Report from East Devon Hunt Point to Point meeting held at Bishops Court, Ottery St Mary on Sunday 18^th March 2007. 

 

Not a lot of conversation on the way up as the tin suffered a heavy blow on the outcome of the England rugby match yesterday.  How on earth could they lose to Wales but they did and that's that!  As Oliver said  the course here at Ottery is like a golf course but as I don't play golf and it's a lot of years since I searched after school at Tehidy Park to find golf balls, I am not in the position to make a comparison BUT I am not going to argue with Mr Carter today, so the course is like a golf course!  If your horse is good at running on golf courses it could win here today!

 

Throughout this report reference will be made to fence five, twelve and nineteen but it is the same fence but on different circuits of the course.  All should be clear later.

 

We have Nick Schofield here today fresh from his treble at Wadebridge yesterday and in the first race, the Farmers race, he is up on Oliver Carter's best turned out EARLY EDITION and will be off as second favourite to M Pidsley's BRENDAN'S SURPRISE (N Harris).  These two horses have been juggled as favourite with prices for each of them ranging between two to one ON and seven to four against.  Not much money for J Alford's OH VLO (G Weatherley) and even less for Mrs Wills's WICKED WITCH TOO (M Sweetland).  I chose BRENDAN'S SURPRISE whilst the big bag owneris hoping to profit from the running of EARLY EDITION.  Off they go!  Well it looked for quite some time as though there was going to be an earth shattering shock as the grey mare WICKED WITCH TOO set off at a cracking pace and built up a furlong lead but the followers did not panic and with half a circuit to go WICKED WITCH TOO was overcome and the three remaining went on to do the business.  They made a race of it at a steady pace and soon it was obvious that EARLY EDITION was the one to be on and he came home comfortably to win by six lengths from my choice with Guy Weatherley bringing up third place six lengths back.  Not a good start for me but lost in the bowels of a leather satchel were the winnings from a shrewd investment.  Well done Ruth!

 

Six to post for the Confined maiden race for younger horses but not so much luck for Nick on Oliver's A NICE SORT as the saddle slipped down at the start and the horse was withdrawn.  My choice, the Tizzard's COOMBE HILL (Charlotte Tizzard) shared favouritism with M Mcguire's  best turned out  GAELIC PRESENT (J Barnes) but also well fancied was S Pike's GUN COVER (G Weatherley) but GENERAL BOB and LADY CUTHAYS were available at a very big price. Off they go!  All was going well with no great rush until fence five when D Williams's RYEMAN (D Pick) came down who was expected to go close by some.  On they went with my choice travelling well as was BARHAM BROOK (A Mills) and GAELIC PRESENT and then they came up the home straight for the second time and at fence twelve GUN COVER came crashing down but fortunately for me did not interfere with my choice.  Over the final ditch and COOMBE HILL was closing up on the leader and travelling well and as they came to the final bend and started the home straight it was BARHAM BROOK and COOMBE HILL fighting this one out.  Final fence, fence nineteen and down came COOMBE HILL who was certainly going on to win.  Final result was BARHAM BROOK (25/1) crossed the line three lengths to the good of GAELIC PRESENT with GENERAL BOB eight lengths back in third.  How come one fence could cause such an upset?  Was there a bad patch there? This has done no favours to my tin as it did look as though I would pick up except for that fence!

 

Four runners for the Men's open race and the good thing, SOUTHWESTERN (N Harris) is a very clear favourite with E Roberts's best turned out THE QUARRYMAN (R Woollacott) much better priced at nine to four second favourite.  The other two, J Cole's BROTHER CADFAEL (M Munrowd) and S Derrick's SATSHOON (C Dailly) had no friends.  Well as expected it was a good race between the two main protagonists and it was settled as they came over the last with SOUTHWESTERN crossing the line two lengths to the good of QUARRYMAN and SATSHOON was twenty five lengths back in third.  BROTHER CADFAEL had pulled up.  (fence 19)

 

The Intermediate saw eight go to post with DANTE'S BACK (D Edwards) and ALAMBIQUE (T Dennis) jostling for favouritism with the former coming out with that honour.  Will Biddick riding R Skinner's FORDHAM GLORY went off at a real good pace and soon set up a twenty length lead.  Coming along the home strait for the first time it was J Meadon's SEEM OF GOLD (M Atkinson) that came down at fence five but FORDHAM GLORY was still cruising along, jumping well and out in front followed by LORD KILPATRICK (Nick Schofield) and a group led by DANTE'S BACK and ALAMBIQUE.  Along the home stretch for the second time and now it was D Harvey's STANAFOSS (D Edwards) that came down at fence 12.  Over the final open ditch it was still FORDHAM GLORY and he jumped it well followed by DANTE'S BACK and LORD KILPATRICK and a couple of lengths back was ALAMBIQUE.  Three fences out and it was still FORDHAM GLORY but DANTE'S BACK was travelling well in second place.  With two left it was now DANTE'S BACK who had taken it up followed by ALAMBIQUE and FORDHAM GLORY.  Before the final fence FORDHAM GLORY had had enough and Will pulled him up leaving the others to race home.  Mandy Hand's DANTE'S BACK did it by a length from ALAMBIQUE and LORD KILPATRICK was third some twenty lengths back.  A good race between the two better horses but useless for both tin and bag as we both thought ALAMBIQUE may have had the better of the favourite. NO!

