Bailey's Blog

Minus 1 and dry when driving in. 5mm of rain yesterday

A cold, frosty start to February the 14th, but for all you old romantics out there, whether you’ve already left flowers on the kitchen table before slipping out the door, or you’re poised heroically with them in hand..very well done. Have a wonderful Valentine’s weekend.

Ours started with Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings in to ride out.

Ros Wilton, Lynne Morrey, Ruby Watson, Karen Pare, Andrew and Nicola Coghill were all here for a morning on the gallops and breakfast.

Isobel Arkwright called in late morning to see Thorndale.. Isobel is Philip Atkwright's grand daughter..

We have a runner at Wincanton .. It passed its 8am inspection. Seatoit heads there and Aamilah Aswat takes 10lbs off.. Anyway for our thoughts on his chances please click here.

Rick Broadbent's Times article on Aamilah.. Might be behind a firewall?

Talking inspections.. Monday's meeting at Lingfield has already been washed away!

Not good news about Nottingham Racecourse.. It was one of the best jumps tracks and now flat only..but its future is in doubt..Jeremy Bradbeer could be out of a job.!

Winter Olympics... Gold at last..... Lizzy Yarnold captured perfectly what it takes to become an Olympic champion, dedication, sheer hard work, total belief and absolute commitment, and then Matt Weston went and delivered it in the only way that truly matters: by hurtling down that slope and winning gold. Phenomenal achievement. 

Double header for England v Scotland.. This morning T20 World Cup at Eden Gardens and this afternoon Rugby Six Nations at Murryfield..

To finish.. Happy birthday to Liz Ellis.. no meeting up at Lingfield on Monday sadly.

Plus 6, foggy and drizzling when driving in.. It was certainly damp here yesterday morning ..8mm.. All change tonight?

I took a couple of youngsters away for an away day in Lambourn ..Make Me Smile and I Can See Formiles.

We had our usual Friday vet visit..

Peter and Fiona Woodhall and Mark and Belinda Laws called in late morning to their KBRS horses Gatineau Park and Does He Know.

Still Nil Point in the Winter Olymics although there is hope on the horizon with Matt Weston currently the world's best skeleton pilot Matt has significant halfway lead with 2 slides to go...

T20 World Cup cricket.. Italy beat Nepal!.. It was Italy's first ever win..To think that Nepal nearly beat England!

There’s been no shortage of Cheltenham chatter in the Racing Post this week as their tour of the leading Irish yards..Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott, Henry de Bromhead and Co, has set the Festival drum quietly beating in the background. With only a month to go, you can sense that familiar ripple of excitement building among the racing public, the calm before the four-day storm of excitement.. 

On that suitably upbeat note, for anyone turning their thoughts to where they might rest their head during the week, I’ve added details today of a local house we can thoroughly recommend, comfortable and convenient.. This is a must look..

We know Katie and she will properly look after you and all your needs if you were to stay here.. including driving you to and from the races!

Birdlip Hill roadworks from the air..

BBC News on new piece of road

What it will be like when finished..

Someone asked what the difference is between optimism and experience at Cheltenham.

Optimism is entering.

Experience is already planning for Aintree!

To finish.. Happy birthday to Andrew Bengough

Plus 6 and drizzling when driving in. Rain around later but what a special day yesterday was.. it did not rain and the sun came out and the temperature rose to plus 11.. Very welcome.... But is this next?

As I am sure you all know..We have just retired Two For Gold, who has been a wonderful servant to us. Now 13 years old, he won 11 races, ran at the Cheltenham Festival, contested the Aintree Grand National, and won and ran several times at Ascot. He never missed a season and never fell..All in all, he has been a most remarkable horse to be involved with.

Yesterday Two For Gold left Thorndale for the last time..Maddie May is the lucky lady to now own and treasure our wonderful old warrior. Maddie who lives near Bromsgrove will hunt and team chase TFG.. He will love the attention and the fun.. Lucky chap and so is Maddy a lucky lady.

When we retire our horses, they go with a non-racing agreement. The people who take them on are heavily vetted by Mrs B, and the conditions are very clear: the horse must be properly looked after, we must be kept informed of how they are getting on, and there has to be ongoing communication. We never sell our retired horses, because once you sell a horse, you lose all control. By giving them away, we retain some influence over their future.

Racing has absolute responsibility to look after their horses when their racing careers end and we are very lucky as a sport that the Retraining of Racehorse programme is expanding and with the help of many including David Howden there are many more options open as to where our old warriors go onto... We have had horses leave here to play Polo, go Hunting, Team Chasing, Jousting, showing, hacking and many other equine fun ventures.

We pride ourselves on how we look after the future of our ex racehorses and the amount of work Mrs B puts into the task to find that right home is staggering..hours of work..

