No runners today and looking forward to Epsom and Clowance tomorrow.  I thought I had found the most suitable race for Excavator at Kempton yesterday having made several entries during the week but unfortunately, he ran into a colt that was too good for us.  He ran and behaved well and there were no real excuses except that we felt that he might be better suited to a faster surface. Hopefully we will find a race that he can win over the next few weeks.  Sea of Light who can be a bit of a monkey behaved exceptionally well but ran rather slowly having been well placed for the first half of the race.  She did not really enjoy the kickback, so we will give her another go on the turf as soon as she is ready.  Marzante was well positioned when they turned for home but unfortunately, did not run on as well as we had hoped, so back to the drawing board with him.

Frustratingly Border Patrol is a non runner due to the ground changing to good to firm, it certainly has not been a year for horses that need soft ground and I read that it is now officially the dryest spring for over a century.

Excavator runs in the 6.20 pm at Kempton where I hope he will have a good chance although I notice that the unraced Mitie Mouse is bred to have plenty of speed and cost £50,000 at the recent mid April Kempton breeze up sales, so should be respected. His form at Bath has been endorsed by the winner B Fifty Two winning a Novice at Newmarket and the 3rd horse Verbeeck finishing 2nd at Leicester last week and 4th horse Selinda won the seller at Yarmouth yesterday. 

Excavator

Sea of Light runs in the 6 furlong fillies maiden at 8.20pm, she is a tough filly who runs with blinkers on and it will be interesting to see how she runs. 

Marzante runs in the following race, the mile handicap and wears blinkers for the first time which I hope will produce a more determined performance than last time, being by Maria's Mon, the all weather should suit him and his full brother Monzante won over the course. 

Full Footage ran a little free yesterday at Leicester and took a while to settle and she also seemed to be unsuited by the slightly softened ground.  I will see how she is handicapped but maybe two more runs before going to the July Sales.

Bank Holiday Monday's are normally a busy day's racing for most trainers with five flat meetings but we sadly only have one runner, Full Footage in the 5.00pm race at Leicester.  She ran an encouraging race at Lingfield earlier in the month to finish 3rd but it was a weak maiden  and today's race looks to be more competitive.  Stepping up to a mile will be to her benefit and she will possibly stay further in the future.  She is being ridden by Matthew Davies who will be having his first ride for me, but I have watched him ride lots of winners recently and he claims a valuable 3lbs.

Clowance is entered at Epsom on Friday in the Coronation Stakes where it looks like having only 5 runners. Time is running out for her (in foal to Oasis Dream) and I am planning on running as there must be a good chance of at least getting placed in another Gr1 and Epsom tend to do an excellent job of watering for the Derby meeting. As usual, there is a forecast of some rain but sadly not enough to produce the soft ground that she so relishes.  I took her and her little brother Keys to Kempton to work over a mile on Friday, which all seemed to go according to plan and she is looking a million dollars and raring to go.  She has now won three of her 9 starts and £139.000,  which include a Listed race, a Gr3 and being placed in three Gr1's but she rarely gets the going that she needs and this is her 5th season to race, what a patient owner/breeder she has !

Clowance

Not for the first time this week I was very happily surprised that we had another winner when Thistle Bird got up to beat a Godolphin ' hot pot '  at 14-1 by a short head.  Having been a little difficult at the start she eventually agreed to enter the stall, she then produced a brave performance to win with a great ride from Steve Drowne.  She would have preferred a bit more ' cut in the ground ' which was described as good to firm but had very little good in it !  Her future will depend on how the BHA handicapper judges the race which might not be very kindly. 

Deck Walk ran a most encouraging race to finish 3rd and beaten less than 2 lengths by a Godolphin Storm Cat filly and a Sir Michael Stoute Pivotal filly.  She was unsuited by the slow early pace and should improve from this race.  Her dam Trekking (Gone West), her grand dam Didina (Nashwan), her great grand dam Didicoy (Danzig) and her great great grand dam Monroe (Sir Ivor) were all at Beckhampton at some stages of their life..  

