Relief

We might be having a rough time with JRA runners - surprise, surprise - but at least 'Bugatti' continues to excel. The colder weather saw him in ultra-high tension mode most of the winter, but we got around it by giving him a good strong canter to keep him physically and mentally right, and let the dressage training slip until he was more likely to respond with a modicum of attention. He really is a firecracker, and has given Louis about ten years of training in six months! However, once he settles, he works beautifully, and you can't help but love his character and looks. The warmer climes are starting to take the edge off his tension, and we can almost start training as soon as he's warmed through now. I don't think there's any way he'll be ready for an All-Japan Championship challenge this year, but folks shouldn't underestimate him in 2016...

PS. No pictures on Sunday, as it threatened to rain and so I left the camera at home. Nonetheless, 'Bugatti' put in some excellent work, going from walk to trot to canter and back the other way with a much smoother action than before. In the transformation from racehorse to riding horse, all these things take time and practice, and the latter is something we haven't been able to do of late - high-tension and weather problems have seen to that. He's a magnificent beast, though, of that there's no doubt.

Tired Of Excuses

Now perhaps Carrot Club will finally retire Harmony Fair - last, and not just last, but almost still jogging around when they were bringing them out for the next race! It got one win in it's debut race in November 2012 and has done absolutely nothing ever since. It's wasting time and money (including my hard-earned wedge), and does nothing for the reputation of the club. Racing is about racing, not simply making up numbers in the odd slot that isn't overbooked. You cannot keep entering her in dirt races in the million-to-one hope that she doesn't get sand in her face. It's a dirt race, not on a poly track! The trainer has had his chance - now it's time to listen to owners, and I don't think any one of us would be sorry to see her JRA career terminated...

PS. Well, the trainer has decided that dirt doesn't suit this pony, which is something I could have told him before he even started his Harmony Fair campaign - it's in all the old notes, and he has confirmed it so many times, I don't think he deserves any credit for trying any more (there's a point where fighting becomes futile). He thinks there is a chance to get turf races over the next few months, but I shall believe it when I see it. There may be races, but they will all be grossly overbooked, and a horse with a record that she is carrying nowadays stands absolutely no chance of getting preferential treatment. I can see nothing more than notes on a booked meeting and no gate position being granted for the foreseeable future with this one. A complete waste of time and money.

UK Update

With luck, Danielle's Journey will break her duck on the 17th (she has a 0-2-0 record from her two outings so far), with three race options lined up. One thing is for sure, it should help her chances not having to travel to England this time, as all three races are based in Ireland. As a matter of interest, the lovely lady who inspired the horse's name has just been given a well-deserved award for raising a huge amount of money for brain tumour charities, as well as a great deal of awareness about the suffering the illness causes. Because she has always done this latter part with a smile and amazing courage, she has captured the heart of everyone.

Courtesy Lord Ilsley Racing

Today's picture shows the new colt at Mick Channon's stable. He certainly looks the part, considering his youth, and I know that he will provide a lot of fun in the forthcoming flat season, wherever he finishes. This is the beauty of the Lord Ilsley Racing syndicates - they are extremely professional, but balanced perfectly with a sense of humour that one needs when running racehorses, for, unfortunately, things rarely go exactly to plan! A more pleasurable ownership experience has yet to be found, although the Realta boys - who work very hard in Ireland - come a very close second, beaten only by a nose. I would be happy to give my highest recommendation on both to anyone.

PS. Looks like Danielle's Journey will be running at Down Royal, with Steven Crawford as the jockey. Steve, the brother of the trainer, Stuart Crawford, did a great job in DJ's first outing. Fingers crossed for everyone involved...

Kinda Blah

Just got in the door after checking on 'Bugatti' and how the building work at the new club is coming along, and found a nice picture of Perfumer and a note of congratulations on his forthcoming debut. Well, as usual, the gates are all overflowing with entries, and his first race will have to be postponed. It really is a bad joke - a bit like my gate draws!

Still, Harmony Fair runs at Nakayama on the 14th, being entered in the 1800m dirt 8R. Hironobu Tanabe is in the saddle, as he was for one of her earlier failures. Even before the gate draw, I'm not expecting much. After yesterday, it's quite a fall on the excitement scale, somewhere just above watching paint dry. I think the phrase "flogging a dead horse" was based on her performances.

Meanwhile, Irish Harp is supposed to be out on the 21st. Whether Perfumer will make it next weekend is another question. It's a bloody shame, because the practice time posted on the 11th was pretty good. Also, Kalliopeia is at the Miho Training Centre again, and hopefully a race will come of it this time.

With a leg problem, albeit minor at this stage, the catalogue of disasters continues with J'ai Un Reve, to the point where I'm starting to question whether folks out here actually want Montjeu blood to succeed. There certainly doesn't seem to be any special treatment from the Ikee Stable. To be frank, I don't think anyone is taking any notice of his development whatsoever - the last outing was a case in point, when the staff had no idea what to expect. I'm sorry, but if someone said to me, tell me how any of the horses in the Tokoro club will react in a given situation, not even one of my own, I could tell you. It's called care and attention. I'm very, very disappointed in the way this purchase is panning out, and even more disappointed in the efforts of the stable, regardless of whether it's a household brand name or not.

On the NAR front, Beat The Boarder is registered to race at Tokyo on the 19th. Let's hope it is a race-level performance this time! The weather forecast says rain, which is the last thing we need.

Second, Third #2

After a minute's silence to remember those lost in the 3/11 earthquake and tsunami at Funabashi yesterday, it was time for Phosphorus and Pop Label to run. I thought 'Phos' had won, taking up the running from the start with Shun Ishizaki at the controls (the plan I would have gone for myself), but he ultimately came third at the line, while Tosaki-kun allowed Pop Label to show some of his early form to come a close second. No champagne, although both horses ran well. Phosphorus almost led from the gate after a spurt of power put him in front, and to hold on in a class field after 1800m shows his strength. Nonetheless, Yano-sensei is thinking of a mile for his next race. As for 'Pop', well, it's taken a long time for him to recover from injury, but I think we can safely say he's back...

PS. There are a few saving graces to this story, too. It was Wakita-kun that won, and he will retire from racing any minute. He's a smashing guy, so I don't begrudge his victory. Secondly, as Sophie pointed out - if 'Pop' had won, it was a shame for 'Phos', and vice versa. Always look on the bright side of life.

Second, Third

Rush Attack was a damned good second at Nakayama. Everyone was expecting a win, but with the outside gate - yet again - it was never going to be an easy run, and a bad start destroyed our chances. Meanwhile, Sophie came third in the gymkhana, with Louis making an unexpected entry as an Open Class competitor - not to warm 'Bugatti' up, but to calm him down! The three of them make a fine team...