Grand National-winning jockey Eddie Harty, the only Olympic competitor to win the world’s most famous steeplechase, has died aged 88.

Eddie was great man and always fun to talk to.. He lived a very interesting life..

Thursday morning and an easy day for the horses..

Cricket. England beaten by the West Indies.

South Africa and Afghanistan played out one of the most memorable matches in T20 World Cup history with the Proteas edging past their opponents after two super overs in Ahmedabad.

The Winter Olympics.. GB still Nil Point..

Oh dear Mat..

No joke needed after that!

Plus 8 and dry when driving in..A further 7mm of rain yesterday

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out.

We jumped Leo Wood, Seatoit, Name Me Nicely, Island Bridge and Double Ten over hurdles.

Mark and Rachel Burt were here third lot to see their KBRS horse So You Know.

Good to see John Benson again.. He was here to see his KBRS horses Mattys Getaway, El Rio and Reallynthruthfully.

We enjoyed meeting Lizzie Greenwood- Hughes, Laura Scott, Jamil Foster and Rick Broadbent yesterday.. did you see Laura's piece on the BBC news last night..if not here is an extract of her interview with Aamilah..

The Winter Olympics results are not falling Britains way. Nil point so far..

England take on The West Indies today in the T20 World Cup

With no racing to keep us busy yesterday, it gave me the perfect excuse to slip away from the yard and meet my sister for lunch at of my favourite venues..guiltily it was considerably easier for me to get to than it was for her.

Extraordinarily, it has been nearly five months since we last saw each other properly. We’ve spoken plenty on the phone of course, but as everyone knows, you can’t beat meeting up for a good chinwag...

Most humbling of all was hearing more about her forthcoming drive to Ukraine. I take my hat off to her. What’s happening out there, as we all know, puts the minor dramas of racing life, traffic jams, the weather firmly into perspective.

More entries closed for the Cheltenham Festival yesterday..

Thoughts..

The best thing about Cheltenham?

Hope.

The worst thing about Cheltenham?

Reality… usually somewhere between the third-last and the last!

Of course not always...thankfully..

Plus 7, foggy and raining when driving in.. 4mm yesterday.

Blocked weather pattern is to blame for all the rain. Its bad in Spain too.

It looks like being a fairly busy morning here for Aamilah...

Naomi Lawson from Riding A Dream Academy hosted the morning..

Lizzie Greenwood- Hughes and Laura Scott from BBC Sport, Rick Broadbent from The Times and their chief sports photographer Marc Aspland and finally Jamil Foster from BBC Radio Gloucestershire.. They all descended on the yard at 815 to catch up with Aamilah and talk to her about her terrific win at Kempton last week on Guchen.

It will be quite a whirlwind for her.. exciting, deserved, and no doubt just a touch daunting as well. Pressure, pressure… but the very good kind.

We have our usual vet visit and this weeks movers and shakers in the BHA charts were Guchen up 6 to 112, Mr Grey Sky down 2 to114, Step Ahead down 2 to 122, Wild Goose down 1 to 114 while Jukebox King enters 110

I don't know whether you saw this article yesterday but it was welcome one.... At last something is being done about all the online abuse..

Plenty of winter Olympic action ..  Frustrating.. 4th..

The biggest and most lucrative match in cricket is due to be played in Sri Lanka when Pakistan's fixture against India at the T20 World Cup got the go ahead as scheduled on Sunday...The Pakistan government ended its order for a boycott.

The Cotswold's best 50 pubs..

Plus 7 and, unbelievably, it was dry on the drive in this morning, though for how long, who knows?

BUT we had 26mm of rain over the weekend, 8mm of it fell on Saturday.

Warwick on Saturday… what can I say? Utterly frustrating.

White Noise ran an absolute blinder, hitting the front halfway up the run-in only to be collared right on the line. She was beaten fair and square by another mare by the same sire Kingston Hill, who also ended up having a terrific day with a winner at Newbury as wel.. Kingston Hill is now standing in England, which is really encouraging news.

John Perriss was, quite rightly, thrilled with his mare, but as he walked into the unsaddling enclosure all he could say was, “ I  hate being second too” And he’s not wrong. Still, it was a tremendous performance from a mare who had already won three on the bounce, and it made for a very exciting afternoon.

Warwick itself produced a great crowd. The place was packed.. invaded by Invades..loads of youngsters thoroughly enjoying themselves, creating a real buzz around the racecourse. 

Credit must go to Nessie Chanter and her team for getting racing on at all, but in truth the ground wasn’t nearly as bad as many had feared… On the other hand Newbury looked far worse!

So, while frustrating in the result, it was a thoroughly enjoyable day all the same.

