Bailey's Blog

Plus 15 and dry when driving in.

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out.

Jump racing starts again this afternoon at Perth which is probably the only racecourse that has seen any rain over the last few weeks. They also race at Market Rasen. Neither jockey is performing today...

It is always quite difficult doing our weekly 30-second videos at this time of year.

Every horse has one, which we send out to their owners on a Friday night or Saturday morning, but quite frankly there isn’t a huge amount to say at this time of year. Most are doing much the same thing, so it can become rather repetitive.

The videos are simply an opportunity for owners to see their horse walking, cantering or generally looking well. I’d probably suggest ignoring most of what we say in the background, as very little of importance comes out of our mouths! At this time of year?..But it is lovely to see the horses back, looking well and gradually getting on with things.

The temperatures start to drop from today but next Fridays's rain that was on the horizon on the weather app we use has already gone!

Many of you have been in touch asking to see a photograph of Mat wearing his marvellous Aussie Chiller... Sadly, we haven’t seen much of it, and it certainly hasn’t been anywhere near his head when the camera or phone is around.

We could perhaps blame Tom Bellamy, who likes nothing better than taking the michael out of Mat. Apparently, though, the Aussie Chiller is regularly worn at home while he’s pottering around the garden.

Of course, Mat still has several freebee baseball caps to lose before he can seriously contemplate changing his headgear…

Why use second class stamps?. Nearly two weeks ago I sent three letters. One to my daughter and two were thank you letters for Goodwood and a Sunday lunch. My Daughters has not arrived.. I wonder if the other two did?

Thursday morning I sent my grandchildren birthday cards with a first class stamps attached and Thursday evening I sent presents from Amazon. Yes you guessed it.. The amazon parcels arrived mid afternoon but no cards.

These governments text siren warnings were rather repetitive.. 3 last night all warning about fires..When the first one went off I went outside to see if GCHQ was being attacked!.. Something I hope I will never have to see.

Peter Mordaunt..Did you know?

The UK’s only all-female chess team, who have been promoted to the game’s top league for the first time.

The only problem is that they’ll now have to add a man to their squad – under rules designed to boost female participation, all first division chess teams must have at least one player of each gender.

“The Lionesses earned promotion the hard way,” the club’s founder, Lorin D’Costa, tells The Guardian. “Now their reward is losing the thing that makes them special.” 

On that note have a great weekend and we will see you on Monday.

Happy birthday to one of the happiest men in Gloucestershire.. Simon Claisse.

Plus 17 and dry when driving in.

That really was an absolute burner of a day yesterday. Even my office felt hot, and it’s usually pretty cool in there, so that tells you something. Molly, freshly back from Mallorca, was complaining about the heat, which takes some doing considering she’d spent most of the previous week lying on a boat in the sun!

We were in action at the Tattersalls Ireland August Sale with the help of Kevin Ross..

Kevin bought us Lot 395 a half-sister to the very promising Sogna In Grande, by the exciting young sire Logician.

John and Laura Garrett who own SIG and have bought this attractive half-sister.. she will go straight to Martin Jones to be broken in. Coincidentally, Mat was with Martin yesterday looking at some of our other youngsters.

Whether she makes the racecourse this season will very much depend on how she develops, but she’s an exciting prospect and, importantly, qualifies for the full Great British Bonus which is potentially a very valuable addition to her racing career..

Mrs B, as many of you might remember, broke her neck some years ago, which sadly put an end to her riding, something that had always been the great love of her life. Since then, tennis has rather taken over, with the odd game of padel thrown in for good measure.

Yesterday quite a few of her tennis crowd came round up to Thorndale, and after evening stables her coach, Kingsley Harris, was here with his other half, Fiona Burke, who owns The Beaumont House Hotel.

Kingsley had never been anywhere near a horse in his life and, frankly, was absolutely terrified of them. Pathetic really — you’d have thought a fellow Essex boy might have shown a little more courage!

Anyway, we eventually escaped the horses and headed down to The Frogmill for a few pints, plenty of laughs and a very jolly evening. And despite everything one might hear about tennis coaches, it turns out Kingsley is actually a very amusing chap...

The Cheltenham Cricket Festival continues and last night Gloucestershire Gipseys played a T20 game against the Lashings World X1. which included Courtney Walsh, Monty Panesar, John Emburey and otheers.. fun..

