Karotte

Quite a few fresh Carrot Club reports, with thoughts of running Tenshinramman and Harmony Fair at Niigata in the near future, although Miracle Rouge will be held back until the autumn. Whether she'll be given that run as a one-off chance I still don't know for sure, as she hasn't won anything this year, and I don't know where the line will be drawn. In reality, she's only put up a decent fight once in the whole of 2014!

Belle Plage has suddenly been entered for the 1700m dirt race at Sapporo on the 27th. This is a different type of race to what she's used to, but there's nothing wrong with that - it makes sense if one thing isn't working to try something else. Masaki Katsuura is in the saddle again, and let's hope he can do better than last time.

Joyful Step is in the 1700m dirt race at Fukushima on the 27th, with Keita Ban in the saddle - he can still claim a few pounds as a youngster, which is fine on a horse like JS, as any advantage is taken gratefully, but I do question the logic of him being teamed up with Tenshinramman, which is a horse that needs an experienced hand. Whether Ban-kun working with 'Tenny' is a training situation or a race plan, I'm not sure as yet. But if she'd have been given the right jockey from day one, she'd have been winning G1 races by now, instead of floundering aimlessly in amongst the dregs. I'd have thought the trainer should have realized that by now. Or maybe not...

Courtesy Carrot Club

Irish Harp - that little stormer, pictured here in her
last outing - is out yet again on the 2nd August, competing in the 1700m dirt race at Sapporo with Yuichi Fukunaga at the controls. Sugai-sensei is quite sure she has what it takes, and he's certainly given her enough chances to prove it! This next run will take her beyond 'Tenny' in the number of races entered, and she's already way more experienced than Harmony Fair. All she needs is a tiny bit of luck.

Single Cask is supposed to be out of the same day at Niigata in the 1200m dirt race, teaming up with Kazuma Harada, who gave her her first win. She's not perfect apparently, but the run will at least keep her in the right frame of mind for next season's campaign.