amie, jo, alice and ladies in particular.

​Yes, Aime Waugh is an old apprentice – did you know she once rode in the Aintree Foxhunters – but that is no reason for trainers the length and breadth of the country to ignore her when they have bottom-weights in the big handicaps. She was particularly impressive on Faylaq in a race down south last season (Newbury?), especially as she is such a wee maid and Faylaq is such a big boy. When she jumped off him in the winners’ enclosure, the distance from saddle to ground was longer than is usual due to her weeness and the height of the horse and I had the distinct impression of her disappearing into the ground. Well, I noticed it, even no one else did. Her win yesterday on 200/1 shot Heavenly Heather was consumed by the starting price, though if you look back at the race she timed her challenge to perfection. Another thing about Aime is the pronunciation of her surname. There used to be a dynasty of flat trainers with the name Waugh, one of whom gave Sir Mark Prescott his big break in life, and the pronunciation was closer to war than wuff. I wish someone would ask Aime how to correctly say her surname as I am of the opinion it is being said wrongly by one and all.
Another female jockey in the north who is under-appreciated, to my mind, anyway, and has taken a similar route to where she is now, is Joanna Mason. I am convinced if she was given rides on top-class horses in major races, she would prove up-to-the-job. The other aspect of Jo Mason that lies pretty-well dormant and which would engage with members of the public, is her bouncy, cheerful countenance. She is smiley, warm, hard-working; someone who could fill the void left by the retirement of Hayley Turner.
It was a loss to British racing when Alice Haynes chose to move her operation to France, leaving her husband to prove his worth back in Newmarket. She is a woman who knows the time of day and I have no doubt her new business plan will work-out for her. I notice she had a winner at Longchamp yesterday, which may or not be her first French-trained winner. Now the point of writing about Alice Haynes, I admit, was the name of her winner, a name I am close to hating. Sucking Diesel. I dare say this phrase means something other than sucking diesel from a tank, nevertheless, it is an awful name to give a racehorse.
I will not go on a rant about the names of racehorses but names should not attract ridicule and upon hearing a member of the public should think ‘what a nice name’ not ‘why the f… give a horse a name like that!’ I shake my head and move on.

As I have mentioned many times in the past – the Irish do things differently, and often they do things better than we achieve in Britain. At the upcoming Punchestown Festival, Ireland’s equivalent to the National Hunt Festival at Cheltenham, there are two bank races and one race restricted to horses owned by local farmers, as well as a whole host of bumper races. Diamonds and pearls amongst coloured sand and interesting pebbles.
On the first day of the Irish National meeting today, there is the Ladies National. Now, let me first make my argument about races with the name ‘National’ in them that do not conform to my definition of the word. A ‘National’ is a long-distance chase, with ‘long-distance’ suggesting a distance beyond 3-miles and several furlongs. Today’s Ladies National is a 2-mile 5-Furlong Chase. So, already, I have provided evidence that Ireland do not always get things right. But the Irish are a mercurial people and the less mercurial of us will just have to live with it.
So why do we, the less mercurial British, not have a Ladies National? It need not be at Aintree. But why not Carlisle. Newbury, Exeter or Perth? 3-miles and a furlong or two, of course. Open to professionals and amateurs alike. A novelty sort-of race for the quiet period after the New Year or the National Hunt Festival, perhaps.
Ireland, though, do things better, at least in general. Look at all the summer festival meetings they have, do you not think the British summer jumping programme would have more sparkle if we copied the Irish model? I could mention many other examples of how the Irish do things better but I need my breakfast and afterwards I have wood to saw and logs to split, though I will only be able to exercise myself that way if my other-half fits the new chain to my electric saw. I could do it myself but it allows her to contribute and also machines, including computers, frighten me. Giving freely of my thoughts does not frighten me. Happy Easter.