Silvestre de Sousa showed why he's a champion jockey with Masterson at Lingfield, with a superb ride taking the grey from last to first the post after finding a gap that simply didn't appear to be there from the camera angle. Once again, the Mick Channon equipe comes to the rescue when you're feeling down - it doesn't take the edge off my disappointment with Japanese racing, as it just clarifies the huge gap in value and effort that exists between here and the UK, but at least it keeps my faith alive in my racing exploits elsewhere - a wonderful birthday present! This magnificent performance takes Masterson's record to 2-2-2 from 16 outings, and my own tally up to 55 wins...
PS. The Jazz Singer was edged out by a nose to finish fourth at Down Royal. It was a tough race with 20 runners, so it did well enough. One more place up the ladder would have been nice to get something on the board, though. The Carrot Club catalogue arrived and duly joined the Shadai TC, Sunday TC, G1 TC and Green Farm ones, going straight into the paper bank - the bin would have been more symbolic, but one has to think of the environment.
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Wednesday Wobbler
Sayesse was cruised home at Newbury as soon as it became clear there was no chance of a good finish - the problem with a 5F race, at the end of the day, as everything has to come together double quick. But he'll be ready to fight another day as a result of George Baker's actions, and the odds were staked against the pair anyway after the handicapper walloped us with an even greater weight penalty than we had already. There's no doubt, though - this is a super horse...
The Carrot Club reports are just the same, despite me complaining bitterly to head office the other day. Massabielle has had a vet go over it and more care is needed. No change there, with no plan even! Rush Attack is on a long, long road to recovery, but will never recover all the time off, either financially or in worthwhile results - it's simply been away from the track for far too long. Perfumer needs more care - again! Actually, what it really needs, like the training staff, is a kick up the arse to get it moving or retirement, as this horse will never perform, even in top condition (assuming it can ever achieve it!). Lotus Blossom is still moving to Kanto, and has been for so long according to reports, that it could have walked to the Bay Area from Hokkaido by now. And Trovao, all that treadmill work really justifies its huge - and growing - monthly bill. Please explain how treadmill work is more expensive than a stay at a racing stable, with better care and a costlier diet. As always, bollocks, bollocks, and yet more bollocks.
Meanwhile, we might have The Jazz Singer (pictured) out in Ireland this week, depending on the weather and the ground it gives, and All Rosie is having a run (over a slightly longer 1200m) next Tuesday in Oz. According to Jo, this may be All Rosie's last chance to show what he can do, as he simply hasn't performed anywhere near what we know he is capable of in recent months.
All told, we're not having a very good run of late, but it's the Japanese outfits - Carrot Club, Shadai Thoroughbred Club and Sunday Thoroughbred Club - that are annoying me the most (by a huge margin, as it happens), offering absolutely nothing in terms of value for money, month after month after month. Of 17 horses out here, only five are at racing stables (better than before, but still a disgustingly poor ratio) and one 'runs' from NF; of those five, one hasn't even got a licence yet, another is nowhere near ready to race, and the others are doing so badly they bring in nothing. For the record, my last JRA win came at the end of last year; it's almost half-a-year since the last Carrot NAR winner, over three months since the last Sunday TC winner, and well over a year since the last Shadai TC one. Blacklister in England won three times in one month!
PS. All Rosie has been pulled, as Jo at JLH isn't happy with the chances offered by the field. Magic Key was supposed to be returning to Funabashi in August, and that's now moved to the last week of August (well, seeing as it's the 25th, it won't be earlier now, will it?) or the first week of September. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to get it race ready after that. Larressingle is running on the 28th, but I think we can guarantee another month of zero income and big bills for next to nothing in the way of Japanese action.
The Carrot Club reports are just the same, despite me complaining bitterly to head office the other day. Massabielle has had a vet go over it and more care is needed. No change there, with no plan even! Rush Attack is on a long, long road to recovery, but will never recover all the time off, either financially or in worthwhile results - it's simply been away from the track for far too long. Perfumer needs more care - again! Actually, what it really needs, like the training staff, is a kick up the arse to get it moving or retirement, as this horse will never perform, even in top condition (assuming it can ever achieve it!). Lotus Blossom is still moving to Kanto, and has been for so long according to reports, that it could have walked to the Bay Area from Hokkaido by now. And Trovao, all that treadmill work really justifies its huge - and growing - monthly bill. Please explain how treadmill work is more expensive than a stay at a racing stable, with better care and a costlier diet. As always, bollocks, bollocks, and yet more bollocks.