 

A couple of weeks ago after coming home from racing, I received a call from the Sunday Express Sports Editor with some enquiries about how a particular horse ran.  I couldn't give him his information because the horse was running at a meeting I did not cover.  I noted some details and was surprised to see that horse running here today in the Ladies open race.  I immediately raided the tin and in my hurry I left the lid off.  Very dangerous that, as it rests next to a large bag and a quick transfer could take place without my knowledge, but I did not leave much in the tin as it was nearly all going on this bit of information I had received.  The price I got was eleven to one.  Now when this one comes home I will have to use both tin and the loan of the bag to carry it all.  The favourite out of the seven runners was Charlotte Tizzard up on H Geddes's REVIEWER and was odds on.  This did not worry me too much as this favourite has let me down in the past more times than he has rewarded me.  The next favoured one is S Hobbs's CHRISTOPHER (D Hobbs) at five to two but this one has to improve to win this.  Now my winner is Mr & Mrs Walter's FLEUR DE NIKOS (Miss J Carr) and the price I managed to obtain was eleven to one!  Off they go!  Over the first and at pace, was my choice and Miss J Carr (who I must admit until yesterday at the other meeting I had not heard of), is certainly not wasting any time.  Very soon she has, along with GET SMART (T Cave) in close attendance got a ten length lead over REVIEWER with CHRISTOPHER following.  Over the first of the two open ditches and FLEUR DE NIKOS had no trouble and maintained the good pace and led from GET SMART and K Price's BELCARO (H Wintle).  The lead was increased as the three in the home strait were beautifully jumped and away out into the country for the final time.  Mrs S Fletcher's SILENT SOUND fell at fence 12. Over the final open ditch they go and along the bottom where it is expected that my choice would come back to the field.  A little peck at the first one but this did not slow things very much and the lead began to increase.  They were not going to catch this one! (I whispered, a little early to shout yet!)  As they came up the hill I noticed we had lost CHRISTOPHER but FLEUR DE NIKOS turned into the home strait for the final time with at least a ten length lead.  I think the last fence was damaged so much, possibly by the fall of SILENT SOUND and it was now by-passed and I was beginning to shout now as Miss J Carr brought my bank balance home to win by 12 lengths.  REVIEWER was second and twenty-five lengths back in third was GET SMART.  The fastest time of the day by far.  I checked that I still had my bookies ticket and that the figures on it were correct and I thought to myself, I had better check again.  There was a silence over the favourite backers as one would expect when the favourite gets beaten so convincingly.  I know I have been in that spot many times.  Hang on!  What are these other whispers going around - they just cannot be true!  After what seemed an eternity there was to be a steward's enquiry.  Let me get this point over firstly; there was no other horse in that race that would have beaten FLEUR DE NIKOS but then rules are rules so what can the matter be.  Here it comes.  Horse number seven disqualified. Passed a dolled off fence (fence nineteen) on the wrong side.  A consoling message from a bystander " Not to worry Mister, there are a lot up churchyard who would love to have seen it!"  That is so right but the tin doesn't understand!

 

Just a bit about the last two races.  I won in the Restricted when Nick Schofield brought home yet another winner for Oliver up on  GONE MISSING and came home to win by ten lengths from best turned out  CATTLE CLASS (R Woollacott) and APPLEPIE LADY (A Mills) three lengths back in third.  That cured the hollow sound in the bottom of the tin but only just.

 

The final race, an Open maiden race for eight years old and over sent off a clear favourite in MINTED (R Woollacott), six to four was sensible so I took a little of it.  Quite a few fancied David Roger's FOUR OF A KIND so this would go off second favourite with the remainder much bigger prices.  Miss Kessler's DRUID GAZELLE was withdrawn at the start as being lame.  This finished up an extremely good race between two very game horses.  My choice MINTED looked a winner on more than one occasion but Chris Daley had different ideas onboard G Herrod's ABILITY.  These two got away from those remaining after H Buckler's CLOUDY BLUES fell at fence 19 and really raced to the line and it was ABILITY that got there by three quarters of a length with FOUR OF A KIND fifteen lengths back in third.

 

Before we sign off I would like again to draw attention to the number of fallers/unseating at the final fence on this course.  No other fence caused problems.  Maybe a steward will get back to us and give us an opinion or a reason.  It is just not on!

 

Home we go without any more reference to tin or bag and we, or at least I, will start all over again next week with just a dribble in the tin and look again for that eleven to one winner.

 

With apologies for the tear stains on this report but it will be better next week at the Lamerton meeting at Kilworthy so BE THERE!

 

Fred and Ruth