Trying to pay for Christmas?

Like many i'm looking for additional funds at this time of the year and although ive hardly struck a bet since the NH season began i always tend to have a tilt at the ring on Boxing Day.The most important rule is weed out the wheat from the chaff,many of the races are total rubbish that should be readily passed over.I try to concentrate on the better quality affairs at Kempton and Wetherby.Had a little study and although two of these are pretty obvious picks,the other pair might raise a few eyebrows.
KEMPTON 2.00. Grand Crus and Bobs Worth will be most peoples idea of the winner but i really like SILVINIACO CONTI.Ran like he needed his debut at Chepstow behind Cue Card but bolted up around Wincanton(very similar track to this),putting in an exemplary round of fencing.If he gets loose on the front then he might take some pegging back.At around 7/2 or bigger i rate him a VFM bet.

KEMPTON 2.35.Previewed this event on another thread and just cant get away from BINOCULAR.Hes not everyones idea of a betting proposition but conditions look ideal and the 2/1 that was on offer was way too big.

KEMPTON 3.10.Cracking renewal thats being spoilt for ew purposes by the defection of Diamond Harry.Fairytale should Kauto triumph but cant let my heart rule my head,LONG RUN has the beating of him on two of their three meetings and i reckon the young gun will have too much again.

WETHERBY1.45.Belting renewal of this Boxing Day feature.Classy top weight in Midnight Chase and some up and coming types trying to get a leg up on the ladder.Always been a fan of WAYWARD PRINCE,real solid novice form from last season,he ran very flat in the Hennessy and was pulled up before the race reaaly got going.Cant have that run as his true form and off 150 i dont think hes overburdened.C/D winner in graded company previously,if he hadnt run at Newbury he'd be a short priced favourite.10s is massive value.

If you play then good luck,if not then just enjoy the sport for what it is

Ah well..must try harder!
WAYWARD PRINCE was fourth,he fenced much better today and he travelled up really well but his one real error cost him a lot of ground and he could never get back into the mix.Still well handicapped of 150.One to watch for a decent pot in the New Year.
SILVINIACO CONTI ran a blinder but Grand Crus was just too good.if kept away from his like then theres certainly some nice prizes waiting for him.
BINOCULAR won but he wasnt impressive.On and off the bridle throughout,he only got on top close home.He just looks like ahorse that has an issue or two that cant be fathomed out.Hurricane Flyhas nothing to fear from him.
LONG RUN ran a real solid race but Kauto was imperious.Everything looked to be happening a half stride too quickly for him,particularly on the second circuit and he lugged out to his left at quite a few fences,giving away valuable ground.Fair play to him that he rallied in the straight and was closing strongly on the victor over the last two,connections will im sure be confident that the stiffer track and longer trip of the Gold Cup will be right up his street.Dont like to knock jockeys and im not saying that a different rider would have made any difference,they wouldnt,but i do think its time for a proper pro to take over,Long Run didnt receive much in the way of assistance from the saddle and at times the jockey was literally a 12 stone dead weight.I still think he takes all the beating at Cheltenham,regardless of who rides him.

The good fayre comes think and fast again today with graded action at Kempton,Chepstow and over the sea at Leopardstown.Have fathomed out four more unfortunate ones who get the dreaded seal of approval!
KEMPTON1.25.Peddlers Cross will be on everyones lips but im not convinced that this place will play to his strengths.He hit flat spots over longer trips on stiffer tracks so this speed bowl just might get him out of his comfort zone and i take SPRINTER SACRE to outspeed him.
KEMPTON 2.05 This test is everything FINIANS RAINBOW needs.His slick jumping will surely get this lot "at it" and he can land this nice pot on the way to bigger showdowns later in the season.
CHEPSTOW 2.10.A total war of attrition as usual for this prize, a real last man standing affair .Its a race where i almost ignore the handicap ratings and concentrate on the conditions that are going to be encountered,its a total slog in bad ground,it doesnt matter if your the best handicapped horse in the country the most important thing here is to handle the prevelant conditions.The two in this event who will relish this test are BLAZING BAILEY and BALLYFITZ,i cant split the pair so it might have to be a split stake affair on both at very decent prices.

