RACING POST THURSDAY MARCH 1st 2012
RACING POST WEEK MONDAY FEBRUARY 27th TO SUNDAY MARCH 4th 2012
TODAY'S CARDS Ludlow. Taunton. Southwell. Kempton Park. Thurles. Meydan.
JMC Get your Racing Post every day to adventure further into the world of horseracing as the Festival excitement gathers pace, providing an excellent learning curve, and extra key info for your horseracing file. (Don't throw any away keep all in you reference file for your future reference)
DAVID CARR " Talks to Donald McCain exclusively about his 20-plus raiding-party power squad headed by PEDDLERS CROSS."
TOM KERR "LUCY ALEXANDER thrilled to pick up first rides courtesy of Ferdy Murphy."
Cheltenham Festival 2012
GRAHAM DENCH "talks to Paul Nicholls on his heavily backed entry in the FRED WINTER 4 year old juvenile hurdle Day Two Wednesday March 14th. "
Entries for the Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) (Class 1) (4yo) over 2m+ To be run at on Wednesday March 14th at 4.40pm
An interesting race for 4 year old juvenile hurdlers, young horses just getting to grips with hurdle racing.
Previous Fred Winter Handicap Hurdle Winners
2011 What A Charm 4 J Oxx 9/1
2010 Sanctuaire 4 P Nicholls 4/1f
2009 Silk Affair M G Quinlan 11/1
2008 Crack Away Jack Miss E C Lavelle 14/1
2007 Gaspara 4 D E Pipe 9/2JF
2006 Shamayoun 4 P Brennan 40/1
2005 Dabiroun 4 P Nolan 20/1
2010 Sanctuaire 4 P Nicholls 4/1f
2009 Silk Affair M G Quinlan 11/1
2008 Crack Away Jack Miss E C Lavelle 14/1
2007 Gaspara 4 D E Pipe 9/2JF
2006 Shamayoun 4 P Brennan 40/1
2005 Dabiroun 4 P Nolan 20/1
Hope you got yesterday's Post when Tom Kerr took us on a STABLE TOUR to Nicky Henderson and his team at Seven Barrows Lambourn.
Hope you got Monday's Post when Rodney Masters talks to Nicky Henderson on the brink of becoming the most successful jump team in festival history, as he spends a morning on the gallops.
LAST SATURDAY ON THE MORNING LINE TANYA STEVENSON introduced us to CHRIS SMITH the editor of racingPLUS your new and improved racing+ Only £1. All the weekend cards - all in time order.
With an interesting feature from
C4 NICK (Lord Snooty) LUCK
"The inside track on racing from the Channel 4
and Racing UK
"Bittar has been strong on the whip - now for his
next challenge
"Racing has found its answer to Tony Blair" was one observer's reaction to new BHA chief Bittar's recent appearance on The Morning Line. Long on style and charm, he reckoned ; shorter on substance and pithy cure-all for racing's ailments .
"If Bittar is indeed racing's Blair, however, this week's decisive action on the
"fundamentally flawed" whip regulations can justifiably be seen as his 'Clause 4 moment' and should pave the way for at least a couple more terms in office.
"In his first major test of leadership, Bittar has shown the sort of unilateral strength that was so obviously absent from Nick Coward's tenure.
"He has recognised the good work of his senior directors Tim Morris and Jamie Stier in commissioning proper scientific research into whip usage, but has revoked the ensuing regulations that have been held up so starkly to the light in their execution.
"In addition , he has felt confident enough on racings behalf to place faith in the general good practice of its participants and thus to stand firm in the face of cynical opportunism of animal rights organisations that seek to use the whip as a Trojan horse, from within which they can destabilise the security of the sport as a whole.
"The jockeys and PJA, of course will feel vindicated . They should not, as their misplaced insistence on rigidity in the rules - and the strict number of strokes to which they had to adhere - that caused the mess in the first place. What has been quite apparent is that correct use of the whip cannot be measured simply by quantity of hits.
"Stewards who are trained and trusted to apply the law based on a rounded understanding of race riding and its nuances have been neutered.
"Bittar's latest revision - embarrassing climbdown as it might be - recognises that a brain is a more useful tool than an abacus when it comes to appropriate punishment, as it has the capacity to differentiate between offences so as to achieve that 'proportionality' that everyone craves. In every other walk of life, justice is informed by judgement. Why should racing be any exception?
"Perhaps some might argue, because the stewarding system is outdated; local panels are made up of enthusiastic volunteers, while the professional guiding hands - the 'stipes' - tend to operate regionally, hence the charges of regional bias and inconsistency which will doubtless resurface now that a more discretionary model has been restored. Given his apparent appetite for action, Bittar's disciplinary challenge over the next couple of years must surely be to overhaul and centralise the stewarding system.
"Perhaps some might argue, because the stewarding system is outdated; local panels are made up of enthusiastic volunteers, while the professional guiding hands - the 'stipes' - tend to operate regionally, hence the charges of regional bias and inconsistency which will doubtless resurface now that a more discretionary model has been restored. Given his apparent appetite for action, Bittar's disciplinary challenge over the next couple of years must surely be to overhaul and centralise the stewarding system.
"Clearly, a professional BHA representative must be at each racecourse, so as to oversee and witness events at first hand and gather statements.
"He or she might be accompanied by an existing amateur steward to apply an impartiality for which they remain valuable.
"Those present should then refer any offences to a professional central panel at BHA HQ for the appropriate action. This body would deal with a far greater volume of cases, and would have far more immediate precedent against which to judge each offence, therefore leading to greater consistency'
"If this solution sounds simple, it's because it is. If Paul Bittar has given his constituents renewed faith in the rules with a wave of his wand, he must now give them similar confidence in its judiciary." END
J MARGARET CLARKE TURFCALL COMMENT
British horseracing would not be nearly as dangerous as it is today if the BHA's abusive bloodhorse illiteracy found within regulation, disciplinary and licensing had not got such an unfair grip. A grip estimated to be 80 per cent bloodhorse illiteracy to 20 per cent bloodhorse literacy. Making the two key jump meetings Cheltenham Festival and the Aintree Grand National 2012 wide open to further horrific incidents with or without Paul Bittar.
The damage was done years ago, creating a barrier that undermined the whole issue of bloodhorse literacy.
The BHA are most certainly responsible for their abusive bloodhorse llliteracy. Together with the government the BHA have failed the young ones, and the senior horsemen badly over a long, long time. Refusing to allow a bloodhorse literate career structure even. How mean is behaviour as this? Tenth century punishments appear to be the only thing they are good at.
Bloodhorse illiterate Bittar, plunged headlong into a situation where dangerously destructive abusive bloodhorse illiterate working practices within government and the BHA blights the daily lives of thousands of people to include the horses.
Bittar's words "fundamentally flawed" ring true because the 'lot' of the true bloodhorse literate horsemen to include the horses and their owners have borne the brunt of this disaster over the last 5 decades.Letting all bloodhorse literate achievers down big time to include the horses . Why?
Where is the bloodhorse literate whip review?
Where is the bloodhorse literate career structure?
Where is the bloodhorse literate support zone?
Where are the stepping stones to ensure that bloodhorse literacy can be truly learned in the first place?
When is the re-structure foundation of regulation, disciplinary and licensing to be attempted, and by whom?
HORSERACING A UNIQUE AND REMARKABLE SPORT
