Saturday, 13 April 2013

SACRED SUNDAY APRIL 14th RACING POST SUNDAY 2013. LEE MOTTERSHEAD, AINTREE HERO MANIA CONFIDENT HE CAN BE FIT TO PARTNER AURORAS ENCORE IN SCOTTISH NATIONAL NEXT SATURDAY.

 PAUSE FOR THOUGHT

DAVID ASHFORTH
Saturday's musings from a retired racing enthusiast.
David Ashforth at the Derby Awards 6.12.10
David Ashforth:
Twice voted journalist of the year
PICTURE: Dan Abraham
DAVID'S SATURDAY MUSINGS
13. 04. 2013
"Time to watch the golf while waiting for Brighton." 

Pic: "Luke Donald: my Masters hope is approaching the $30 million mark."
 
 
"TIME to watch the golf while waiting for Brighton."
Pic: Luke Donald: "my Masters hope is approaching the $30 million mark."
 
"EVEN before Rare Bob finished fifth in the Grand National, when I needed him to finish fourth, last Saturday was a troubled day. Brighton racecourse had just announced that its first three meetings this Flat season would be moved elsewhere because of poor grass growth.
 
"How can you move a Brighton meeting? It's like announcing that a Rembrandt exhibition has been suspended but some paintings by children from the local primary school will be on display in Yarmouth.
 
"If I'd known earlier then myself and other enthusiasts  - Ian Carnaby for one-would have gone along with a packet of grass seed, a watering can and a sun lamp and put things right. Anyway, I didn't realise there was any grass at Brighton. For years, they seemed to manage perfectly well with chalk dust.
 
"It's not just the regulators who will be put out.  There's the pitch and putt course near the seafront at Roedean to consider, along with its cafe, April 25 was going to be the first opportunity to see if the attractive woman serving full English breakfasts was still serving them, or if we'd have to order the sausages from someone else this year.
 
"Danny's taken the news very badly. He loves those breakfasts, and has a second one while the rest of us are playing golf (using the term loosely).
"Then we go up the hill to the racecourse. You must remember it;  the one that used to be open.
"May 2, that's gone, and so has May 7. All gone. With a heavy heart, and a black pen, I've crossed them out in my diary and worked out it's now 38 days until Brighton belatedly  launches its season, on Tuesday, May 21, possibly with the Lazarus Selling Stakes. So be it. Worse things happen at sea, I suppose.  The Titanic, for instance; that was almost as bad.
"Tomorrow, possibly as an alternative, Brighton is staging a marathon. The route doesn't include the racecourse, which is just as well because they'd never make it up the hill. My old school friend Clive is taking part, to find out if it's possible for a 64-year-old to run 26 miles and 385 yards without finishing either dead last or dead. I can already see Clive's obituary, and the aftermath.
"Dear Sir, your recent obituary of me (The Times, April 17) was grossly unfair. Had it not been published posthumously, I would have launched libel proceedings. Next time, you may not be so lucky. Yours, C. Agran (deceased)
"Clive writes about golf and seems confident that, despite not starting until 9am, he will be finished in time to see the final round of the US Masters. I'm not so sure. The Masters is one of the great sporting events of the year (settee division) and, before the cut, it's always interesting to see how big Craig Stadler is and how many over 80 Ben Crenshaw scores.
"As I write (4.45am Thursday-it's better than lying in bed seeing if I can get back to sleep by thinking about the next Southwell card), my selections have been whittled down to Adam Scott and Lake Donald. Who is to golf what Simon Holt is to race commentating. Languid Luke looks as if he could win almost anything if he could just summon up a bit more energy.
"I'm hoping that, with his winnings on the PGA Tour standing at only $29,343,267, Donald will be desperate to sail past the $30 million and that Scott, on a relatively woeful $28,966,922, will be determined to chip past him. Holts career winnings are rather less but, to be fair, he's played in fewer tournaments.
"It's been quiet on the racing front although, while I was at Wincanton thinking that Junction Fourteen and Oscarteea both ran promisingly in their bumper races, the week reached a kind of climax with a bizarre start to the final race at Ludlow. On ground that was good, good to soft in places, the second division of the bumper was run in a spectacular 4min 7.80sec. (slow by 37.80sec)
"I AVOID bumpers because betting on them is likely to end in torture but this one is well worth watching again. As they are about to set off, Dan's We Man jinks and unseats James Banks.   
"Everyone else waits for something to happen, such as Banks remounting, until Donal Devereux realises the race has officially started, and off he goes, poaching a ten-length lead on Land Of Vic, who wins at 10-1 having drifting from 9-2.
"It was good news for Brighton, because Danny backed the winner, which should pay for a full English breakfast at the cafe, and a bet at the track, if it ever opens."


