Work resumes on the grass
It’s been a low-key period at the yard over the last few weeks with runners at a premium, but the traditional 1st February opening of the Warren Hill grass gallop is a timely reminder that the new flat season will soon be upon us.
January brought a couple of winners to kick things off for the year with Two Desserts breaking his maiden at Southwell and Goldsmith making it 2-2 for the yard since being purchased for 7,000gns at the Autumn Horses In Training sale. The latter, so impressive in both starts, has been given a Lincoln Handicap entry (another sure sign that winter will quickly be behind us) along with Maysong, Great Max, and Mr Professor. Goldsmith (official rating 70) and Maysong (75) would have no hope of getting into the Lincoln itself, but with so few runners in the consolation event last year both would have a sound chance of getting a run in that race this time around. Great Max arrived with us at the conclusion 2022 with a rating of 99, making him the highest rated horse currently in the yard, and is one we’re excited to make plans for.
The recent February HIT sale offered the chance to attempt to find another Goldsmith-esque type, and we were pleased to come away from the ring with the three-year-old Ben Dikduk and former mid-90s horse To The Bar. To The Bar is now a five-year-old but is a very lightly-raced type, and he has scope to be well-handicapped from his current mark of 72 having been 96 at his peak. He is available for sale, and can be found in the Horses for Sale section of this website.
This year’s batch of two-year-olds are stepping up their work all over the country, and it’s no different here. The more forward bunch have taken their first steps on the newly-opened grass strip up Warren Hill and, as you’d expect, hopes are high at this time of year that there’s another Lady Hollywood in there somewhere! We have a few first season sires amongst our juvenile crop, and I’ve been impressed with the Inns Of Courts in particular. From what I’ve seen so far he’d be my pick as champion FSS.