Hopefully a couple or three of these can ease the finances,if not theres always tomorrow

Two out of four,so getting better! but we arent getting rich on winnners at 11/10 and 2/5.
Sprinter Sacre did exactly what i thought he would,his fencing was all things between adequate and electrifying and he just had far to much toe for Peddlers.Sprinter Sacre will take a deal of beating wherever he turns up and all roads surely point to the Arkle,whereas Peddlers must surely go up in trip as it was all happening too quickly for him today.
Finians Rainbow won but talk about doing it the hard way! How he didnt fall and/or unship the jockey four out i dont know but hats off to the pair of them for getting back into the mix then having the extra to power home from the last to snatch it.I still think that he will be the best of the UK trained two milers,whether he can cope wtith Sizing Europe or Big Zeb is another matter.The Victor Chandler and/or the Game Spirit look viable targets as long as the ground is decent as he seems to thrive on a soundish surface.
The other two ran lamentable races,off the bridle and struggling before a circuit was done.Pointless punishing horses when conditions are as holding as Chepstow was and they were rightly pulled up.There maybe other days for the pair of them.

Absolute dross on offer this side of the Irish Sea today so our attention switches to Leopardstown and the three feature events,in the hope of catching a winner or two.
1.25 Cracking renewal with a handful of up and coming young chasers on show.First Lieutenant brings winning Festival form to the table but he has questions to answer after breaking a blood vessel last time,i avoid horses that have done this until they show thats its not going to a common problem,so our eyes fall on LAST INSTALMENT.Jumped his field stupid last time out and won like a horse on a steep upward curve,if allowed to get into that sort of rhytym again around here then he must take all the beating.
2.00 Not the greatest contest for the money but some old friends on show.Voler La Vedette is an admirable mare but this trip seems to stretch her to the limit and i take MOURAD to reverse some earlier form with the mare and win this again.Powerstation may give him most to do.
2.35 Quito De La Roque will be all the rage but his last win was more down to Sizing Europe grabbing defeat from the jaws of victory than anything else.I thought his jumping was ponderous and sketchy at times,not ideal around this place.RUBI LIGHT is the total opposite,fast and fluent over the obstacles,he ran the John Durkan field ragged and if he gets the soft lead that i think he will then i can see him putting some of these under the kosh from a long way out.I think he rates a real solid bet.
Good luck if you play

A winner and two seconds,still not good enough!
Last Instalment put up a super display,he jumped beautifully,travelled like a dream and found plenty from the second last to hold off the rest.He looks a real RSA prospect although quickish ground and Grand Crus might scupper his claims.
Mourads race was a strange affair,i thought the rest of the field would really stretch Voler la Vedettes stamina but the early crawl made it something of a sprint,she found more than enough to put the rest in their place.Mourad might want slower ground or he might just be that most awful of horses...a perennial bridesmaid.
Rubi Light beat Quito de la Roque,i thought that would be enough to see him win but Synchronised had other ideas.Didnt think that Rubi Light was ridden to show his best asset as he wasnt allowed to bowl along and use his fluent,fast jumping to best effect,any ground he gained in the air was negated by him being restrained on the flat,yes the trip was a question he had to answer but i thought he would have been better suited by going out and dying on his sword so to speak.Probably wouldnt have mattered in the long run because Synchronised blew them away from the last and doing so showed the Irish staying chase brigade up for what they are...not very much.Hardly think that Long Run and Kauto will have been put off their evening feed by this result.I will give Rubi Light another chance but possibly over slightly shorter and with more positive riding tactics.