Britain's Amy Hunt charged to 200m glory to secure her second gold medal of the European Championships - but the sprinter has her sights set on a historic quadruple in Birmingham.

Tonights European Althletics 800m final is going to be a cracker..

Hard to believe that my 3 grand children.. The identical triplets girls are going to be 2 today... I wonder how many years it going to take me to know which one I am talking to when they are not colour coded!..

Plus 16 and dry when driving in.

That was a hot one yesterday and it is likely to be hotter today!

Mrs B and I sat down in the garden last night with a bottle of wine and our solar eclipse glasses to watch the moon pass in front of the sun.

The anticipation was probably rather more exciting than the event itself. It didn’t exactly get dark, although there was a rather eerie change to the light and everything took on a slightly strange colour. The birds certainly didn’t stop singing and, more importantly, the wine didn’t stop flowing either.

Rupert Till was sculpturing a salmon in wire yesterday and we went over the eat it last night!

PA Molly back from holiday..

Racing has certainly not found a new ally in our Prime Minister, Andy Burnham. He has announced plans to give local councils greater powers to block new betting shops, as part of his attempt to revive what he calls Britain’s “hollowed-out” high streets.

Quite why bookmakers should be lumped together with vape shops and some of the other supposedly undesirable businesses is another matter.

Betting shops are licensed, regulated and taxed, supporting around 42,000 jobs in the UK. With about 5,800 shops remaining, the sector also contributes roughly £1 billion a year in direct tax.

Racing relies enormously on the betting industry, and after everything the sport has already endured through affordability checks and falling betting turnover, this hardly sounds like good news.  

Yesterday’s Tattersalls August sale in Ireland did not make particularly good reading, although perhaps that was hardly surprising. The good horses made their money as always, but there were a great many unsold lots.

The premier sales were held back in June, when some extraordinary prices were achieved, so inevitably many of the horses going through the ring yesterday and today are those that were not considered good enough for those earlier sales.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be some very good horses among them, because there undoubtedly will be, but generally they won’t have the strongest pedigrees and some will have the odd conformational issue.

To finish. Mike Evans was right. The car has gone!

Another Edinburgh Fringe joke..

“I used to captain a Sunday cricket XI and every week in my team talk I’d ask my players to give 110 per cent — that way, statistically, I wouldn’t have to do anything.”

Plus 15 and dry when driving in.

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out.

Law Of Supply's owners The Lay Family were all here third lot, along with Alan James and Paul Higgs who were here to see their KBRS horses..

Shock news..The unbeaten star Bow Echo has been retired from racing after sustaining an injury that will prevent the three-year-old from returning to the racecourse.

So sad as he was certainly this summers flat racings superstar. Sorry for his trainer George Boughey and his team.. George will struggle to find one as good again..

European Athletics.. plenty of good stories from the BBC

The Tattersalls Ireland August National Hunt Sale starts today, a two-day sale and probably the last notable opportunity to buy unbroken three-year-olds before we head towards the winter.

I was flicking through the catalogue, as one does, when I came across a horse I rather liked. Looking through the pedigree, I noticed that his full brother had been sold a couple of years ago and apparently bought by a SJ Bloodstock.

So, I emailed Billy Jackson-Stops of SJ Bloodstock to ask what had happened to said horse. His reply was swift, and rather amusing.

Apparently, somebody must have been wandering around the National Hunt sales with a similar company name, because Billy assured me he wouldn’t dream of buying a jumper. Far too slow, presumably, for a man who specialises in buying top notch Flat horses!

Anyway, never one to miss a business opportunity, Billy added that if I ever wanted to buy a Flat horse, he would be only too delighted to do so for me.

Thanks Billy, but I think I’ll stick to horses that jump things for the time being…But you never know..

A joke from The Edinburgh Festival Fringe

“My daughter is obsessed with climate change. She told me we have to stop using plastic completely. So I took away her credit card.”

Plus 15 and dry when driving in.

Our PA Molly sent me photos of her threatening to work from her boat in Mallorca! Of course I stopped her..

Great to see the Athletics on the BBC last night..

Tuesday and our usual vet visit.

As we're apparently about to head into yet another heatwave, with four days of weather warnings ahead, you do start to worry about where all this is going.

Transporting horses in this sort of heat is obviously a concern, especially when temperatures start heading above 30 degrees. Thank goodness there is no jump racing at the moment, although it starts again this coming weekend. 

