Hitting the beach

It would be great to have three winners every week as I described in last week's blog but we don't have enough horses to have that many runners, let alone winners! We've had a quieter time recently with just Our Cilla running at Nottingham on Saturday and the faster ground there proved her undoing as things were happening a bit too quick for her. She won twice last season on soft ground so maybe that is the key.
By 'a quieter time' I don't mean we were all sat at home with our feet up, far from it, as there is plenty to keep us busy at home with. Of course there are the horses to exercise and care for daily but the coming of summer also means that the 30 acres of paddocks need maintaining so John and I spent plenty of time on the tractor trimming the fields.
We also had plenty of people come and see the Approve colt we bought at the Tattersalls breeze-up sale last week and I'm delighted to say that his syndicate sold out within three days of being advertised. He looks a stunner and sold himself really so I can't wait to get him ridden now after giving him an easy week to settle in after a busy time at the sales.
Don't worry if you missed out this time though as we will be heading to the season's final breeze-up sale at Goresbridge in Ireland later this month to hopefully track down another star. Details will be posted as soon as we have bought the ideal horse.

Before that, Yarmouth hosts another race day on Wednesday and we will be out in force as per usual with five horses entered. Some of the races are over-subscribed so some of them might not get a run but hopefully they will as conditions look perfect.
First up will be Majestic Moon. We didn't think he was that fit last time after a short break but he ran a blinder to finish a close 4th. The horse that finished second that day won the valuable Victoria Cup at Ascot at the weekend so the form has already been given a boost and hopefully he can be in the frame again.
Sunset Bounty and Candesta are both in the mile handicap and could go head to head if they get into the race. Candesta has done all his winning on turf and struggled a bit last time but the firmer ground will help him out. Sunset Bounty has had a wind operation since she last ran and it seems to have really helped her breathing. She hasn't shown a lot so far but a straight mile on the turf should see her in a better light.
I had to withdraw Tallulah's Quest from her race at Yarmouth last time because the ground went a bit too soft but the forecast looks more promising this time so she should be able to run. She has been unlucky not to win already and certainly has the ability to win at this level. A mile might stretch her stamina a bit but we will hang on to her for as long as possible and hopefully come with a late charge.
Rounding off the afternoon will be Casey Banter having her first run of the year. She suffered a hairline fracture to her pelvis when disappointing at Newcastle last time. She has been given all winter to recover and is now back to her self and I think she is sure to win off her current rating sometime soon. She will improve for the run but has gone well when fresh in the past so I wouldn't be surprised if she gave the N.E.T. Racing Club something to shout home.

Completing a short and sweet week of runners will be Boxatricks at Newmarket on Thursday evening. He got a bit of stage fright there last time in a very hot race and never got involved so I hope the step up in trip and experience under his belt will help him get into things a bit more. He is a slow learner who will be better in handicap races later this season so keep him in mind..

​FOUR TO FOLLOW LEADERBOARD

Paula Smith 37
Rod Gleed 36
Tony Peacock 36
Sam Feilden 36
Simon Kirk 36
Geoff Walton 31
Tony McGovern 30
Robert Wright 30
Rita Aspland 30
Stan Thompson 28