Here we go ...again! Kelso and Doncaster offer little of note to be brutally honest and i wouldnt have a bet on the AW if it was with someone elses money so its off to Leopardstown again for the two that have got the dreaded nod!
12.55 This sees the retun of Hidden Cyclone,a very nice sort novice hurdling last year,who looked a chaser in the making.Couple of things do concern me however,i reckon he needs further than this extended 2m2 and he almost certainly whats proper soft ground.Given those two concerns and the fact thats its seasonal debut i look elsewhere and SHOT FROM THE HIP looks a viable alternative at a decent price.Solid bumper and very decent novice hurdle form,he might just have a tad too much toe for the favourite around here over this trip.
1.55 Super,competitive renewal.All the runners seem to have claims on thier very best form as much of it is interlinked but back over this dead two miles,on decent ground with a strong pace looking likely i take THE REAL ARTICLE to have his day in the Sun.
Good luck if you play

Yesterday was a disarrrter darling! less said the better.Still trying to pay for Xmas and maybe Taunton is worth a shot today.
12.40 Three decent novice hurdles on the card and the opener looks the best of them.Handful of winners in the race and plenty whove show a glimpse of promise but the one for me must be CAPTAIN SUNSHINE.Ran a race chock full of promise behind Montbazon at Doncaster,the form of which is fairly useful.Stable in good form and with natural progression expected then this one must be thereabouts.
2.20 Another decent novice event but TED SPREAD just jumps off the page at me,very useful flat performer when there was juice in the ground ,he ran a solid race at Ascot on NH debut despite getting more than his share of interference.he can take this on the way to better things.
2.55 Competitive event with plenty of the runners having claims on some bits of their form.Hoping they go a good clip for BESIDE THE FIRE,can see this one being played late,he has form over further,any rain around would also help his cause.
Best of luck

racingnut wrote:Yesterday was a disarrrter darling! less said the better.Still trying to pay for Xmas and maybe Taunton is worth a shot today.
12.40 Three decent novice hurdles on the card and the opener looks the best of them.Handful of winners in the race and plenty whove show a glimpse of promise but the one for me must be CAPTAIN SUNSHINE.Ran a race chock full of promise behind Montbazon at Doncaster,the form of which is fairly useful.Stable in good form and with natural progression expected then this one must be thereabouts.
2.20 Another decent novice event but TED SPREAD just jumps off the page at me,very useful flat performer when there was juice in the ground ,he ran a solid race at Ascot on NH debut despite getting more than his share of interference.he can take this on the way to better things.
2.55 Competitive event with plenty of the runners having claims on some bits of their form.Hoping they go a good clip for BESIDE THE FIRE,can see this one being played late,he has form over further,any rain around would also help his cause.
Best of luck

Captain Sunshine - 6-1 2nd
Ted Spread - 13-8 2nd

Your last one hasn't gone yet, but if it comes in and you've done a eachway round robin then you're laughing.

Edit - Oops, I must have jinxed you as Beside the fire came nowhere.

Im giving this up! wouldnt think i used to make a good second living out of this game would you?
Two seconds and tailed off.Overdraft here we come!
Captain Sunshine ran an absolute corker on his hurdling debut and but for dragging his hind legs through the third last then the result may have been different.Hes nailed on for a run of the mill event at around 2m4.Must say that he reminds me of the stables former star...Crack Away Jack,if he turns out half as good then good pots will undoubtedly come his way.
Ted Spread caught a tartar as they say,what looked just an average novice event on paper ended up throwing a winner that could be absolutely anything.An ordinary novice hurdle must surely drop into his lap.
Beside the Fire dropped out quickly going out for the second circuit,tongue strap and cheekpieces probably tell a story...never to be considered again as i think hes a bit of a jade.

