News

It’s an unbelievably warm morning already and if we are to believe what the forecasters tell us, it is going to be the hottest day ever in Britain, especially in the east. There is a slight breeze though which is making working almost bearable. Thunderstorms are forecast later on today and if the other night is anything to go by, we could be in for a proper lightshow. We continue to tidy up the yard and get everything moved. We still have a few horses but hopefully everything would have disappeared by the weekend, or Monday at the latest.

We certainly need an all-weather track here at Newmarket for the reason I have gone on about for years. The cost to trainers and owners would be radically reduced and it would aid the horses because they wouldn’t have to travel and would be back in their boxes within a very short time. Everybody would benefit, especially if the prize money were similar to Chelmsford. It is a no brainer and let’s hope that the Jockey Club and BHA agree.

We certainly need people who understand horses and have the future of our sport at heart. Anybody who is in it for the short term and the money should soon be shown the door. There must be people out there who have the determination and the intelligence to get our sport on the right track.

Another point is that we must have good low cost housing for any racing worker, whether it is stable staff, heath staff, stalls handlers or anybody connected with the industry. We have the land for it, the plans are drawn up, it is just the will and the finance, plus the council planning seeing sense, but if we don’t have accommodation for stable staff in the very near future, the crisis will get worse.

We still have a two-year-old colt and two-year-old filly for sale. They are very reasonably priced and both have plenty of ability. As I said yesterday, anybody interested in them, or the massive amount of tack I have for sale, please get in touch.

It's slightly overcast today but still very warm. We had a dramatic thunder storm last night at two in the morning with tremendous lightening and rain. I think the forecast is for it to get warm again as the day goes on and stay mixed towards the weekend. We are starting to get the yard all cleaned up and the horses are moving to varying places. It's amazing how cheerful everybody is. We have lots of tack that has been accumulated over the years. It's in very good condition and is for sale -  if anybody is interested please give the office a ring.

Our last runners could not bring us a fairytale ending but the executive at Chelmsford were unbelievably kind to Angie and I. It's a great course and from the beginning I have always loved it. From the gatemen up to the Chief Executive they are all so helpful and friendly, which has always been the case. We were pleased with Prosecutor who will now be handicapped and I am sure she will be winning in the right grade over a mile. Unfortunately the last race was run at a stop go snail's pace which did not suit either of ours and we couldn't go out in a blaze of glory.

Both Angie and I were very touched by the reception we had from everybody last night and we wish to thank them all for their very kind words. It is so much appreciated. An amazing thing happened though. We had a long chat with Bruce Raymond who was there in his capacity of racing manager to Rabba. Bruce rode my first ever flat winner, Matilda Cave at Kempton, which is still etched in my memory. Then later on, unbelievably, we saw Richard Evans who was there as an owner in the last. He rode my first ever winner over jumps, Timatemma. It was fantastic to see them both and what great memories they brought back.