Gone too soon

Although the horses didn't run as well as we hoped this week, the worst result came on Thursday with the news of the death of Kevin Case after a short illness.
Although some of you may have never met him, you are likely to have heard of him thanks to his continued and loyal support on Twitter and Facebook - he was undoubtedly the yard's biggest fan and would always be putting up videos of our winners as well as telling the world about the good work we do at Harraton Stud. Kevin joined the team as a member of the N.E.T. Racing Club and had some great days out before dipping his toe into a syndicate and he was most recently part of Pitch High's group of owners.
Kevin was a lovely man who was always smiling, despite the constant battle he faced against diabetes. He will be sorely missed but I'm delighted to say that his even nicer wife Maureen will continue to be a part of the yard and I hope you will join me in sending her your thoughts at this difficult time.

Maureen and Kevin Case

As I said, there were no headline-making results on the track this week but the runs weren't devoid of promise with Best Example showing us some potential at Windsor on Monday. He has needed to drop down in the handicap but he is slowly getting there and clearly loves the firm ground. Terri Rules was our first two-year old runner of the year and, although we knew she needed the run, she showed us enough to suggest she should be making a mark this season over further.

The turf campaign is in full swing and, with a bit of rain forecast across the country, we have plenty of horses entered but most will be ground dependent.
One who has been declared already is Secret Strategy at Brighton on Monday. He has been unlucky not to win yet after bumping into some good horses and this looks his best chance to date with just one horse to beat on the ratings. We know he handles the track after he finished second there so hopefully that can see him finish first.

Secret Strategy (Adam)

We always like a trip to the seaside so it's no wonder we have a trio of horses entered at Yarmouth on Wednesday.
I don't usually like to run two horses in the same race but circumstances dictate that Avocet and Silver Alliance do just that.
Avocet is a lovely, big filly we bought from Juddmonte Farms in February and she works a lot better than a 55 rated horse. She does have the odd quirk though and this run will be mainly to get her fitter than we can at home. However, I hope she can show plenty despite not being fully fit yet.
Silver on the other hand is 100% fit and his last run was his best this year. He tends to save himself for certain days of the year so it's hard to know what he'll do but it won't be long before he is winning again when things go right for him.

Avocet (Shelley) & Silver Alliance (Ross)

Pitch High is also entered at Yarmouth but he would need a bit of rain at the track to run. He has been  disappointing since making a smart debut last year. There is still plenty of time with him yet though and I'm sure we'll find the key to him before too long.

Newmarket hold three days of racing later in the week and we could be there every day with runners.
Kicking off on Thursday we have Aldbury Lass and Terri Rules in the two-year old maiden.
Terri has had a taste of the racecourse and the step up to six furlongs will see her in a much better light whilst Aldbury is making her track debut. Both came from the breeze-up sales and are very professional so hopefully they can show some promise for the future.

Aldbury Lass (Shelley) & Pitch High (Ross)

​Also entered there is Duke Of Diamonds. He is in cracking form but just needs some softer ground so we will wait to see what the weather brings.

Duke Of Diamonds (Caitlin)

​Like wise for Gatillo at Salisbury that same day. He will be a different horse when the mud flies so he is worth waiting for.

Gatillo (Sarah) & Majestic Moon (Tess)

At HQ on Friday we have Tallulah's Quest entered in a maiden. She showed some promise on her debut at the track last time but this will probably be another hot race. She is a filly we like though and will be worth following later in the year.

Mungo Madness (Sam) & Tallulah's Quest (Gemma)

Then rounding off the week at Newmarket on Saturday could be Majestic Moon. He is another waiting for some juice in the ground and he is ready to strike when conditions are right. We bought him to be our flag bearer this year and hopefully he'll get a chance to show his true colours soon.

FOUR TO FOLLOW LEADERBOARD

​Julia Feilden 26
Ken Campbell 25
Ros Taylor 25
Sam Feilden 25
Ged Turley 25
Tina Skinner 25
Dave Morris 25
Rita Aspland 25
Bill Aspland 25
George Evans 24
John Birkett 24
Tessa Stone 24
John Chalklin 24