make the field.? Stryder will not run until October and more on that below.

Bella Cavalla

On the face of it finishing 4th and beaten 23 lengths looks like a disappointing run, but that overlooks a real battling performance from Bella Cavalla at Fontwell.? She was completely outpaced earlier in the race and looked almost certain to be pulled up before plugging on gamely to pass rival after rival including the last three on the run in to finish 4th.? Whilst she was 23 lengths off the winner, that one ran under a 7lb penalty the following week and won again by 9 lengths, so he was obviously a fantastically well-handicapped horse!

The feedback from both jockey, Brendan Powell, and trainer, Neil Mulholland, was that if we step Bella up in trip where they race a bit slower, then she will win races if she shows the same attitude as she did here.

The issue might be finding a suitable race though.? I am not sure what the fixture planners are playing at but there is virtually nothing for her in September.? She was entered for a race at Worcester, but 50 entries and no division meant she did not get in there and her only other option is back at Fontwell later in the month in a race that is further than ideal and we are not sure whether she will get into it either.

We are facing a bit of a race against the weather to get her another run before the ground gets soft for the winter.? We will do our best though.

Now is a great time to get involved.? A 2% share is ￡754 covering all costs to 30th June 2025 and can be paid monthly.? There are discounted rates for 5% and 10% shareholders as well, please contact me for details.

Stryder

Stryder ran at Chelmsford where he was 5th again.? Another result that looked worse on paper than it really was. He got really worked up pre-race which is unusual and then was bumped around like a pinball coming out of the stalls and lost his position.? We know he is best racing up with the pace so with that much having gone wrong, it was actually quite encouraging to see him finish where he did.

Jockey Paddy Bradley said that he showed a great attitude and if he can run that well when things go that badly wrong, then he can certainly win when things go his way.? It was also encouraging to see that the winner of the race won again since so the form is solid.

On the back of that race and the jockey and trainer feedback, I decided to renew the shareholding for another year.

I am processing renewals for existing shareholders, but Stryder is nowhere near fully sold, so new shareholders are welcome.

In terms of running plans, there was nothing that really jumped out as a good target this month and so given my holiday and the need to do renewal, we decided to give Stryder another short break.? This will set him up to run on the all-weather through the winter and Michael Attwater thought the break might be beneficial especially given that he got worked up last time at Chelmsford.

If you would like to get involved in ownership, please get in touch and I will provide more information.? Shareholing prices are being calculated but will be similar to the prices for Bella Cavalla (see above).

Inside The Rails

We released the September Inside The Rails podcast which features an interview with Louise Norman from the Racehorse Owners Association on 1st September.?

We then recorded early for October earlier this week with David Letts from Great British Racing (the marketing arm of racing).? He is responsible for promoting shared ownership so was an ideal guest.

Please give the podcast a listen using the link below or by searching for Inside The Rails on any podcast app and please tell your friends about Inside The Rails!

https://insidetherails.podbean.com/

Winners From Our?Stables

Some of Michael Attwater’s runners have been exceeding expectations in recent weeks and one such was Battle Point on the 4th September who bounced right back to his best only missing out by a short head at 22-1.? Cooperation also bounced back to form for Michael on the 7th September, finishing 3rd.? No winners for Michael since the last email but with Thismydream and Nordic Glory both also finishing 2nd, he has been knocking on the door.

At Fontwell when Bella Cavalla ran, Neil Mulholland had two winners including the winner of Bella’s race!??Earth Cry has been really consistent in recent times and he maintained that with a nice performance to win his race and the 2nd winner was even more impressive as Hawaii Du Mestivel travelled supremely well throughout the race and then galloped clear to record a wide margin win.

Hawaii Du Mestivel followed up his Fontwell win with another impressive win, this time at Bangor on the 6th September and it was two winners on the card for Neil as Jacobs Acre recorded a battling win on his handicap debut.

Neil keeps doing things at the double and winners five and six came at Worcester on Wednesday,? Lahinch Wave led throughout and whilst she was not particularly fluent at some of the hurdles, she powered on to win well on her racecourse debut.? Later on the card, The Bold Thady landed the double.? This enigmatic character put a few poor runs behind him and bounced right back to his best.? He won by a head and may not have got up had the jockey on the 2nd not made a mistake, but he would certainly have been 2nd if he hadn’t won and it was good to see him back in form.

Get Involved

If you are interested in finding out more about racehorse ownership, then please get in touch as I would be delighted to discuss things with you.

Standing order payments can be made to spread the cost of share purchases and shareholders get regular email updates along with the chance to come to the stables with me as well as to the races. There are also shareholder social events during the year.