One last go for 2011! Good card at Newbury and the three for the day all run at the Berkshire track.
2.05 Im not his biggest fan but i do think that its all in place for CUE CARD to deliver again.Never truly fulfilled his massive reputation but the form of his Chepstow win over Silviniaco Conti stands up well and he had Bobs Worth beaten everywhere except on the line.If he consents to settle(to my mind thats been his Achilles Heel) then he must surely have too much basic speed for this lot.
2.35 Real competitive heat with many holding claims as such.Lots of the runners are fairly well exposed over fences so ive tried an "out the ball park" selection in the shape of SWANSBROOK.Shaped with a deal of promise over hurdles on his seasonal debut and with few chase miles on the clock,ground in his favour and a decent mark then i reckon he is something of a value ew bet.
3.40 Celestial Halos presence makes this an upside down handicap so to speak.His quality is not in question but you get the feeling that something lurking down the bottom of the weights will do for him.I imagine there'll be no shortage of pace on and with rain around then it might take a deal of gettting home.That scenario,of a strong pace and slog home will suit PASCHA BERE.Feasible treated,conditons to suit and the promise of improvement on his seasonal debut.Double figure price,so its ew again.
Good luck,especially to me

Good luck... more so because i'm putting them all on tommorow in an each way Round Robin.

A winner and two PUs,not exactly brilliant!
Cue Card was afforded a soft lead in the novice chase,once they left him alone that was race over for me.He is not the most natural of jumpers and at times he looks like he thinks about the game too much but one thing he has got is an engine.The barebones form giving away 7lb is fairly useful,do i think hes an Arkle horse?...no,theres at least three other novices ive seen over 2m that would jump him stupid.
Swansbrook ran much better than PU would suggest,the winner aside he travelled up the best and for a brief moment four out he looked like being involved but he fell in a hole after three out,a palpable non stayer.Back over a dead 3m or a stiff2m6 then hes handicapped to win a nice race,dont give up on him.
Pascha Bere was fizzy in first time headgear but dropped away tamely from four out.He doesnt look in love with it all and must be crossed off with immediate effect.The winner,Celestial Halo must be mentioned,tremendous effort with 11-12 in that ground.maybe thats his niche nowadays,giving plenty of weight away to inferior horses rather than trying to run the finish out of some of the best around.

Yes Racingnut, Cue Card did well and the other 2 came close.

All that this thread has proved is that you cant walk away from racing then walk back four months later and simply pick up where you left off.This game requires hours of study,watching VTR replays,going to the races and reading knowledgable journalists.I totally gave up on it from about August,the end of the Flat passed me by and i have only taken scant interest in the jumps so far. I didnt post for Cheltenham today as i was doing so badly but these were my selections(honest)
1.05 Champion Court won 6/1
1.35 Mon Mome 2nd 12/1
2.45 Kayf Aramis 2nd 8/1
Small stakes on all three showed a small profit.
More than anything you need the time and the inclination to work hard,like far too many in this day and age i have not enough of the former and have lost the appetite for the latter.At the moment im following the advice of an old,hardened punter(very shrewd man) who said that by all means have a fun bet but never,ever bet for fun.
Happy New Year to all

For all that its a Bank Holiday tomorrow it has to be said that the racing is fairly ordinary stuff.Ayr will be like a swamp if it survives so thats a no-no,Folkestone just wants blowing up and although Plumpton aint much better, they do stage a half decent long distance chase(its only a National in name).DIAMOND BROOK off his current mark of 118 must be getting involved.Didnt get home over a real stiff 4m at Exeter last time,this shorter trip and less demanding track will help,he still has plenty of room for improvement particularly over these sort of marathon distances.His form in both novice spheres reads quite well and had the look of a progressive individual and although he hasnt quite fulfilled it he does look like only one of a couple in this race that have any scope left in them.With the top weight and likely favourite,Strongbows Legend,looking like he'll make it a real searching gallop(made all at Hereford last time out) then i can see Diamond Brook being dropped in and just allowed to creep into the race.Granted a clear round then i just cant have it that he wont be on the premises at the business end of affairs.I rate him a srong bet.

What happened to Diamond Brook just about encapsulates NH racing in one go.Trawled the from,watched the videos,studied the race style,considered the track,trip,ground,calculated the ratings,no stone left unturned.Struck my bet at value odds(13/2),watched his odds tumble to 11/4,i had the money spent! The leader stumbles badly at the first,cannons into Diamond Brook and he unships the jockey,you couldnt script it!
Just when you think youve got this game cracked it turns around and slaps you in the chops!