Thankfully, most of our horses are only just starting to canter and are a long way off being ready to race. But if this weather carries on much longer, it is going to take a phenomenal amount of rain to produce decent jumping ground by October.

It really is becoming a nightmare. And, of course, we're not the only ones worrying about it. You only have to look at the poor farmers trying to make a living at the moment.. 

I know I keep banging on about it, but for farmers it has been a bloody tough year.. ask Jeremy Clarkson

The countryside is so dry that fires are breaking out all over the place. Combines hit a flint, create a spark and suddenly a crop is on fire. Even driving machinery around these tinder-dry fields carries a risk. We aren't topping our paddocks here simply because if a blade hits a flint, the consequences could be horrendous.

And as if that wasn't enough, there is bluetongue to contend with. Adam the Thorndale shepherd who is already feeding his sheep has now had all the ewes here vaccinated, which has cost around £5,000. That's another five grand off the bottom line..assuming there was any profit there in the first place.

Farming has never been an easy way to make a living, but this year really does seem to be throwing everything at them. Heat, drought, fires, disease and ever-increasing costs, and a government who don't believe in farming!...You have to wonder how much more they can take.

I have warned Mat not to look through his designer shades when watching tomorrows eclipse of the sun..

Look on the bright side and you might enjoy this specsavers advert!

Plus 14 and dry when driving in.

Looking back over the weekend, I have to say the racing at Ascot was actually very good to watch.

I know the Shergar Cup isn’t everybody’s cup of tea, but I thought Oli Bell tried his hardest to make it entertaining and, from what I saw, it certainly was.

Once a year, seeing a completely different collection of jockeys riding against each other has a certain fascination, and judging by the huge crowd at Ascot, it was obviously a great success. Racing needs crowds, so that has to be good news.

Chepstow celebrated its centenary on Saturday and apparently invited many of the trainers who have been around for a long time. Sadly, my invitation must have got lost in the post!

I did win a Welsh National with Master Oats, although bizarrely not in Wales. Chepstow was abandoned because it was too wet, so the race was transferred to Newbury. I therefore have the slightly odd distinction of winning the Welsh National in England. I remember being so grateful to the Newbury groundstaff for getting the race on that I gave them several of cases of beer as a huge thank you..

A bit Chepstow history as seen on the BBC website.

Big Bucks has died at the age of 23. What a monster of a horse.

The Cheltenham Cricket Festival is underway.

World number one Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from this week's Cincinnati Open because of a knee injury, but still expects to be fit for the US Open later this month.

When we were staying up on Lewis with Barry and Pippa Green, Anthony Speelman was also staying there. I’d met Anthony several times on the racecourse over the years.. he of course owned the very good American bred horse Zoffany and many other good horses in the UK..

Anyway, what a fascinating man. Anthony is one of the world’s leading dealers in Dutch Old Masters and has led the most extraordinary life. He very kindly gave me a copy of his book, A Tale of Two Monkeys, which I’ve just finished.

Now, I’m certainly no expert on fine art. I enjoy looking at pictures, but that’s probably about as far as my knowledge goes. But I have to say I was completely captivated by his book. The pictures and illustrations are extraordinary, as are the people he’s met, the places he’s been and, judging by the book, the amount of very good wine he’s drunk along the way!

What a life he’s led. It’s a really easy and fascinating read and certainly not the sort of book I would normally pick up. If you fancy reading something a little different, whether you’re into art or not, it’s well worth a read.

Onwards into another week where, if the weather forecasters are to be believed, we’re all going to die of heat. What will the week bring, I wonder?

I failed to mention that it was Elizabeth Kellar's birthday on Saturday..

Lets start the week with a wise Irish man

Plus 7 and dry when driving in.

Tom Bellamy and Ciaran Gethings were in to ride out..

Ascot hosts the Shergar Cup.. 6 races of 10 runners.. all handicaps. Invitation jockeys from around the world.. 4 teams do battle..A great days racing with a difference. Read all about the day.

I rather thought mentioning the abandoned car at the entrance to the Royal Shipton Golf Course would have owner Mike Evans scurrying up here to tell us all about it.

It's turned into a long-running saga, with nobody seeming willing to admit that the car was on their land or take responsibility for removing it. Anyway, Mike assures me it'll be gone next week. We'll see! Whatever it was good to see him up at the yard..