I was really pleased and needless to say a bit surprised to see Folly Bridge (20-1) and Richard Hughes win so gamely, but unfortunately snatching victory from my former assistant Ed Walker.  Luckily Ed Walker had a winner the day before and his horses are running really well.  Richard Hughes calls me his lucky trainer, his first winner for us was on Cap Juluca in 1995 when he made all under top weight to win the Cambridgeshire.  John Deer her owner was delighted as Folly Bridge took her score to 4 wins from 11 starts and earnings of £49,000. She will be trying to gain some black type at some stage in the future possibly over a mile, before she retires to his Oakgrove Stud.  Zero Money ran well for a long time but he does not appear to have quite "come to himself"  and perhaps he was not really suited to the slightly lose ground yesterday.  He is suited by dominating his races from the front and a course like Goodwood might suit him better.

It is a quiet day for us with no runners but  we have 2 three year old fillies running in both divisions of the mile maiden race at Nottingham tomorrow.  Thistle Bird showed promise on her first start at Kempton where she was forced wide around the bend but stayed on well to be 4th. I hope she will run well but there would appear to be several fillies in the race with strong form and higher Timeform ratings . 

Deck Walk makes her debut in the second division and is a huge filly measuring nearly 16.3 hh, who does not particularly like being crammed into the starting stalls.  She is from the family of Cityscape and Bated Breath but at this stage she does not seem to have their ability which is not really that surprising.

Deck Walk

We have got two runners today at Newmarket,  both run in the same race at 4.05 pm, it is never very satisfactory to have two in the same race but unfortunately with their ratings of 90 and 93 there seems to be very few 7 furlong handicaps at the moment.  On their homework there would be little between them, but Steve rides Zero Money who ran well until getting tired in the Victoria Cup recently and Richard Hughes rides Folly Bridge who was a little disappointing when she ran at Haydock in a Listed race.  Both seem to be in good form but it will not be an easy race to win.

Folly Bridge

Zero Money

Can I recommend an excellent book called  '' Two Year Olds of 2011 '' by Steve Taplin.   This is the 27th edition of a highly regarded and very interesting guide to two-year-olds which profiles over 1600 horses each year and is available from www.racingpost.co.uk/bookshop for £12.99.

To read what I said about some of our two-year-olds ( in early April )  first..click on... Horses in Training at the top of this page, and then on the right handside box click on........ Read the review of my 2yr olds click >>>>>>>

I thought that Starlight Walk ran another good race finishing 2nd and beaten half a length. There was a stage in the straight when I thought she might be able to win but she lacks a change of gear and could stay a mile and six furlongs in the future.   Tioman Legend was perhaps a bit disappointing, but on hindsight we did win a very weak race at Lingfield, he was outpaced for most of the race and will be suited by going up in distance to six furlongs next, Royal Ascot is definitely not on the agenda.  I was naturally thrilled with Bated Breath who yet again delivered to beat a fairly competitive field readily.  Having slightly  missed the break Steve Drowne had to give him a "dig in the ribs" so that he did not lose his position which then resulted in him pulling in the early stages, but luckily he relaxed and looked professional as he stretched clear.  In the process we lowered Windsors course record for six furlongs in a race that Beckhampton has won previously with Tamarisk and Harmonic Way before they went on to win Group 1 races.  As long as he remains in good form, the Golden Jubilee at Royal Ascot could be his next  race but a decision will not be made until nearer the time.

Today we have three runners at Windsor this evening and one at Leicester.  Starlight Walk runs in the mile and a half maiden at Leicester at 5.15 pm having run a promising race at Goodwood over the same trip when she stayed on up the straight to be beaten less than 2 lengths but probably in a weak maiden.   Todays race does look competitive but she should be improving.

Starlight Walk

Tioman Legend won in good style at Lingfield on fast ground but it was a weak race and the second that day, Red Socks was subsequently beaten 4 1/4 lengths at Kempton last week by a 33/1 shot and the 3rd Royal Purse was beaten a 1 1/2 lengths in a seller at Ripon recently. Todays race will tell us as to whether he may be possible to run at Royal Ascot, he is an attractive colt and with a good attitude.

Tioman Legend

Promenadia has her first start in a handicap with a rating of 70 and I think she will need to step up on what she has shown so far to be competitive but I hope she is capable of running well as she is entered in the July Sales at Newmarket.

Promenadia

Bated Breath won his last race at Haydock, a competitive Condition race in good style and it will be interesting to see whether he is ready to move up a class into a Listed race this evening. I am still hoping that he might develop into a good sprinter and todays race looks tough and competitive but he is in good form.

Bated Breath