After a weekend where Wiltshire - trained horses didn't make the top berth at the marquee meetings, it's been good to see Marlborough-based trainers among the winners again.
Barbury's Alan King, who is generously supporting a race at next month's Internatioanl Point-to-Point, withdrew horses from Cheltenham last weekend on ground issues, and recent November Handicap winner Who Dares Wins didn't appear to relish heavy conditions at Haydock in the Stayers Hurdle, but the King stable generally has been in good form. 29 runners this week provided an across the card double at Leicester and Plumpton on Monday, a double at Fakenham on Tuesday and a further winner at Warwick on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, neighbour Neil King has had a quiet week with just 5 runners, and nothing even hitting the crossbar, and Seamus Mullins has been taking stock too - just 2 runners.
By contrast, Emma Lavelle, nursing her disappointment at the injury to De Rasher Counter which will count him out of the season, enjoyed a Novice Hurdle winner at Ascot. With Novices, there's always a future to look forward to, and the reality is that winning a Novice event at Ascot also earns about twice as much as anywhere else bar perhaps Cheltenham. Shang Tang has taken 6 attempts to break his Hurdle duck, but now he's achieved it, hopefully there'll be some further improvement.
Next weekend is certainly one to look forward to for Emma, as Paisley Park starts his season in Newbury's Long Distance Hurdle - another cracking Saturday card.
One would like to say Pointing fans are in for a treat now that the Avon Vale has switched their fixture to Saturday December 12, the day before the International to avoid lockdown blues. However, as both events remain restricted simply to owners with runners, exposure will be pretty limited. We're looking into live streaming at the moment and hope to be able to deliver pictures of Barbury nearly in real time. Watch this space!
After a weekend where Wiltshire - trained horses didn't make the top berth at the marquee meetings, it's been good to see Marlborough-based trainers among the winners again.
Barbury's Alan King, who is generously supporting a race at next month's Internatioanl Point-to-Point, withdrew horses from Cheltenham last weekend on ground issues, and recent November Handicap winner Who Dares Wins didn't appear to relish heavy conditions at Haydock in the Stayers Hurdle, but the King stable generally has been in good form. 29 runners this week provided an across the card double at Leicester and Plumpton on Monday, a double at Fakenham on Tuesday and a further winner at Warwick on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, neighbour Neil King has had a quiet week with just 5 runners, and nothing even hitting the crossbar, and Seamus Mullins has been taking stock too - just 2 runners.
By contrast, Emma Lavelle, nursing her disappointment at the injury to De Rasher Counter which will count him out of the season, enjoyed a Novice Hurdle winner at Ascot. With Novices, there's always a future to look forward to, and the reality is that winning a Novice event at Ascot also earns about twice as much as anywhere else bar perhaps Cheltenham. Shang Tang has taken 6 attempts to break his Hurdle duck, but now he's achieved it, hopefully there'll be some further improvement.
Next weekend is certainly one to look forward to for Emma, as Paisley Park starts his season in Newbury's Long Distance Hurdle - another cracking Saturday card.
One would like to say Pointing fans are in for a treat now that the Avon Vale has switched their fixture to Saturday December 12, the day before the International to avoid lockdown blues. However, as both events remain restricted simply to owners with runners, exposure will be pretty limited. We're looking into live streaming at the moment and hope to be able to deliver pictures of Barbury nearly in real time. Watch this space!
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