Yano-sensei is aiming to enter Phosphorus in the Urawa meeting at the end of April. This would be the first time anything of mine will have run at Urawa, so it's an exciting prospect. 'Phos' certainly doesn't mind travel, as he has proved at Kawasaki a couple of times, and track direction is the same as that at Funabashi and Kawasaki, so who knows, we could be in with a chance of victory number six...
Meanwhile, the new English venture is moving in the right direction. It involves another syndicate with Mick Channon's famous West Ilsley Stables, and I'm looking forward to another exciting flat season with this fun-loving but highly-professional team. I'll put up more details as soon as the paperwork is all signed and sealed.
Saturday, April 18, 2015
Japan Cup Round
With a heavy workload, what amounted to an unhealthy amount of time being spent on a certain social network site, and a recent gym regime that will soon see me back to my old fighting weight, the poor blog has been rather neglected of late. Well, I'm taking a break from the networking thing, and that will enable me to dedicate some more time on this, which is not only useful for me (mainly because of the language barrier one encounters in anything that involves Japan), but also something I enjoy doing as and when the mood strikes - it's a lot less demanding than keeping up with what is happening is so many other lives, as this is something that seems to take up hours, and they're hours that I don't really have to spare. Yesterday, the kids were in action with 'Bugatti' in the Japan Cup at the Olympic Club in Tomisato (yes, another day off school!). Louis managed to get a very respectable 56.540 in L1, up against some real class, and Sophie got 56.221 and a blue ribbon in her category. Both can be regarded as good performances, with 'Bugatti' improving all the time. It's almost as if he gets an extra point every time he goes out - he's certainly settling down in his new role as a riding horse, even if we do still see the racer in him from time to time.
Today, Sophie got exactly the same score in the same event, although it only earned her a third place this time, as her Class was - rather oddly - combined with the one Louis was in. Notwithstanding, she will move up a category from now on, and challenges the Gymkhana Grand Prix tomorrow. She jumped with 'Bugatti' for the first time last weekend, so the finish will be a test of her will.
As for Louis, he took advantage of a handicap that he doesn't usually take (he prefers to compete in with the adults and instructors) by entering the L1 Trial rather than the pure L1 event, and scored a huge 67.620 to take the top position. Tomorrow, he will see if 'Bugatti' is in the mood to do some gentle show-jumping...
As Expected
When you've had a nice relaxing holiday sitting on the beach, do you really feel like setting the office alight with enthusiasm on the first Monday back? No, of course not! So despite high hopes from some quarters, I was expecting nothing from Miracle Rouge or Tenshinramman because both were coming back from long R&R sessions. My prediction turned out to be the right one...
Miracle Rouge was so far off the pace, that ninth almost seems like a bonus. The jockey and trainer are saying that the dirt debut went well, so we can expect a dirt race next time, too. It's supposed to come soon, but I won't be holding my breath, as there's nowhere near enough JRA races available. This is the root cause of poor performances, on a par with the mediocre trainers owners are stuck with. They try and sell you the "tired" excuse, but one of the NAR horses I have was running almost weekly and winning, while a Lord Ilsley racer in the UK ran one day, then won 19 hours later. The JRA system is nothing to do with real racing whatsoever, and never will be until the race calendar is expanded by at least 70 to 80%. Until then, horses get shuffled around from one rest home to another, and eventually get to the track carrying more rust than a ship that's been at the bottom of the sea for a decade or two.
That problem - finding a berth - is going to be Tenshinramman's undoing, too. There's no doubt her run for the finish was hindered by a wall of horses in front of her today, but the bottom line is she finished ninth as well. And to be perfectly honest, I saw very little spark in today's run anyway - I certainly don't share 10% of the trainer's optimism, as I saw little hope of a win even without the blockages. This will make finding the next race difficult, as she now has a string of recent results that would struggle to get her into a Donkey Derby. Of course, the trainer is saying he wants to get her out again ASAP, but he always says that just before an extended holiday. To cover himself, he is also stating that if a race can't be found, she will go on an R&R session again, and that's assuming the slightest problem doesn't sideline her for months anyway. The race was described as educational, but if she doesn't know how to race by now, she never will. We don't need more learning, we need results worthy of the horse's potential, and that's something we haven't seen since last August; the time before that was April 2013!
Miracle Rouge was so far off the pace, that ninth almost seems like a bonus. The jockey and trainer are saying that the dirt debut went well, so we can expect a dirt race next time, too. It's supposed to come soon, but I won't be holding my breath, as there's nowhere near enough JRA races available. This is the root cause of poor performances, on a par with the mediocre trainers owners are stuck with. They try and sell you the "tired" excuse, but one of the NAR horses I have was running almost weekly and winning, while a Lord Ilsley racer in the UK ran one day, then won 19 hours later. The JRA system is nothing to do with real racing whatsoever, and never will be until the race calendar is expanded by at least 70 to 80%. Until then, horses get shuffled around from one rest home to another, and eventually get to the track carrying more rust than a ship that's been at the bottom of the sea for a decade or two.
That problem - finding a berth - is going to be Tenshinramman's undoing, too. There's no doubt her run for the finish was hindered by a wall of horses in front of her today, but the bottom line is she finished ninth as well. And to be perfectly honest, I saw very little spark in today's run anyway - I certainly don't share 10% of the trainer's optimism, as I saw little hope of a win even without the blockages. This will make finding the next race difficult, as she now has a string of recent results that would struggle to get her into a Donkey Derby. Of course, the trainer is saying he wants to get her out again ASAP, but he always says that just before an extended holiday. To cover himself, he is also stating that if a race can't be found, she will go on an R&R session again, and that's assuming the slightest problem doesn't sideline her for months anyway. The race was described as educational, but if she doesn't know how to race by now, she never will. We don't need more learning, we need results worthy of the horse's potential, and that's something we haven't seen since last August; the time before that was April 2013!
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