All told, we're not having a very good run of late, but it's the Japanese outfits - Carrot Club, Shadai Thoroughbred Club and Sunday Thoroughbred Club - that are annoying me the most (by a huge margin, as it happens), offering absolutely nothing in terms of value for money, month after month after month. Of 17 horses out here, only five are at racing stables (better than before, but still a disgustingly poor ratio) and one 'runs' from NF; of those five, one hasn't even got a licence yet, another is nowhere near ready to race, and the others are doing so badly they bring in nothing. For the record, my last JRA win came at the end of last year; it's almost half-a-year since the last Carrot NAR winner, over three months since the last Sunday TC winner, and well over a year since the last Shadai TC one. Blacklister in England won three times in one month!
PS. All Rosie has been pulled, as Jo at JLH isn't happy with the chances offered by the field. Magic Key was supposed to be returning to Funabashi in August, and that's now moved to the last week of August (well, seeing as it's the 25th, it won't be earlier now, will it?) or the first week of September. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to get it race ready after that. Larressingle is running on the 28th, but I think we can guarantee another month of zero income and big bills for next to nothing in the way of Japanese action.
Monday, August 22, 2016
Still Angry
Yep, still angry. And why wouldn't I be? Just read that Kealoha is back at Funabashi, but the groom isn't happy with the horse's condition, so a new plan has been hatched to aim for the Funabashi meeting at the end of September, a good month over schedule. Okay, so please tell me what NF did for their money during the three months Kealoha was there when an extra two months of training are needed to get it race ready? I've said it before and I'll say it again - nothing good ever comes of a break at Northern Farm. But then, with Sunday TC and NF being part of the same monopoly that dominates Japanese racing to sickening levels, nothing will ever be said - owners are left to pick up the bill, and if a horse is left useless, who cares? After all, there will be plenty more for sale next year, most of them breed at Northern Farm, of course.
And in other Sunday Thoroughbred Club news, Pop Label's comeback has moved from the end of August to the middle (close to the end) of September. I guess we will keep paying out and get one final race before a retirement announcement. This is nothing to do with racing - just taking the piss and keeping the boys in clover at our expense. As far as I'm concerned, once a sale is made in Japan, there is no effort to make these horses race-ready and pay their way. The only effort I see is the preparation of an invoice each month, seemingly justified by a cut-and-paste excuse for not running - again! - or a half-baked excuse for failure when they eventually do hit the track.
Five Shadai TC and Sunday TC horses, and, having just received the bills, I can confirm that none have made a penny income this month, while the keeping fees are far from lightweight - so much for spreading risk across several nags. If Magic Key does go back to Funabashi soon and it's as good as Kealoha, that will be another month or two before earning anything, and there's no mention at all about when Phosphorus might go back home. So, we have one 'horse' out of five running, and that's proving to be the most expensive donkey on the planet.
No-one expects to make money, but you should have small bills and an average almost break-even situation if everyone you are paying tons of lolly to each month plays the game. Ultimately, the swindle continues, regardless of the silks out here. In fact, I've just asked the rep if my horses are being deliberately held back for months on end, because if they all need such huge breaks every five minutes, they're certainly not worth anywhere near the money asked for them. Naturally, there was no reply - you only get a response when you're in buying mode, and I'm not the only one to come across this situation either...
At least we have Sayesse out at Newbury on Tuesday, with Masterson running at Lingfield the day after. Thank god I have a decent batch of horses in England, despite them costing a fraction of what the Japanese nags did, otherwise I'd be going out of my mind by now. On the subject of Japanese horses, Larressingle should be out on the 28th (last chance saloon run) and we have Another Door at Monbetsu on the 30th, although I don't expect the latter to do any better than Shine Tiara. Indeed, it's definitely another candidate for a quick retirement as far as I'm concerned.
And in other Sunday Thoroughbred Club news, Pop Label's comeback has moved from the end of August to the middle (close to the end) of September. I guess we will keep paying out and get one final race before a retirement announcement. This is nothing to do with racing - just taking the piss and keeping the boys in clover at our expense. As far as I'm concerned, once a sale is made in Japan, there is no effort to make these horses race-ready and pay their way. The only effort I see is the preparation of an invoice each month, seemingly justified by a cut-and-paste excuse for not running - again! - or a half-baked excuse for failure when they eventually do hit the track.
