Bored

Finished work for the day, and now I'm bored - no racing interest anywhere today, and the kids busy with a weekend-long athletics meeting, meaning no stable visits either. No horse, no life! But hopefully this will be the end of it, as Louis' athletics era comes to an end this afternoon, while Sophie is resigning from the club as soon as the day is finished.

I can't say I'm not pleased about it, because I am in reality - she's missing riding opportunities left, right and centre, which wastes a lot of money, and picking up silly injuries, too. The final straw came yesterday when the coach threw a wobbly over something trivial and scratched her from the relay. I'm happy to say it backfired, because she's as hard as nails and digs her heels in big time when she feels pissed off. End result: Definitely no tears or apology, and the rest of the team refused to run without her! His loss.

Oh well, back to equine sports, which until the day of the race, somehow seem to lack the raw excitement and entertainment value of a novice dealing with a fiery little thing called Sophie. But at least we have Blacklister to look forward to on Thursday the 23rd. He should be running in the 7:00 at Newbury in England - the Class 5 NSPCC Nursery Handicap Stakes over seven furlongs, and then Raining Dollars is out again in Australia a couple of days later. This should be his last run for a while, as he's been promised some R&R after Saturday's race.

Solid Start

Million Ways was third in his debut at Monbetsu, coming up against a horse that was in a different league and a cheeky one that no-one had marked. The future looks good, though, as it was a pleasing performance from the parade ring to the finish, and I'm pretty sure he'll win in Hokkaido, thus guaranteeing him a place in the Nankan area in the autumn. I think we can say the same is true of Trovao, too.

Nothing running in JRA over the weekend, nothing else running in NAR for a while, and Blacklister has been scrubbed for his race. Looks like we've got a quiet spell for a bit. Next one up looks like Raining Dollars at Hughenden in Australia on the 25th...

A Worrying Trend

The Shadai Select Sale brought forth yet more high auction prices, but I see no reason to celebrate the fact - it's simply not good for the future of racing. As the prices go up, so does the risk, and the second something even remotely bad happens with the economy, the racing industry will be the first thing to suffer, as the chances of seeing any kind of return on horses costing millions of dollars are unlikely to say the least. The higher prices will also restrict true enthusiasts that have supported the sport for years (rather than the current breed of yuppie-types and those with more money than sense that are pushing prices up) to buying fewer horses. Less horses equals less work for a group of people that are already struggling to survive, even with the healthiest of JRA pots, while NAR winnings won't pay for even a fraction of the cost involved in buying, let alone running a nag. We need to look at the big picture before this high price trend gets out of hand...

PS. More than most - having paid a fortune for a useless Carrot Club yearling by Montjeu, for example - I know for a fact that high prices do not automatically equal good results. Even with a decent horse, there are injuries to consider, the ridiculous situation of entering unsuitable races due to the distinct lack of meetings in Japan, hefty insurance before racing careers start, and high monthly running costs. While profits are necessary, we need to stop this short-sighted greed and over-exuberance in its tracks, and knock at least one zero off prices to get things back to being realistic. If you are lucky enough to get a cracker, be satisfied with the winnings and potential stud fees in later life, knowing that that one good one will pay for the other 20 duds - the same 20 that will keep people in work, and provide a lot of value-for-money enjoyment in the meantime.

Not Much Happening

This could be a very quiet week, with only Million Ways running in Japan so far, and Blacklister in the UK on Saturday. Million Ways is set to compete with Kuniaki Sasaki in the 1600m 'Super Fresh Challenge' race at Monbetsu on Thursday the 16th (I wish Trovao had managed to get a similar distance race!), while Blacklister is due to run in the 3:35 at Chester - the Class 2 EBF Stallions Conditions Stakes race over seven furlongs.

PS. Harmony Fair has been retired. Everyone has decided that enough is enough... Meanwhile, both Pop Label and Beat The Boarder are being lined up to run at some time during the TCK meeting beginning on the 27th.