1) Are you up or down?
Up around 20% overall, mainly due to a pre race profit on the Gold Cup through a series of ‘back to lays’ via B Exchange, particularly from CDO, Kemboy, Frodon and Anibale Fly.* My main focus has always been the Friday as this is the only day I’m on course.
2) What was your highlight racing wise?
The RSA seeing the raw potential of Topofthegame shine through. Also Paisley Park and the joy his win gave to connections.
3) What was your lowlight racing wise?
The NH Chase this year was not the sort or race you want to see at the Festival. More ammunition for the anti jumps campaigners, as if they didn't already have enough with the casualties during the week including 2 high profile instances on Gold Cup day. Very sad and having watched back the Friday coverage on ITV, from the moment that Sir Erec received his life ending injury I could sense the trepidation in the presenters* voices and body language. I know it's part and parcel of this sport which we love but if you talk to family and friends who are not into NH Racing, there seems to be more loathing towards it now. It will be interesting to see what feedback ITV receives and also the incresased anxiousness there will surely be about further casualties in the Grand National.
4) What was your highlight betting wise? Best race?
Gold Cup as healthy profit before tapes went up. Would have doubled this had Anibale Fly won so the race itself got the pulse rate up until near the end. Also I had backed Hazel Hill at 25s prior to prep run, providing decent net profit on the Foxhunters as well.
5) What was your lowlight betting wise?
The Triumph Hurdle (again), as sucked into backing a ton of potentially good things for many of them to fizzle out on their first or second starts, others such as Fusil Raffles to get injured when backed at long odds and showing promise. As in previous years I eventually had the whole field covered by backing the remaining 5 outsiders* on the day (including Pentland Hills at 20s) to ensure a return. By that stage I had Sir Erec, Adjali, Quel Destin, Pic D'orhy and Gardens of Babylon in a raft of doubles with GC horses.
6) Anything you wish you'd done differently?
Not to get involved in the Triumph Hurdle until after the Spring Juvenile and avoid speculative antepost doubles involving the Triumph. As mentioned before, the Triumph Hurdle in 2018 apparently had the 6th highest betting turnover of all UK horse races (jumps and flat). Suggests to me this is a bookies benefit with so many runners never making it to the track and the majority of winners not advertising their true form credentials until the month before. If you can cash out and trade effectively then all well and good but I have never found enough liquidity in the B Exchange for this race. I did trade Fusil Raffles to good effect immediately after the Adonis (before his leg injury was seen on TV) but that was a one off.
I'm going to stop backing Henderson horses now in the Grand Annual as overbet due to the* expectation that he has one primed to win his dad's race. He has in the past and a few placed but too many have failed at poor value prices. I should think that any Skelton horse in the County hurdle will be similarly overbet next year. Could lightening really strike 3 years in a row. If so then search it out now as it will be a long term plan already in the making.
Finally, make a note of positive comments re horses as they come up in the FJ race threads because otherwise it's a mammoth exercise to read back through the comments just prior to the Festival.
Up around 20% overall, mainly due to a pre race profit on the Gold Cup through a series of ‘back to lays’ via B Exchange, particularly from CDO, Kemboy, Frodon and Anibale Fly.* My main focus has always been the Friday as this is the only day I’m on course.
2) What was your highlight racing wise?
The RSA seeing the raw potential of Topofthegame shine through. Also Paisley Park and the joy his win gave to connections.
3) What was your lowlight racing wise?
The NH Chase this year was not the sort or race you want to see at the Festival. More ammunition for the anti jumps campaigners, as if they didn't already have enough with the casualties during the week including 2 high profile instances on Gold Cup day. Very sad and having watched back the Friday coverage on ITV, from the moment that Sir Erec received his life ending injury I could sense the trepidation in the presenters* voices and body language. I know it's part and parcel of this sport which we love but if you talk to family and friends who are not into NH Racing, there seems to be more loathing towards it now. It will be interesting to see what feedback ITV receives and also the incresased anxiousness there will surely be about further casualties in the Grand National.
4) What was your highlight betting wise? Best race?
Gold Cup as healthy profit before tapes went up. Would have doubled this had Anibale Fly won so the race itself got the pulse rate up until near the end. Also I had backed Hazel Hill at 25s prior to prep run, providing decent net profit on the Foxhunters as well.
5) What was your lowlight betting wise?
The Triumph Hurdle (again), as sucked into backing a ton of potentially good things for many of them to fizzle out on their first or second starts, others such as Fusil Raffles to get injured when backed at long odds and showing promise. As in previous years I eventually had the whole field covered by backing the remaining 5 outsiders* on the day (including Pentland Hills at 20s) to ensure a return. By that stage I had Sir Erec, Adjali, Quel Destin, Pic D'orhy and Gardens of Babylon in a raft of doubles with GC horses.
6) Anything you wish you'd done differently?
Not to get involved in the Triumph Hurdle until after the Spring Juvenile and avoid speculative antepost doubles involving the Triumph. As mentioned before, the Triumph Hurdle in 2018 apparently had the 6th highest betting turnover of all UK horse races (jumps and flat). Suggests to me this is a bookies benefit with so many runners never making it to the track and the majority of winners not advertising their true form credentials until the month before. If you can cash out and trade effectively then all well and good but I have never found enough liquidity in the B Exchange for this race. I did trade Fusil Raffles to good effect immediately after the Adonis (before his leg injury was seen on TV) but that was a one off.
I'm going to stop backing Henderson horses now in the Grand Annual as overbet due to the* expectation that he has one primed to win his dad's race. He has in the past and a few placed but too many have failed at poor value prices. I should think that any Skelton horse in the County hurdle will be similarly overbet next year. Could lightening really strike 3 years in a row. If so then search it out now as it will be a long term plan already in the making.
Finally, make a note of positive comments re horses as they come up in the FJ race threads because otherwise it's a mammoth exercise to read back through the comments just prior to the Festival.
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