A mixed bag of memories

The sheer impossibility of my chosen task has been becoming ever more apparent over the past few days. Well, that's not really accurate, because it is, of course, perfectly possible to do the task (producing an end-of-year credit-giving entry, in case I've, understandably, lost you), but to do it satisfactorily just isn't feasible. Site creator Rob Winter has recently made the observation that I post some "massive" entries - if that's the case, I don't think the word exists which would accurately describe the enormity of the entry which would be required to cover last year thoroughly and even-handedly. So I'll just muddle along, lavishing praise on whomever comes to mind, and completely ignoring scores of far more worthy achievers and achievements.

The full extent of the problem came to light today when I watched about an hour of racing on a dull January midweek arvo, and realised that I could fill an entry with just what I'd seen today (which obviously doesn't even count, because it has taken place in 2007). But just to prove how disrespectful of the rules I've set myself, I must before I go any farther hail Kerry Lads' courage in saluting at Wetherby today. The ground was bottomless. There were large areas of standing water in the infield, and the racing surface was so chewed up after last week's two-day heavy ground slog. There were five extremely admirable runners in a three mile, one furlong handicap chase, with aggregate age of 54. Course specialist Jungle Jinks (a son of Proud Panther, a stallion of whom I've otherwise never heard) was bidding for sixth success there, and he almost made it, because he was one of three snapping in slow motion at the heels of Kerry Jack up the seemingly never-ending run-in. It was like watching Crisp in the Grand National, only this time the Crisp character held on, by about a neck. It was the eighth win (from 42 starts) for this splendid 12-year-old, and you'd never see a braver success. The poor horse was absolutely exhausted, and it was nice to see his jockey Peter Buchanan, who had ridden him really well and most sympathetically, jump off him as soon as he pulled up, which was a few strides from the line. There is becoming a worryingly elitist tendency among the racing press - even the superb James Willoughby has succumbed, of which more later - which means that the lesser horses who contest the less valuable races are viewed as if they are children of a lesser god, but anyone who watched this race will have seen as special a display of genuineness as one would ever see, however many feature race-days one attended. And this slap, bang in the middle of the silly season. (The silly season? Well, how about this: 125/1 winner at Southwell yesterday who had been beaten 100 lengths on his most recent start, and whose only previous win had come in a seller six years ago; P.Grayson trained all the horses (five) declared for a two-year-old race at Lingfield AW on Saturday, the field for which was reduced by 60% on race-morning after only two of the five (four of whom had already run at least once that week) were deemed sound enough to run; the winner of division two of the two-mile handicap at Kempton AW today was by Mozart from a Statoblest mare ...).

I digress. We're looking at the year's heroes. Well, how about this for a start? Pride, Collier Hill and Sergeant Cecil. What a wonderful little scrap Pride is. There's not really much more to say, other than that she'd be my nomination for Horse Of The Year. I cheered myself hoarse when she won in Hong Kong. Collier Hill, with the help of his thoroughly admirable trainer and jockey, has also provided some wonderful thrills, battling to the narrowest of wins in Gr.1 in Canada (on a bog track) and Hong Kong (on a firm track). He also was the catalyst for interview of the year, when running in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot, quite late in the meeting. Ouija Board and Yeats had already won their Group Ones on the Wednesday and the Thursday, so when Dean McKeown was interviewed on tv in advance of Collier Hill's run, he was able to point to his mount's chances by referring to those wins, and saying that Collier Hill had beaten both horses in the past. It goes without saying that Dean mispronounced the mare as "Weejee" Board - everyone does that, even Claire Balding, although I suspect in her case it must be going against her better judgement, but will have been foisted on her by the BBC's dumbing down - but the true gem was "Yeets". That was a moment to savour, and a lovely little story with which to remember three splendid horses. And yes, Yeets is a splendid horse. He was sublime at Royal Ascot and at Goodwood, and was clearly past his best by the autumn (not that I wish in anyway to undermine the great Cup runs of beautiful Delta Blues and lovely Pop Rock). But he surely has to share stayer of the year honours with the great Sergeant. His Horse Of The Year-winning 2005 campaign was a hard act to follow, but his form in the second half of 2006, culminating in that thrilling Prix du Cadran win, meant that he's just going from strength to strength. And what can one say about the excellent Rod Millman: Sergeant Cecil and his side-kick Hawridge Prince? The man's a genius. And a thoroughly decent one to boot.

