A Month of Nass

Love your work Nass, top effort all round, and has me checking every day as to what your selection is going to be... Keep it up, you'll turn the corner soon, I have every faith in yer…

 

Must confess that I was quite taken by the performance of The Cruising Lord, what a lovely name for a gelding by the way, at the weekend. Thought he finished too good effect and his power-packed final flourish saw him only just miss out on the placings.

I think he would be more than up to winning such a Listed / Group 3 event by the end of the term (worth remembering Saturday was only his 8th racecourse appearance so there should be plenty of scope for improvement) or maybe stepped up to 6 furlongs he could be ideal for something like the ‘Ayr Gold Cup’ later in the season – the only negative, for me, re this is that the handicapper raised him 3 lbs (to 101) following Saturday’s run.

 

The ‘Pipalong Stakes’. What a lovely name for a race for fillies and mares. Lovely with a capital ‘L’.

Very difficult to call but if someone held a gun to my head, although I'm sure that no-one would ever want to do that, then I’d say Billesdon Brook will just edge it.

 

I think it's pretty hard to go past the favourite Clon Coulis, but the 2-1 is a bit off putting. Still,any price a winner is good value.

I'm going to put on my silly hat and look for something at cricket score odds. Maybe Never Be Enough at 80-1 to run a place. The filly as placed over in May over the 10f trip on this course. The shorter trip will be against her, but she runs on ok. She was held up in running last time out when a nice third over the mile at Hamilton.

Never Be Enough. 80-1.

 

I've also had a look to find something I like each way and have landed on New Day Dawn 16/1.

 

Another poor result despite the horse being supported in the market. I won't add up the scores for a few days to show a modicum of intrigue to the thread.

Lets keep going, and tomorrow I've picked an easy race, 7:45 at Kempton.

This race revolves around pace, even over the best part of 2 miles, and for once we should be expecting a soundly run race which plays into the hands of one horse in particular. The horse in question is Blazon, who ran in that farcical Sassie race, which was dominated by an enterprising ride by Murphy on Sassie. That day Blazon wasn't carried into the race by closers, and had to fight against a false pace to finish a relatively fair fourth. He was beaten a long way, but all the field was!!

Tomorrow he can return to previous course winning form, especially if he can get smuggled into the race by SDS. I am slightly concerned about the wide draw, but he can drop him right in at the back (Encryption and Continuum are probably likely to be behind him) and hopefully get to the rail or one off it.

With Akavit and Atomic Jack drawn low, and Ardamir and Paddy A drawn in the middle I think we will see a good early gallop, and if they are competitive it might not slacken as much as it normally does mid race. As such the stamina and staying power of Blazon will be perfect for this race and at 9/2 he is a very fair price.

2pts on the nose at 9/2 BOG

 

Kim Bailey?!? Ivy (lovely girl incidentally), couldn't, wall and all that. Oh, my old love, has it really come to this?!?

 

6 from 29 this season. That ivy is growing nicely I’d say!

 

A stopped clock is right twice a day. His recent runners on the level haven’t exactly set the world alight though (incidentally how did his Younevercall, who ultimately finished last, go off at just 11/2 at Royal Ascot??? Baffling beyond belief in my opinion). Plus he hasn’t had a winner over the big ‘uns for almost 3 and a half months (since 1 April).

Blazeon is an admirable old boy of that there is no doubt and from an old and quite decent Juddmonte family, as well, and in all seriousness could easily win this if today is a ‘going day’. But I wouldn’t see Bailey as a positive at all. In fact I’ve no idea how he still manages to attract owners.

 

What.about Paul Cole.then barney , he must.be the tumbleweed, I note he had.his winner last week , his stats are appaling.

 

I give you Mssr Elsworth for worse trainer award.

 

Indeed, 100% agree. Incidentally, I know a humorous story about the heir apparent to Whatcombe (young Oliver) which I’m sure I’ve told before so won’t bore everyone senseless again. I always think it’s far harder to train on the flat, when you are poor, as you tend to get found out so, so, so much quicker – whereas over the sticks you can say even a 10YO will be better with another summer on its back and buy yourself even more time. Given the limited career of flat horses timewise, in today’s climate, that statement is far harder to pull off. Not exactly sure how Paul Cole attracts owners either.

From a personal viewpoint though it’s still Kim Bailey and Oliver Sherwood way clear in the ‘couldn’t train Ivy…’ league.

 

Really?!? He may be a bit of a dour old curmudgeon at times but I, personally, have never been put off by his moniker next to a gee-gee.

 

74 runners 4 winners. Shocking really. 88 days since last winner.

 

Blimey I didn’t know he hadn’t had a winner for that long!

I see his next runner is shortly before Blazeon goes this evening.

 

Honestly I give up!! Blazon give an awful ride, going widest of all whilst the winner stuck to going around the rail.

15:00 Newmarket

Aplomb - this horse ran a stormer at Nottingham, and had to wait for the gap. I think this horse is going places and at 7/1 he is a very fair price. 2pt win

However what I want to talk about is how the Group 2 POW stakes retains its group status. Every season it seems to attract a small field and not a particularly good one at that. It seems to me to be the wrong race at this time of the season, and one that just throws up small fields. Tomorrow it has six runners and only Masar could be classed as a star attraction.

It is a really poor card in terms of depth of fields, the listed race only having six, the July Stakes eight and the Bahrain Trophy nine.

What on earth is racing doing having two group races on the same card, one at 1m4 and the other at 1m5? Surely that is just odd? Even with the Bahrain Trophy being for 3yo only it weakens the depth of both races.

Rant over.

 

Hope you are right Nass. I have put £50 on that one in the Virtual Betting Account and I badly need a winner. I have had a saver on Moss Gill. Some decent odds flying around in that race. 8/1 now available for Aplomb

 

Rathbone 11/1 win.

 

Another poor result

I will try and add some notes on this one in the morning but 5:10 Normandy Barriere @ 11/2 - 2pts

 

I, like others on the forum Nass, enjoy what you're up to, but for mine, I think you'll probably need to rethink your game plan mate. Even thinking about 20 horses in a 6 furlong race seems madness. And for mine, mile races are are difficult as they sort of lie between speedier sprint types and distance horses. I fully realize that most punters don't think too much of all weather tracks, but they seem a better option to me. They seem fairer. No up hill, down dale courses.

And as you have a better knowledge of all weather racing than most of us, it seems reasonable to concentrate on them. Less than 10 horse, distance races might be worth thinking about too.

Please feel free to disregard all of the above Nass.