JRA Jokers

J'ai Un Reve is in the 3R at Kokura on the 23rd. Talk of "progress" after all this time shouldn't need to be said and needs to be backed up by results. However, there is obviously no vision of victory in the Ikee camp if the jockey selection is anything to go by. I wish the guy luck, but his record is hardly the best, and I'm left wondering what on Earth the trainer is thinking of given the expense involved in securing this horse - you would have thought he'd of at least tried to give the owners a sense of value, instead of a sense of being given the bare minimum. Personally, I don't even feel I've had anywhere near that. I fully expect the announcement of J'ai Un Reve's retirement after what will doubtless be another disappointing run, as I can't honestly see it being suited to dirt. At the end of the day, there seems to be very little effort put into its challenge, that's for sure...

Single Cask is set to run in the 1000m turf sprint at Niigata later in the day, this time with Yutaro Nonaka in the saddle - another no-hoper. Belle Plage will hopefully be out again next week. At least she is blessed with a trainer that cares, hence my support for the chap in another runner for next year (or later this one with luck). There will definitely be no more JRA horses after this one and another of the same age with Yahagi-sensei, though, even if I was given one! The J'ai Un Reve experience, even if the horse had cost a fraction of what it did, really is the final straw.

In reality, I'll have to think hard about the next batch of Carrot Club NAR runners, too, as the value-for-money element becomes very questionable in horses like Million Ways. At least Chocolat Sucre, which was purchased very late, is coming to Nankan, which means I can at least get to see the thing a few times - Million Ways has just eaten money for a year, and its future is still far from assured. Assuming it can get enough money to secure a place in the Minami Kanto area, with what looks like a good deal of luck needed, even with Nankan-level winnings, it has to actually start winning simply to cover its keep.