England trashed Wales at Twickenham on Saturday. Italy beat Scotland

Emma Raducanu was beaten on the Transylvania Open final. While Katie Boulter claimed her fourth WTA Tour title victory when winning the Ostrava Open.

Winter Olympics..Great action..

I tried to watch the Superbowl but eventually fell asleep....The Seattle Seahawks produced a devastating defensive display to beat the New England Patriots and claim their second Super Bowl victory.

T20 cricket..Blimey England were nearly beaten by Nepal!!

Plus 7 and raining when driving in. It rained all day yesterday! 9mm..

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out

Craig Thomas and his father Bob, Simon and Caroline Hartley, Caroline Tiley, Terry Bowen and Margaret Fleming were all here for a Morning on the gallops and breakfast.. bought at a Kidscape charity auction held at The Frogmill.

We have a runner at Warwick today.. inspection passed.. White Noise heads there and for our thoughts please click here.

The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games are officially under way after a vibrant opening ceremony split across four locations.

Vaibhav Suryavanshi ..14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi starring with a stunning 175 from just 80 balls. This young man is the sensation of Indian cricket.. Yes India beat England in the under 19 World Cup..

The T20 Cricket World Cup has started and England play Napal tomorrow.

The Six Nations....  England pay Wales at Twickenham today.

The Super Bowl..The worlds biggest sporting occasion tomorrow.. The New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks..

Emma Raducanu reaches her first Final since she won the US Open.. Transylvania Open..

Ex-trainer Jim Old has, both during his training career and ever since, ran the hugely successful Jim Old Injured Jockeys Fund Charity Golf Day at Marlborough.

For 35 years this wonderful event has raised remarkable sums of money for this great charity, but with great sadness Jim confirmed yesterday that, after much thought and discussion, the decision has been made to bring the day to a close.

Rising costs, the practical challenges of an ageing field of supporters, and the ever-present financial pressures we all face have made it increasingly difficult to continue. Even so, what Jim has achieved is nothing short of phenomenal.. He has raised more than £700,000 raised for the Injured Jockeys Fund over the years. That is an extraordinary legacy by any measure.

Jim is a man who wears his heart firmly on his sleeve, a tireless supporter of racing’s people, and quite simply one of the sport’s great fundraisers. He deserves every possible recognition for what he has done.

Thank you, Jim, and very well done indeed. Deserving of a MBE?

2 weeks ago I was in the sun.. there has not been a day since I have come home that it has not rained!!

On that note have a great weekend and see you on Monday.. will it be raining I wonder??

To finish.. Happy birthday tomorrow to Mikey Elliot.

Plus 7 and raining when driving in.. It rained all yesterday too! 16mm landed here..

Tattersalls Sales in Newmarket..Mat and Peter were helped by Ed Bailey who recommended that they bought lot 121 Grey Sands..

Issy Ryder was in to ride out.

Plenty of owners braving the weather today.

Karen Master was here to see Does He Know

Robert and Nicola Baillie were here to see their KBRS horses as were John and Pat Lee and Peter and Fiona Wodhall.

John Perriss called over to see his new horse Killberry Hill who arrived yesterday.

The Six Nations Rugby started last night.. France beat Ireland

The Winter Olympics start today....Hard to believe? The World Anti-Doping Agency could investigate if evidence emerges that male ski jumpers are injecting their penises in a bid to improve sporting performance.

John Dewen sent this over.. thankfully it was about Ken not Kim!!.. Whatever it makes a change from all the horrendous Epstein videos..

A confused father went to buy a Barbie Doll for his daughter's birthday.

The salesperson asked "Which one do you mean, Sir? We have: Work Out Barbie for £29.95. Shopping Barbie for £29.95, Beach Barbie for £29.95, Disco Barbie for £29.95. Astronaut Barbie for £29.95, Skater Barbie for £29.95, and Divorced Barbie for £269.95?".

The amazed father asked: ‘What? Why is the Divorced Barbie £269.95 and the others only £29.95?’

The annoyed salesperson rolled her eyes, sighed and answered: "Sir…, Divorced Barbie comes with: Ken’s Car, Ken’s House, Ken’s Fishing Boat, Ken’s Furniture, Ken’s Dog, Ken’s Computer, one of Ken’s Friends....."

To finish .. Happy birthday to Podge Wills..

Plus 5 and rain around again today. 

Yesterday, once the fog lifted, turned into a lovely afternoon and it was great to see a few horses turned out again.. makes a change of getting soaked and making a complete mess of the fields. 

Onto today. 

Peter and Adam Smith called in to see Peter’s KBRS horses Mattys Getaway, Double Ten and Hidden Mountain.. 

Mat is away for the day. He’s off with Peter to Newmarket to have a look at some horses that sell there today. The search for new horses (and Owners)  never really stops...good luck to them.

