13 April 2022

The horses that went to Aintree have all come out of their races in great shape. Glory and Fortune will be roughed off; he owes us absolutely nothing, he has been our stand out horse this winter for sure. Blow Your Wad will all so be roughed off along with Adrimel. Blow Your Wad is an exciting horse for next winter over hurldes and Adrimel appears to be the most ground dependent horse I have ever come across. Tea Clipper will carry on for a day or two and we will see where we are with him and look for a race when he tells us to do so. Cruz Control shaped nicely in the bumper and will have a holiday before he jumps a hurdle next winter. Pounding Poet will also carry on with his sights set a little lower.

The Grand National has come in for some fair criticism again, two deaths in the national itself don’t help. I didn’t enjoy watching this year’s race. Horses were falling unseating and bring others down during the early stage of the race which set the tone for the entire race. The ground was too fast, the fences are now too small and they just go hell for leather as a result. There is plenty of room for forty horses, I don’t believe the size of the field is the issue. Those who choose to write toxic articles about the race even had the audacity to dress their headlines up to include a further two fatalities that occurred in races away from the National itself.  Richard Forristal is one of the few journalists who is worth continuing with, most of the others are a waste of space, they do not have the skill or the knowledge to write about horse racing. That is why I have not bought a Racing Post for five years. If the result didn't warm the heart I can't help. 

Dorking Boy heads to Kempton, Major Fortune and Carn A Chlamain head to Soutwell. To read my thoughts click here.