I have said several times, if you read this website regularly, that the surrounding countryside and fields here look more like New South Wales than Gloucestershire. Everything is brown, bone dry and, frankly, a tinderbox. It really wouldn’t take much.. a carelessly discarded cigarette or something similar, for the whole place to go up, which is actually rather scary.

Anyway, Australia has now well and truly arrived at Thorndale.

John Battershall, one of our KBRS owners, knowing how much Mat hates the heat, has sensibly sent Mat a new Aussie chiller hat, which arrived all the way from Australia yesterday. I gather the postage was horrendous, but Mat is terribly excited about it.

Apparently, you dunk the hat in cold water, stick it on your head, and wander around in it for the rest of the day. It is meant to keep your brains/head cool?

Anyway, Mat is immensely proud of his new hat, and I suspect we are all going to enjoy seeing him wearing it on a regular basis, although he said he draw a line when it comes to going racing in it.....Just need some corks added.. Dangling variety!

You have to be careful when walking with poles?

Pete Mordaunt sent this over..

A hiker in Montana who walked for six hours down a mountain after slipping and impaling himself on one of his walking poles.

David Cifaldi, a wound nurse by profession, determined that there was no major damage: the pole had entered his body below his armpit and exited safely through his back. So to avoid an expensive helicopter evacuation, he and his two friends trekked the 10 miles back to the trailhead.

Cifaldi, 32, told The New York Times he knew he was going to be ok when his pals “started making shish kebab jokes”.

Have a great weeknd and see you on Monday..

Plus 6 and dry when driving in.

Tony and Charlotte Palmer were here third lot to see their KBRS horses Moon Rocket and our newest syndicate horse Gambling Echo.

Talking guests, it was great to see Liz Wills here yesterday.

Liz had dropped her grandchildren off at Royal Shipton Golf course and while they were there, she popped up to Thorndale. Liz loves her horses and breeds successfully, and she was particularly pleased to see our team for this coming winter (if it rains!) and especially meeting White Noise.. She knows John and Penny Perriss very well.. 

PS on above..  There is a blue car parked on the roadside, on the drive into the golf course.. it has been there for about 3 months!! And not been stolen? Has it an engine I wonder!??

One of the jobs Mrs. B dedicates an enormous amount of time to is finding new homes for our retired racehorses. It is far from straightforward. There are plenty of dramas and setbacks along the way, and the amount of work she puts into matching each horse with the right person is extraordinary.

We have a long list of people interested in giving an ex-racehorse a home, but it isn't simply a case of saying yes. Mrs. B spends hours getting to know prospective owners, taking up references, and making sure each horse is going to the right home. Even then, circumstances can change. People may suddenly face unexpected veterinary bills, or their own personal situations alter. That's why every horse leaves here with the understanding that, if things don't work out, they come back to us so we can find another suitable home.

We've had some wonderful success stories. But occasionally things do change..

Mon Palois came back to us, and we were worried where he would eventually end up. Thankfully, Mrs B found him the perfect role at the National Horseracing College in Doncaster, where he now teaches the next generation of jockeys. So many of our young riders have learnt on him, and everyone seems to come away absolutely loving him. It couldn't have worked out better.

Younevercall is another who we had to rehome due to personal circumstamnces, and he too has joined Mon Palois at the  NHC

We've also had some lovely news from Leah Fairburn about The Bull McCabe.

Leah looked after him here when he was in training, and although he wasn't the easiest horse in the yard, she knew exactly what made him tick. She has given him a fantastic home, and last weekend they came third his first show-jumping class. She was absolutely delighted, and so were we.

Stories like these remind us why aftercare matters so much. Racing has a responsibility to the horses that give us so much, and while we're fortunate not to have the huge numbers some yards deal with, we take that responsibility very seriously. Mrs. B puts her heart and soul into making sure every horse has the chance of a happy and fulfilling life after racing.

So, Leah, thank you for sharing The Bull McCabe's latest success. Congratulations to you both, and long may the partnership continue.

Plus 11 and dry when driving in.

Before all the fun at the cricket yesterday, I called in to see Martin Jones.

It was good to catch up with him and see Sandra Steer-Fowler's lovely filly Katie's Turn, along with Elizabeth Kellar's homebred 4 year old youngster by Passing Glance.