 

J Margaret Clarke Turfcall Comment
Dear All, technical problems experienced this week. Please bare with me whilst I attempt to get sorted. My adventure into the world of Computers and the Internet is some Adventure I must say, AMAZING ... M
DAVID,  and his humour on spending a good day out with his best mates at Brighton races ....... Clearly 'a full English breakfast' or two, comes high on the agenda enjoyment stakes list, and where is best to go, as well, to get it. Very much depends on the lady doing the cooking and serving. Following along the lines of David's early morning trip to the newsagents meeting up with jolly soul Sandra, who is so good at cherades around Christmas time.

Brighton Racecourse and it's closure for a few weeks to change its chalk to turf may be a bit more tricky than at first realized. But a chance to stop home and watch the Masters golf on TV will no doubt be enjoyed instead. Who for starters is Luke Donald? The wonders to be found on the internet and TV are something else.

 The life and times of Luke Donald. (golf)
 
The life and times of CH4 Alice (In Wonderland) Plunkett (horseracing)
 
Alice in Wonderland(2010)




-

 



"THE BRITISH ANIMAL HONOURS"
ITV1 Thursday April 18 8pm

Paul O'Grady hosts the first televised awards show to honour some of the nation's most amazing animals and the incredible people who dedicate their lives to them.

 
 
VIRGINIA McKENNA GUEST SUPERSTAR on PAUL O'GRADY "THE BRITISH ANIMAL HONOURS"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_McKenna

BORN FREE
(Film)
 

BILL TRAVERS WITH GIRL AND BOY
Bill was a wonderful and special human being.
He worked tirelessly helping to ease the suffering of animals.
It might also be added that he was a marvellous actor and could
express more with a look than most actors can with a hundred words!
His spirit remains alive through his kind deeds and accomplishments.
The world is a better place because Bill Travers lived in it.

http://www.fatheroflions.org/Travers_Bill.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-bill-travers-1367198.html

SONG: "Put down in words how wonderful life is while your in the world "
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwzdVHTNpXs 


 
 
THE REGULATION OF DIFFERENT SPORTS?
Is British horseracing regulation stuck in  
a War of Two Worlds?
A horse world war?
A horsemans world war?
 
We have  recent evidence in the present of
a bloodhorse illiterate Indian Turf Club horseracing war
  

DIFFERENT SPORTS?
Golf:  Luke Donald
Tennis: Andy Murray
Horseracing Flat: Joseph O'Brien
Horseracing Jumps: Tony McCoy (AP)
Football: David Beckham

THE CAREER STRUCTURE WITHIN DIFFERENT SPORTS?
 




ANDY MURRAY TENNIS
http://www.andymurray.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Murray


JOHN FRANCOME HORSERACING  (retired from jump racing)
http://makeyourbettingpay.co.uk/tag/john-francome/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francome



A P McCOY (Champion British Jump Jockey

Injured McCoy hoping to be back for Punchestown
By Andrew King
http://www.racingpost.com/news/horse-racing/a-p-mccoy-cheltenham-cheltenham-injured-mccoy-hoping-to-be-back-for-punchestown/1245947/#newsArchiveTabs=last7DaysNews



DAVID BECKHAM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asn-WfmbNzs
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Beckham

 

(update 20.04.13) 
JOSEPH O'BRIEN FLAT RACE JOCKEY  (IR)
BATTLE OF MARENGO  gives Aidan O'Brien an early Derby pointer at Leopardstown

"Aidan O’Brien’s first Derby 'sighter’ of the season proved a successful one when Battle of Marengo became his seventh winner of the P.W. McGrath Memorial Ballysax Stakes at Leopardstown on Sunday. (14.04.13)

By Marcus Armytage

7:03PM BST 14 Apr 2013
1 Comment

"The Galileo colt is now trading as short as 8-1 with Ladbrokes for the Investec Derby.

"With 'heavy’ in the going description and ground more conducive to winter jumping than spring on the Flat, it would have been a job for any horse to impress. However the son of Galileo, carrying a 5lb penalty for his Group 2 Beresford Stakes win as a juvenile, beat Sugar Boy by a comfortable length and was very much looked after by his jockey Joseph O’Brien.

“We’re very happy with that,” said the trainer. “It was very heavy and wasn’t ideal, but he needed a start. He’s always been a lovely horse, he’s very relaxed and only just does what he has to. The thinking is that we’ll bring him back for the Derrinstown Derby Trial.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/horseracing/9993532/Battle-of-Marengo-gives-Aidan-OBrien-an-early-Derby-pointer-at-Leopardstown.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_O'Brien_(jockey)




 

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