Good, dear, little Kadou

The win of Kadouchski at Sandown yesterday was one of the most exciting and satisfying moments I've ever enjoyed. One's most recent winner always seems the most exciting, but yesterday really was rather special. In one sense, there is no reason why it should seem more special than his previous success - in fact, it arguably should have seemed less so, as the first win of any horse, which thus turns a maiden into a winner, is generally the biggest milestone, and especially so when it comes with a horse previously categorized as a horse unlikely to win - but I think it was. Winning a seller with a supposedly poor prospect was a magic moment, but then winning with the same horse at Sandown, one of our very best tracks, was even more so. It's always a thrill just to have a runner at such a course, so to have a winner there, and with a horse who has basically emerged out of nowhere, was great. Furthermore, the manner of victory - he looked unlikely to win for most of the race, and only clawed his way back into contention because of his great genuineness, accurate jumping, fitness and stamina, only securing victory in the dying strides - was thrilling, and the fact that it came in my own colours was an added thrill. I don't know whether I ought to say that, because all the horses in the stable are very, very special to me irrespective of who owns them, and in general I actually find more pleasure in preparing a winner for someone else, for rewarding the faith which someone else has placed in me, than for myself; but it is nice to see the Godolphin blue passing the post first once in a while! Kadouchski is such a dear little horse, one whom I really enjoy riding, and the icing on the cake was seeing the pleasure he got from his win, his little ears pricked as he eased down after the line and walked back in off the track, tired but very happy. And further icing was provided by the fact that it was William Kennedy who rode him (extremely well, as always), as William is a (greatly under-used) jockey whom I very much like and respect and whose help I greatly appreciate, so to provide him with the second leg of his first double for three years, and at Sandown of all places, was very pleasing.

So you'll gather that I enjoyed yesterday! If you'd read the story which Emma has put up on the 'Latest News' site you'd probably have worked that out already, and you'd probably have seen the effort and determinaton which Kadou and William exhibited during the struggle up the hill to the line, courtesy of the lovely photograph which George Selwyn took and was kind enough to send us. I was shouting my head off at that stage! Things were quieter towards the end of the day, but only slightly, when Emma and I enjoyed an impromptu supper chez Charlet, as we were delighted to accept an invitation to toast his success with his co-breeders. Time spent with Claude, as any Racing UK viewers familiar with the wit, wisdom and bon mots of 'Ze Crazy Frog' will know, is never dull, and the reading on the brahmamometer seemed at times likely to go off the scale as we laughed our way through the closing hours of a lovely - and (until it started raining) springlike, which is something we can't say very often, irrespective of season - day.