Yeets' Gold Cup, of course, also provided one of the lowest points of the season, when dear old Media Puzzle broke down in the shadows of the post and had to be put down. It was a very, very sad end for a horse who had brought so much pleasure to so many. From my own point of view, Benedict and Ngauruhoe were the saddest casualties of the year, but I found the avoidable and shocking death of Horatio Nelson in the Derby very hard to cope with too. Not least because it was only two days after Ngauruhoe's death, and only nine or ten weeks after we'd lost Benny. I'd seen Horatio Nelson at Longchamp when he won the Prix Jean-Luc Lagadere, and he was the perfect combination of a lovely-looking horse who seemed to have the most loveable, placid temperament. I took to him as instantly as I had done two years previously with Alamshar when I'd first laid eyes on him in the Derby parade ring, and each of them was easily my favourite (and I'm basically writing this article leaving out the horses here, because that would make it intolerably subjective, rather than just extremely subjective) horse of his generation. Horatio Nelson didn't look the same animal on his two racecourse appearances of 2006, and his death was just very, very sad. It's easy to be wise in retrospect, but it just shouldn't have happened. But, unfortunately, when one is racing for colossal sums of money, one's judgement can be affected - although current journalistic thought (of which more probably in a future blog) appears to be that this is more likely to happen when winning the race makes one only slightly less poor than not running in it. Unbelievable. But back to our memorial, and we have to inscribe lovely Missed That's name on it too. He was a smashing horse. I think I only saw him once, when he won the Cheltenham Bumper two years ago. He was easily the nicest horse in the field, a really powerful horse, but an immature one, physically and mentally. I always enjoyed watching him run, because he was always exciting. He never really seemed very good at looking after himself, but David Casey, a jockey I very much admire - Walsh, of course, is the complete jockey, outstanding, but I was always very happy to see Casey on Missed That, and he was the top-class mount that Casey deserves - rode him really well, and they made a very good combination. In retrospect, he was always a horse who might have met a sticky end, just like poor Therealbandit, because he always had that look of a horse living on the edge, but when I read that he'd suffered a fatal injury on the gallops, I felt really, really sad. Desert Orchid, of course, was the highest profile equine demisee of the year, but nobody lives forever, and no one could ask for a live lived better or fuller than the one which Dessie enjoyed. And I do mean enjoyed.

Ouija Board retires in one piece. She's a wonderful mare, but I've never really been on her bandwagon. Of course I respect her - and admire the way Ed Dunlop has trained her - but Pride would be undisputed Queen Of The Turf for me. It's just a shame that Ouija Board's outstanding record has been so severely diminished by the incompetence of her various riders so often. Jerry Bailey takes pole position here, because often she's lost races she should have won through bad luck and one's blamed the rider for not getting a clear passage (and that, after all, is pretty much the differentiating factor between good jockeys and bad jockeys) but with Bailey in last year's Breeders' Cup there was no question of luck being involved: he just went to sleep, and gave the leader far too much rope in a slowly-run race. But for his ineptitude, she'd be the only horse ever to win three consecutive Breeders' Cups. Now wouldn't that be some record. And she could still become the first horse to win three if the premature decision to retire her was reversed. If that were the case, she would probably become Britain's highest-earner (she's currently a close second to Singspiel), become the first horse to win three Breeders' Cups, retire as the best mare in Europe (because Pride won't be in training next year), and could very well end up with ten Group One wins (a real holy grail of a goal, which she would probably already have attained with better rides). Racing as a six-year-old hasn't done Pride any harm, nor Makybe Diva (nor countless other top-liners who have raced well beyond that age, such as Collier Hill ...), but as it is she retires in one piece with a splendid record. She's been a credit to her connections and they have been a credit to her, so maybe they've made the right decisison yet again. Who knows? (As Peter Corbett would say).

