Chad Schofield in work
I have just arrived back from Durban and will be here for a week to check on the Cape string. It has been a funny couple of weeks and the July has come and gone. We had the privilege of hosting Mr Chad Schofield and he proved to be a perfect gentleman and future superstar jockey in the making. It was a pleasure to employ him and it was good to get to know him. I dearly hope our paths cross again in the very near future, writes Joey Ramsden.
Our runners on July day ran nicely.
St Tropez finished a good second in the July consolation and I could not have been happier with him. The Conglomerate, despite hooking very wide in the straight to try and avoid all sorts of trouble, managed to find all the trouble in the world due to the way the false rail had been erected. Will they ever learn? Somehow I doubt it.
The July itself ended up being a ding dong affair with two horses, just like last year, going nose to nose to the line. It also looked a fairly similar incident to last year’s as well; the only difference being that this year the course was at fault for the horse losing its footing and bumping the eventual second.
One would have had to feel for the winner if he had lost the race due to a shoddy surface rather than having done anything wrong. Again, will they ever learn?
The Conglomerate at the July gallops
One only had to look at the July gallops to see exactly what trainers thought of the natural surface compared to the artificial surface when running their horses at Greyville. Surely at some point someone has to wake up and smell the roses.
Again, I doubt it. Greyville has been a problem for more years than I care to mention and each year it appears to not even be holding its place as a reasonable surface to race upon but is actually deteriorating.
They have had months and months of alleged growing time and racing elsewhere to try and get it right.
Surely this is not mission impossible and we, as trainers and owners, deserve a little bit better. It sticks out like a sore thumb when playing golf in the middle at Royal Durban and one sees the all weather track that has been “integrated” into the turf surface in a half-assed manner. That just about sums the whole sorry situation up. Half-assed.
Summerveld – excellent facilities
We have had a great fun winter and being well looked after by all at Gold Circle with the training facilities at Summerveld being absolutely excellent. Yes, there are too many horses but the surfaces are good, the tracks are superb and despite mumblings and grumblings, Tony Rivalland does try his best to keep everyone happy – definitely no mean feat in itself.
When trying to qualify a string for Natal, it gets more difficult each year with the way the racing has been engineered and set up. Again, I have had good results at Scottsville and have been reasonably fortunate but we have not raced once on the outside track for feature races and are restricted to the inside track with the draw playing a huge factor.
We already have that on the all weather and turf track at Greyville; do we really need to have it rammed down our throats here at Scottsville when there is a longer run in and galloping course available to us?
Surely we need some variation in our extremely restricted meat and veg Natal diet.
The Cape
Ricardo Sobotker – tearing hair out
Down here in the Western Cape, we have had bits and bobs of rain and, with racing on the old course, it is extremely tough to win on from a poor draw. We have been having no luck with the draws and our results have been fairly moderate on the old course. But if you look at the high draws we have consistently pulled, it is no surprise. Ricardo and I tear our hair out.
One wants to have runners, one wants to compete but one needs to compete on a level playing field. It is no fun having to keep on answering owners as to a) why their horses are running so moderately or b) not running at all or c) not having a fair chance because of the lousy draws they keep pulling. Roll on summer and the long run in. There must be one long run in somewhere around surely!
I know Dean Diedericks has lots to do but from my experience I find Durbanville to be a more fair track than the Kenilworth old course. Saying that, the straight six furlongs at Kenilworth is usually a fair event for all and is something we really need, particularly with the amount of juveniles and unraced horses. The straight course is the best way of getting them going forward and teaching them the ropes for the tough learning game that lies ahead of them.
Liquid Mercury wins Winter Derby
It was nice to win one of the Winter Classics down here with Liquid Mercury. He put in a really good effort under a strong ride from Bernard. He is as hard as nails and I am sure he has a great future ahead. I wish him all the best.
I was sad to say goodbye to Bernard. However, as he said, it was difficult to turn down Justin Snaith’s huge string with the opportunities that come with it. He is also lucky enough to have another job and it will be extremely interesting to see how he manages to juggle them and keep everyone happy in the process. He will have to learn to smile that little bit more.
Other Bets
I had my usual few bets with my Aussie friends re the cricket and it was great to send abusive texts all round to those down under or even those up in their plush offices in their Randburg studios. I have no doubt for one second that the Aussies will fight back and once again, from a purist point of view, I think it was the best thing that could happen as the Aussies will come out fighting and give us what for in the up and coming tests. It is sure to be a humdinger and I cannot wait.
The golf is on this weekend but without poor Rory Mcilroy, who crocked his ankle playing a game of football with his mates. It just goes to show that anything can happen at any time, even to someone as young and fit as Rory. The event really does look poorer without him but young Jordan Spieth really does look to be the real deal. I cannot wait to watch both the cricket and golf this weekend.
It is silly season for the soccer with young Raheem Sterling eventually getting what he wants for his move away from Liverpool – for what appears to be a ridiculously large sum. Like the Liverpudlian said on Sky News the other day: “ I am quite confident that young Raheem will be spending an awfully long time warming that bench at the Etihad stadium and not quite getting the run and adulation he so dearly wants and I think, sadly, expects”. They have signed bigger fish that have not even made it out onto the bench, let alone warmed it.
Watch this space – and I feel one very unhappy Sterling.
It is freezing down here and I am missing the warmth of Natal. I will be back up there soon to prepare for the season finale, the Gold Cup. It is a race I am really looking forward to and is a race I think we have a reasonable hand in. It has been such a fun season up there, despite many ups and quite a few downs. But getting back home to the nuts and bolts and the meat and veg is what I am really looking forward to.
www.joeyramsden.com