I also took the opportunity to check on the two Poets Word youngsters who have just left us to be brought back into work with Martin. They all looked very well, and I look foward to seeing them here over the coming months.

Call it what you like, but yesterday Geoff Miller gave one of the funniest after-lunch speeches I've heard in a very long time.

As many of you know, I'm a huge cricket fan, so I've followed Geoff's career since his days with Derbyshire, Essex and England. I was lucky enough to sit next to him at lunch, and he was every bit as entertaining off the stage as he was on it... Even when talking about his friendship with Nick Cook!

His speech was packed with brilliant stories, they had the whole room in stitches.. Even if you did not like cricket.

The cricket itself was enjoyable too, with the MCC came out on top, which was probably no great surprise. It was also good to catch up with so many familiar faces including Roger Bellamy, Tom Scudamore, Terry Court, Michael Caulfield and my Wye fishing partner Andrew (Miler) H-S.. Roger Bellamy even bought me a drink, which is something he cannot do when I see him on the racecourse..he is usual one of the Steward!.

On my other side at lunch was the auctioneer Adrian Sparey, who very kindly bought his wife a share in Jukebox King after he had conducted the charity auction which raised over 10k for St Michael's Hospice

Praise from all quarters for Rebecca Davies who hosted and organised the day.. fun 

Cricket news..Jos Butler became the highest scoring T20 player last night when he hit his 14833th run.

Tennis. Cameron Norrie progressed to the Canadian Open last 32 with a straight-set win over Ignacio Buse.

Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Open as he continues to recover from a wrist injury... Emma Raducanu will miss the US Open as she continues her recovery from a stress fracture.

To finish.. One of Geoff's stories

Recalling an England tour, he described a famous player walking downstairs early one morning with two girls on his arms and a cigar sticking out of his mouth.

Someone snapped a photograph and one of his mates told him, "Oh my God, you've been caught!"

Without missing a beat, the said player replied, "You're absolutely right. My wife's going to go mad..she is going to find out I still smoke after I promised her I'd given up." It was perfectly delivered and summed up Jeff's wonderful sense of humour.

Plus 16 and dry when driving in. 

There was excitement of turning on my windscreen wipers when we went out last night..But just 3mm of water in my rain gauge this am.

Mrs B, Archie and I tried out La Bobina in Chelteham last night.. Great spot for a quick supper and excellent staff.

Tom Bellamy was in to ride out..It suddenly rained on first lot.

Yesterday turned into yet another typically amusing day at Thorndale.

We were all working hard in the office, trying to clear up everything before PA Molly headed off on holiday today, when, at about midday, she suddenly announced she had to leave to have her nails done!

Now, I know it's important to prepare yourself before going on holiday, but disappearing at 12 on a working day for a manicure is a completely new concept to me! Times have certainly changed.

Anyway, Molly, I hope your nails look splendid. I know you're off first to the Dublin Horse Show before heading to Mallorca for a week's holiday. Have a wonderful time, enjoy every minute of it, and we look forward to welcoming you back next Thursday…hopefully with those beautifully manicured nails still intact!

Moving on...

I remain a complete sucker for Rebecca Davies's charms. She's one of those incredibly efficient people who somehow always manages to get things done, and it probably doesn't help that we share a mutual love of cricket.

So, when Rebecca rang to ask if I'd sponsor Aston Ingham Cricket Club's special match against the MCC, I didn't put up much of a fight. Before I knew it, I'd said yes. She has an uncanny knack of making these things sound impossible to refuse.

It should be a wonderful occasion which is supporting St Michael's Hospice.

Aston Ingham is one of the prettiest village grounds you'll find, and an MCC visit is always a huge event, especially as the Club is celebrating its 50th anniversary..

Geoff Miller is the guest speaker, while former MCC CEO and now Cheltenham Racecourse's CEO Guy Lavender will also be there as master of ceromonies..I'm sure there'll be a tremendous crowd enjoying what promises to be a proper English summer's day.

Let's hope the weather behaves itself, the cricket lives up to expectations, and everyone has a thoroughly enjoyable day.

And, Rebecca, congratulations once again. You've managed to charm me into supporting another very worthwhile occasion. 

The match is scheduled to be broadcast live on the Aston Ingham CC YouTube Channel

Fine..Fragile, Insecure, Neurotic, Emotional...