Trainers and jockeys? Well, Alan Swinbank and Rod Millman have to stand somewhere on the podium. As does Pam Sly, for her wonderful Classic win with wonderful Speciosa. (By the way, while it was great to see her win and it really was a most heartening occasion, it was rather depressing to hear the press tell us that it was a great boost for small stables to see that a small stable can win a top race granted the presence of the right horse - surely we knew that already? It's just finding that horse on very limited financial resources, and this doesn't get us any nearer to doing that. But we live in hope. The problem is that, even now, so many otherwise reasonably sensible people really believe that having only a few cheap horses under one's care really does mean that one is a second-rate trainer). But at least now everyone knows that Pam Sly, at least, is a very good trainer and a lovely person. (But some of us knew that anyway). And it was just great to see her, and Micky, in that winner's enclosure. Otherwise, the master trainer Jim Bolger has found the successor to St. Jovite, and possibly the successoress to Jet Ski Lady too, which is great because he really is the professional's professional. If we can look forward to a few more battles between Teofilo and Holy Roman Emperor, who comes from the same mould as our dear friend Horatio Nelson, then 2007 will be a treat. As regards jumping, it was very moving to bid the great Martin Pipe farewell, and reflect that he must be rated as perhaps Britain's greatest ever trainer. (On which subject, I used to think that Richard Dunwoody was our greatest jockey ever, flat or jumping, but now I'm not sure that that's correct, such is the strength in the jumping ranks. And I never saw Scobie ride, which is a very topical thought only a couple of weeks after his death.). If anyone deserves a long and happy retirement, it is Martin Pipe, and he must currently be enjoying seeing how well David is maintaining the stable's standards. Another son to make the father proud, although in this case posthumously, is Nicky Richards, who has now fully established himself as one of the country's finest. His father was a very hard act to follow indeed, but he's doing his dad proud.

Talking of doing dad proud, Jimmy Frost's son rode his first winner today, on I'd guess about his fourth or fifth ride. And that's despite being saddled with the bizarre Christian name Hadden. You'd think he was Seth Efrican. He rode really well (mind you, his dad was a top point-to-point hoop aged 15, so it's in the blood) and looks set to follow in his dad's footsteps by going near to the top as a jockey - and I'd say it will be as a jumps jockey too, because he looked as big as Dane O'Neill, who was on the second, already. Mind you, as mentioned in a recent blog, George Baker is massive and he's still riding on the flat. He's a wonderful rider worthy of the highest respect, and not far behind Dale Gibson and Ted Durcan in professionalism. It's great to see Brett Doyle back in the UK and leading the winter premiership by a wide margin. Another jockey to catch the eye in the past year (yet again) was Tony Culhane, who rode some fantastic races, and that was despite having a horrendous fall mid-season. He's been one of our finest hoops for several years - but sadly that may be about to change, as he's about to be charged with wrong-doing by the HRA, as we read last week. It's just so sad that there appears to be so much rotten in the jockeys' room, and it is a sad state of affairs that one can admire riders' skill and nerve so much, and like them, but find that they may be abusing our sport and dragging it down. How to react is a dilemma we should not have to face. I suspect I may touch upon this sore topic in another blog in the near future, so I don't want to get too involved now, but basically one can't compile an overview of the year without referring to the subject when jockeys of the calibre of Kieren Fallon and Tony Culhane are waiting in line. So very, very sad.

I think that's most of what I wanted to say. As I mentioned, this is meant to be me looking outwards, but I must finish with a little bit of navel-gazing. Jack's win at Yarmouth was a real highlight, because he really is the most wonderful old soldier (just don't let him hear you call him old), and it was so special to see him back in the winner's stall. Brief is a true trouper too, and in retrospect his success at Haydock was a very special moment indeed. Such a happy day with which to remember dear Joe. And I can't think of a better way to finish this blog than that.