Five Shadai TC and Sunday TC horses, and, having just received the bills, I can confirm that none have made a penny income this month, while the keeping fees are far from lightweight - so much for spreading risk across several nags. If Magic Key does go back to Funabashi soon and it's as good as Kealoha, that will be another month or two before earning anything, and there's no mention at all about when Phosphorus might go back home. So, we have one 'horse' out of five running, and that's proving to be the most expensive donkey on the planet.
No-one expects to make money, but you should have small bills and an average almost break-even situation if everyone you are paying tons of lolly to each month plays the game. Ultimately, the swindle continues, regardless of the silks out here. In fact, I've just asked the rep if my horses are being deliberately held back for months on end, because if they all need such huge breaks every five minutes, they're certainly not worth anywhere near the money asked for them. Naturally, there was no reply - you only get a response when you're in buying mode, and I'm not the only one to come across this situation either...
At least we have Sayesse out at Newbury on Tuesday, with Masterson running at Lingfield the day after. Thank god I have a decent batch of horses in England, despite them costing a fraction of what the Japanese nags did, otherwise I'd be going out of my mind by now. On the subject of Japanese horses, Larressingle should be out on the 28th (last chance saloon run) and we have Another Door at Monbetsu on the 30th, although I don't expect the latter to do any better than Shine Tiara. Indeed, it's definitely another candidate for a quick retirement as far as I'm concerned.
Matt Black Tiara
There was certainly no glitter in Shine Tiara's performance today. In fact, starting as third favourite (although I have no idea why given its recent results), I think I have every right to say that was a pathetic run of epic proportions. The donkey was never in the race from the off, ran awful down the back straight (to the point of me thinking it may be injured) and cruised home in eighth as if next week would do, despite Mori-kun showing it the whip on several occasions to avoid the embarrassment of coming last. Talk about making up numbers and nothing else! To be perfectly frank, my patience has run out completely with this one - I don't think it will ever earn a penny in keep, as it doesn't matter what the scenario is (wet, dry, leading from the front, holding back), it fails miserably. Finishing a massive 4.5 seconds (or 22 lengths) off the pace, it doesn't deserve to be called a racehorse and should therefore be retired on the spot...
PS. The post-race reports are blaming the poor conditions, which were awful, sure enough. But they were the same for all the horses that ran today, and I don't honestly see how good weather is going to make a difference in any case. The bottom line is that this horse hates sand in its face - wet sand or dry sand - and it hasn't got the power to take the pace from the front and stay until the end; this is a fact, as we've seen that approach attempted with nothing more than another disaster to show for it. In reality, the perfect race conditions cited as a reason to keep going simply do not exist in NAR, full-stop - like most of the useless nags out here, the horse is just a drain on finances and a source of constant frustration. It's no wonder Konno dropped the ride like a hot potato. The next Kawasaki meeting is in the middle of September, but gate spaces will be limited (it's only a three-day meeting) and then it's the first week in October - both are a long way off for a horse that has red marks all over its accounting sheet. It wouldn't be so bad if it provided some enjoyment, but it doesn't even do that - there's no pleasure whatsoever in seeing it trail in at the back of a field month in, month out.
PS. The post-race reports are blaming the poor conditions, which were awful, sure enough. But they were the same for all the horses that ran today, and I don't honestly see how good weather is going to make a difference in any case. The bottom line is that this horse hates sand in its face - wet sand or dry sand - and it hasn't got the power to take the pace from the front and stay until the end; this is a fact, as we've seen that approach attempted with nothing more than another disaster to show for it. In reality, the perfect race conditions cited as a reason to keep going simply do not exist in NAR, full-stop - like most of the useless nags out here, the horse is just a drain on finances and a source of constant frustration. It's no wonder Konno dropped the ride like a hot potato. The next Kawasaki meeting is in the middle of September, but gate spaces will be limited (it's only a three-day meeting) and then it's the first week in October - both are a long way off for a horse that has red marks all over its accounting sheet. It wouldn't be so bad if it provided some enjoyment, but it doesn't even do that - there's no pleasure whatsoever in seeing it trail in at the back of a field month in, month out.
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