End of term

Amazingly, we did manage to string together three consecutive dry days, which isn't a declaration we've been able to make very often over the past few months.  And very pleasant it was too, with parts of a couple of them being sunny.  That all came to a nasty halt this morning, though, with the rain starting during the night and continuing, so I'm told, until around midday.  So we're now even wetter than we were.  However, I didn't get too wet: come 8.20, Hugh and I were on the road with Many Levels, bound for Doncaster where, remarkably, it was mild, dry and partially sunny.

If there's one big race which one can more or less guarantee will be run on a bog track, it's the Movember Handicap - and yet this year, at the end of a season of bog tracks, it was run on more or less good ground.  Officially it was good, good to soft in places, and walking the track one couldn't quibble with that, even if one suspected that there'd be a bit more moisture deeper down and it would be just a bit slower than that implies (which it was).  So that was all rather pleasant.  Many Levels ran a nice enough race.He wasn't quite fast enough, but there was no disgrace in that as the race was only over six furlongs, so some of his opponents are likely to prove themselves decent sprinters in time.

In an ideal world, he'd have run over farther anyway, but there just wasn't a suitable race.  But he can go back to seven furlongs next time (which will have to be the AW, today having been the end of the turf season, with Richard Hughes and John Gosden crowned champion jockey and trainer, each for the first time, two achievements which it's a pleasure to record).  He seems to be shaping as a nice enough young horse - and certainly he'd do more than alright if his ability were to match his willingness, as he's a lovely horse who didn't put a foot wrong all day today.  And that's a lovely thing to be able to say about a green youngster who's still learning the ropes.