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Sean Clancy Fun weekend in Monkton. My Lady’s Manor, like going back in time, 3 miles over timber, they never jump the same fence twice. Mark Beecher and Connor Hankin conducting riding clinics for free. Great to see Bethany Baumgardner win her first race, a local celebration, a breath of fresh air, a twinkle in the eye of a girl who had her day.
It’s the first thing you think about in the morning. And the last thing you think about at night. Like carrying an anvil on your shoulder, it’s impossible to ignore. A black cloud of burden – heavier through the day, through the week.
Scanning the racing cards for Wednesday, it looked like a proper time to present a Wednesday Special. Strong racing around the world, highlighted by a listed stakes at Dundalk that draws Ryan Moore on Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf runner War Envoy, a handicap at Chelmsford City that attracts one of the last sons of A.P. Indy, a Wincanton card with the great AP McCoy and a chasm-deep allowance at Aqueduct. Here’s your Wednesday Special for April 1. No fooling.
Hard week.
My phone vibrated at 5:51 Wednesday evening. I was in the kitchen, stacking dill chips on water crackers for Miles. I looked down and saw “Rog,” on my screen. Roger Horgan, my old friend who rode races with me back in the 90’s. He never calls, but I didn’t pick up on anything when I saw his name. I slid a plate to Miles and walked into the living room, answered with ease, “Hey, Rog, what’s happening?” Then I heard his voice, it quavered, “We lost a legend today…” I slumped onto the living room couch. “I just knew how close you were to him. He liked you…”
Conservative or aggressive? In this game, the question looms with every horse, every race, every decision. It’s always there. Trainer Mark Bradstock and his team faced that choice with novice Coneygree. Be conservative and cast a long shadow in the RSA Novice Chase at Cheltenham. Be aggressive and meld into the shadow of the Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Last chance. Make your fortune. Make your memories. The Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup provides the annual crescendo to the Cheltenham Festival, ushering out four days of sport and crowning a king. Looking for horses who come back for more? Here it is as the first five from last year return. The old guards Lord Windermere, On His Own, The Giant Bolster, Silviniaco Conti, Bobs Worth clash with the new recruits Many Clouds, Smad Place, Holywell, Road To Riches, Coneygree, Djakadam and Carlingford Lough.
Halftime. Two days down. Two to go.
Willie Mullins and Ruby Walsh dominated the opening card on Tuesday. Paul Nicholls dominated Wednesday’s card. The greatest of all time, Tony McCoy, has yet to strike. The Ryanair and the World Hurdle highlight today’s card.
Sprinter Sacre turned right, veins bulging, blowing, beaten. Sire De Grugy walked straight, tired but typical, then he turned left. Dodging Bullets walked straight. Then stopped.
An epic opening day at Cheltenham Tuesday and the heat stays on high for day two as the Queen Mother Champion Chase takes center stage. Two miles, big fences, pressure on pressure.
