Horse Racing Syndicates – Travelling The Country, Trainer Visits & A New Place To Watch The National!
I write these blogs on horse racing syndicates and ownership, about a month before they get posted, hence by the time you read this, the Cheltenham Festival will be in the book, so I hope you had a good one.
At the time of writing, it is still raining, the ground is still heavy (and in places waterlogged), and I am busy wondering whether my ante-post wagers are going to be suited by the Cheltenham ground!
February Runners and March Plans
We targeted the Conditional Jockeys Veteran Chase Final at Newbury on 21 st March with Fr Humphrey, but the intention was always to qualify him before it got too soft (which we did), and then run him in the final once the better ground returned (which is looking unlikely). Hopefully he will get there in one piece, and we will get some drier weather before the race.
Fr Humphrey is in a share package with Mount Oliver, and he has been running more regularly as he enjoys softer ground. His third run for us was in February and, after a couple of earlier targets were lost to waterlogging, we ended up in Sedgefield with him, which provided quite the day trip from Surrey! He finished 3rd, but he was a little unlucky, as after a slow jump at the third last, the gap between the two that had jumped to the front closed and cost him a lot of momentum. There was no way back from there, but he looks capable of winning, and he should have run again once or twice by the time this is published.
Our Anjaal flat filly with Michael Attwater has been named Silver Imperial, and she is due to make her debut in March. We have a racecourse gallop booked at Lingfield in the first week of March, and we will then look to get her on the track. The plan is to run her through the summer, and she should be loads of fun. Hopefully, an impending run will make the remaining shares a bit easier to shift!
Our other two National Hunt horses are on a similar schedule, and both should be on the track by the end of the season. My Brother will be kept going into the summer if he is injury free. He will be exciting if he can get back to the form that saw him finish 2nd in a novice handicap at Cheltenham in November 2017.
Our NH filly, Dynamic Kate, is doing plenty of work, and is on track to make a debut in a national hunt flat race at the back end of the season.
It is getting busier, but busy means runners, and hopefully some success to report back soon!
New Local Trainer… Should We Consider Him For Our Horse Racing Syndicate?
The former Nicky Henderson Assistant Trainer, Toby Lawes has moved into the village where I live (Beare Green in Surrey). He is training from the yard where Rough Quest, who won the Grand National in the 1990s, was trained and, less famously, where BG Racing had our first horse Oscara Dara trained. I got the opportunity to visit the yard recently and to meet Toby and his team. Toby is a really nice guy and seems very switched on, I am sure he’ll have plenty of success in the future.
Join Us To Watch The National
I have built a good relationship with Lingfield Park racecourse, and they are putting on a Discover Racing Day on Grand National Day this season. I have the opportunity to exhibit there, and they will have interviews and various educational and informative presentations, as well as a full card of racing, and a chance to watch the National on the big screen. I think it should be a great atmosphere (especially if Tiger Roll can do the treble), and a really fun day. If you are in the South East and can join us, please do. If you do so, please get in touch as it would be great to say hello!
I will keep you posted on progress through these blog posts, and if you want a more regular update, then there is a news update on my website www.bgracingsyndicates.co.uk every week. I also post on Facebook and Twitter. If you have any specific questions about racehorse ownership, I would also be happy to respond to them, just drop me a note via my website contact page.
