Dusty was fifth at Yarmouth in early August - in touch, but out of the money. However, Macho Mover put us back in the winner's circle on the 12th August, with Scott McCullagh guiding the beast to an impressive four-length victory after almost a mile-and-a-half over Windsor turf. We may not have many horses left in training nowadays, but it's nice that we can still record the odd winner every now and again. This is Macho Mover's first win, and he looks strong enough over a decent distance to keep up momentum over the coming weeks...
PS. Dusty secured a handy second place at Salisbury - nowhere near the winner, but beating the others with ease. And then McCullagh rode a magnificent race, patiently waiting for a gap before pushing Macho Mover through for another win. Dusty was third at Brighton on the 21st, hampered by a mad thing for most of the race.
PPS. Bad news from Ireland, with The Jazz Singer suffering a heart attack and passing away on the spot. The jockey who was training with him is okay, with just a few knocks and scrapes. As it happens, a friend lost her horse a few days earlier, about the same age, but never raced and not even in work for the last couple of years - just kept as a pet. I think the crazy heat this summer is taking its toll. With Sayesse having sold at auction, we've not got much left.
PPPS. Macho Mover keeps making macho-level progress with a nice second at Beverley on 1st September, just half-a-length down on the winner. The next day, Scott McCullagh rode another fantastic race to thread Dusty through to victory. He's a name to watch out for in the future, as he already rides with a level of maturity that would have you thinking he'd been racing for decades. The next outing at Brighton went according to the betting, with Dusty third under Nicola Currie, and then we had a handy third for Macho Mover at Ffos Las. A dull outing for Dusty at Redcar, with the 5F race being a bit too sharp probably. Macho Mover was fifth a couple of weeks later at Kempton, with Dusty a disappointing sixth the following day at Brighton. Sadly, Macho Mover made no impression at Kempton on the 23rd...
