By George Winbury
FOR those of you fellow horse racing fans now maybe getting used to my weekly ramblings about the sport of kings, you’ll know that I do generally try to look forward rather than back in this column.
But I cannot try to start plotting how this week might go without first reflecting two lovely memories from the week just gone.
First up on Tuesday was the Shropshire funeral of celebrated and hugely popular Midlands racehorse owner John Hales.
Aside from his recent successful shared ownerships with the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, and making his living making Tellytubbies toys, John was best known for owning two successful greys, the great One Man and the 2012 Grand National winner Neptune Collonges.
Now One Man has long since departed this world – but Neptune Collonges is still with us, living out his life at the Hales family home near Shifnal – and what a tear-jerking sight it truly was to see him there at St Mary Magdalene Church, Albrighton, trotting slowly down the path, in front of the coffin, leading the procession.
For pure poignancy, I think that was then matched at Warwick on Friday by the performance of yet another grey, the Sheila Lewis-trained Fashion’s Model, who led from the front to hose up in thrilling style to comfortably see off the favourite in a three-mile mares handicap chase.
Just a routine winner at first glance, you might have thought? Not a bit of it! She can be “a bit of a nightmare at home”, says Sheila.
This was almost exactly a year to the day since Sheila, who trains on the Herefordshire/Wales border, lost her best horse – Volcano – in a horrible fall at Hereford.
Not only that, but Volcano’s best efforts, also carrying Sheila’s father Brian Davis’s familiar pink and white colours, were always at Warwick, where this classically beautiful grey won so many times they even named a race after him.
Needless to say, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house at Warwick either.
So how to follow those heart-warming scenes this week? After all, tomorrow it will be just two weeks to the start of the Cheltenham Festival?
And most of the top trainers and jockeys will chiefly be concentrating on keeping out of mischief.
As far as the local jumps action is concerned, there is only one meeting in the Midlands this week – at Ludlow on Thursday.
Having said that, Venetia Williams has two decent chances in back to back races at Plumpton today – Hill Of Tara, ridden by Lucy Turner in the 3m 1f amateur jockeys handicap chase (2.45), followed by Charlie Deutsch riding twice bumper winner Sole Solution in the following 3m handicap hurdle (3.15).
it’s also worth noting that Tom Lacey and his jockey Stan Sheppard are going all the way from Herefordshire up to Scotland to Ayr on Monday, for just one ride – the short-priced favourite Marlacoo in the 2.55 2m 3f maiden hurdle.
They also have one on the way back, at Wetherby on Tuesday, where Stan rides another well-fancied Lacey horse, Spaceport, in the 3.30, a 7m 1f maiden hurdle.
Before then, Wolverhampton kicks the week off with back-to-back evening flat meetings on Monday and Tuesday on the Dunstall Park all-weather.
Billy ‘the Kid’ Loughnane has six rides on Monday’s eight-race card – none of them for his dad Mark, but two of which look likely to start favourite.
This week’s meetings in the Midlands
Monday 24 February
Wolverhampton (All Weather/Flat)
First race: 5:00
Last race: 8:30
Tuesday 25 February
Wolverhampton (All Weather/Flat)
First race: 4:55
Last race: 8:30
Thursday 27 February
Ludlow (Jumps)
First race: 2:35
Last race: 5:23