Talking new horses John Perriss’s new horse Hillberry Hill arrives from Ireland via Ed Bailey..

Shock news.. Our dual winning hurdler 'Draco Malfoy becomes mascot for year of the horse in China'.. I hope he is a very lucky mascot!?

Kevin Clancy was here yesterday to see his horses and, more poignantly, to say goodbye to Two For Gold. It has been decided, and rightly so, that at the ripe old age of 13, Two For Gold is ready to retire.

When you look back, it’s impossible not to describe him as one of the most unbelievable servants we’ve ever had. He has been an extraordinary, extraordinary horse. Bought from John Costello he arrived and never looked back..

His career began back in December 2017 when he won a bumper at Southwell, ridden by Richard Condon. That same season he followed up with another bumper win at Doncaster in February. The following year he went hurdling and continued to deliver, winning twice at Wetherby and Bangor.

Sent chasing the next season, he made a winning debut at Carlisle and went on to win at Kelso and Warwick. He finished second to Copperhead at Ascot and again at Wetherby. He did pull up at Newbury in the Hennessy, or whatever it’s called nowadays, but he bounced back to win again at Warwick by a short head and was placed at Kelso.

He ran in the Grand National and although he pulled up his owners still enjoyed a truly fantastic day out. The following season he returned to winning ways at Doncaster and then produced one of his great performances when winning the Fleur de Lys Chase at Lingfield. That was a tremendous ride by David Bass.. a proper “going for everything” performance.

He then went on to finish second The Betfair Ascot Chase, a Grade 1 beaten only by Fakir d'Oudairies on very heavy ground. For a moment we genuinely thought we might win it. It was a phenomenal run and probably the best race of his career.

He returned to the National, where he pulled up, but later that year he finished fifth over the Grand National fences in the Sefton Handicap Chase in November. He ran at the Cheltenham Festival and at Ascot on numerous occasions, always giving his running.

One of his great moments came when he won the Veterans’ Chase at Ascot, producing a phenomenal jump at the last fence to seal victory. That image will now sit on my office wall to bring back so many memories. That was his final career win, although he went on to be placed on several occasions afterwards.

His three runs this season showed promise first time out, but the last twice it was clear he wasn’t entirely happy. That said, he still gives the impression at home that he’s flying and still enjoys being the worst-behaved horse in the yard! He is also one of the most loved horses you could ever come across.

In total, Two For Gold ran 36 times, winning 11 races, finishing second six times and third twice. He earned just over £287,000 in prize money – a truly remarkable record.

He will now enjoy a wonderful retirement. Mrs B is in charge of finding him the right home and we already have a shortlist, including someone who knows him very well. He will be cherished for the rest of his days.

We will look back on his career with immense pride and gratitude, and with some truly wonderful memories.

Two For Gold never missed a season and never fell..

Huge thanks to his owners 'May We Never Be Found Out Partnership' who are Kevin and all the Clancy family. Stephen and Matthew Cannon, Andrew Fundell and Oli Bell.

Talking of madness in a family.... Happy birthday to my brother in law Michael Wills..

Plus 4, foggy and dry when driving in. 11mm of rain overnight

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out.

We jumped White Noise, Make Me Smile and Sea Of Fortune

30 members of The Racing Club were here to see their horse Jukebox King.

Kevin Clancy was here to see his horses as was Alan James.

I watched Arsenal last night.. They beat Chelsea 4/2 on aggregate in the Caraboa Cup....

England beat Sri Lanka and as a result whitewash the T20 series 3/0

The cricket future? England under 19's beat Australia to reach the finals of the World Cup..

I suppose we all have a streak of madness in us somewhere, and my sister Moo is no different to the rest of us.

Along with her son-in-law Tom Savage, and his father Richard, she has decided to drive to Ukraine over the course of three days in April with around 40 other volunteers. Their mission is to deliver essential vehicles to help with evacuations.. cars that will quite literally make the difference between safety and danger or life and death for many people.

I think it’s an extraordinary thing to go and do. We’ve all, in one way or another, tried to help with the utterly ghastly situation in Ukraine, but to me this feels particularly hands-on and selfless.

I’m incredibly keen to support my sister in whatever way I can, and I’d be hugely grateful if you would take a moment to click on the link and see whether you might be able to help, support, or contribute in any way. Click here to Support Tom, Richard & Moo's Mission: 'Buy and Drive an Evacuation Vehicle to Ukraine' 

The situation in Ukraine remains a horror for us all, and I take my hat off to anyone prepared to put themselves out there to help. It may feel like a small gesture in the grand scheme of things, but every bit truly does help, and if some good can come from it, then so much the better. As I say, madness clearly runs in the family.

Madness in family?! Thorndale might be stuck in January, it's February for the rest of us !!

OK Ian thanks..changed now!!