​It is good for the soul, at least, my soul, to discover the ideas I have put forward for the betterment of the sport are slowly gaining traction. Today at Wolverhampton, for instance, though there have been other race-meetings in the same vein, every race is a rider restricted race, for jockeys who have not ridden more than 30-winners during the previous 12-months. I have banged-on about this subject for decades, believing the sport has a moral duty to give all its participants an opportunity to earn a half-decent living, and by allowing jockeys to earn a living wage, the sport is taking forward steps to protect its integrity. An underpaid jockey, with dependents to support, is more easily corrupted than a jockey who can afford to pay the bills and has enough money to support a happy family life. So, that is a pat on the back for me.
I also believe there should be an aspiration for every meeting to have at least one race worth 5-figures to the winner. Having a race worth £10,000 on every card will not in itself provide the answer to owners leaving the sport and our higher-rated horses being sold to race overseas but it would be a step in the right direction, a signal that the sport is trying. I cannot think that racecourses having to stump-up a further £6,000 per card will break the bank. From little acorns great oaks do grow, so it is said.
Of course, the B.H.A. should have greater aspiration than one race per meeting worth £10,000. No race should be run for less than ten-grand to the winner would be a worthier aspiration. But, well, I refer you back to the little acorns. The B.H.A. is of the opinion that it is possible to grow the sport from the top down. Houses are constructed from the foundations up – I rest my case. If the sport declines to the fate of hare-coursing or even greyhound racing, its re-emergence, if that was to happen, would begin, as it was at the very birth of the sport, with country meetings, local sportsman getting together to breath life back into a sport that was once a lynch-pin of British sporting tradition. Read Chris Pitt’s wonderful book ‘A Long Time Gone’ if you want to study the foundations of horse racing, when the sport was a country pursuit and not a billion-pound world-wide industry. I believe Cartmel and Musselburgh will prove the saving fathers of our sport, not Ascot, Goodwood or Sandown.
To return the ‘good old days’ to horse racing the modern requirements of the sporting public should be mixed with what went on when racecourses were crowded and there was no need to ‘sell’ the major races to the media or the public. The B.H.A. want to play too safe, an impossibility when regulating an activity that is by its very nature dangerous. Protecting the welfare of the horse is of vital importance and the sport should be connected from head to toe with equine charities. Horse racing should be the over-arching protector of all horses in this country, with race-meetings staged on a regular basis to raise funds to support the people and charities that provide the necessary safety-nets.
I remain committed to my ‘health and safety’ unfriendly idea to have a 40-runner Lincoln Handicap started from a barrier, a glimpse into how the every day of horse racing was like pre-starting stalls, a concept, by the way, the Jockey Club, the sport’s rulers and regulators prior to the inception of the B.H.B., now the B.H.A., were totally opposed to.
Of course, as we all know, fewer race-meetings, with less races, would go a long way to improving competitiveness in the sport, though I must warn that at present, with only five or six in a race, the owners we still have are earning more prize-money than if we were to have double the number of horses per race. It is an issue that is not a completely black and white picture. Not by a long chalk.
What British sport requires to help it, if that is at all possible, out of the doldrums, is knowledgeable leadership and a regulatory body with teeth that is prepared to bite. We are too bloody polite in racing. The B.H.A. are crap and Julia Harrington has made not one jot of difference. The sport was going down down when she arrived and it remains going down down on her departure. That is not success, with ‘Premier Races’ the biggest red herring since Jesus walked on water, turned water into wine and did that amazing trick when he fed the masses with loathes and fishes. If only he were around today. As things look today, a miracle is the basic requirement for a doable strategy to survival.

​Like it or loath it – I like it – the Shergar Cup is one of Ascot’s most popular race-meeting. It is a good, family day out and I am surprised it has not spawned similar events. Ascot know they have a winner and know how to sprinkle it with ever more gold dust. Add more girls. A tactic used for centuries to attract greater attention to any exhibition or social occasion.
The female team are repeat winners of this jockey challenge and this year there are to be two teams of female riders. Hayley Turner, of course, how could she not be involved, leads a European team comprising herself, Saffie Osborne and Marie Velon. Rachel King, the Britis apprentice who sought and achieved fame and fortune, and quite recently a husband, in Australia, will lead a world female three. The other two teams will be similar teams of male riders.
Equalising the male/female participation is a good move, though I question why there are to be no British or Irish based jockeys’ teams. In fact, the event is so successful I find hard to understand why Ascot has not gone full-bore and upped the teams to five or possibly six. Logistically this might prove tricky to pull-off, yet for the class of horse entered, the prize-money is so good I cannot see why attracting 15-18 runners per race would prove impossible to achieve.
I would like to see, or at least aspired to, three-teams of female jockeys and three of male. I would have gone for a British female team, Turner, Osborne, Doyle, obviously, a World female team, and a third team comprising an apprentice, another female professional, say Jo Mason and an Irish rider.
With the male teams comprising a similar mix. I suggest an apprentice as the Shergar Cup should be seen as front window for riding talent on the rise and not just a jolly for professionals already riding a crest of a wave.
Given the success of Carlisle’s all-female rider night and that Ascot achieve one of there best attendance for the Shergar Cup, I fail to understand why another British racecourse has not jumped on the bandwagon and thought-up a similar jockey challenge. The period between the Epsom Derby and Royal Ascot would be a suitable slot in the calendar for someone to try a Britain versus Irish clash, 4-teams of 4, with an English-born team, Irish jockeys based in England, a Irish-based team, and a female team, half Irish, half British. Perhaps such a meeting could be used to raise funds for equine charities?
On the last point. I wish British racing either held regular meetings throughout the year in aid of equine charities – yes I know there are a few about – or at least had charity boxes as a permanent fixture around the racecourse. The sport should align itself to charities that catch the fallen and the neglected horse, with perhaps every racecourse associated with one or more of these charities. The sport is too easily panned by our opposition when things go wrong, when the carcass of a horse is transported on an open-to-the-world’s eyes trailer hitched to a horsebox displaying a licenced trainers’ name, for instance.
Can we not be seen by the outside world as doing all we can to help support those whose kindness helps out equine friends live dignified lives outside of racing, as well as being a safety-net for all horses, whether they are thoroughbred or not. The sport could so easily help itself if only someone of influence could just think outside of the box for a moment.
Horsey people helping less fortunate horses, how could that not be a winner in the public acceptance stakes!

​Ambiente Friendly may gain consolation for his heroic run in the Epsom Derby, when for a brief moment as Rab Havlin took a pull so he would not hit the front too soon, only to see City of Troy getting a dream run up the rail, he looked all-over the winner in waiting. If he does not win at the Curragh, it is as certain as night follows day that Aidan O’Brien will triumph yet again.
If it were not for Coolmore and the Ballydoyle stables of Aidan O’Brien where would the Irish Derby be, except in even greater trouble. Derbies of all distinction should not be run with as few as six or seven-runners, which is likely on Sunday. Also, national Derbies should be live on terrestrial television as befitting their status as Derbies. There are Derbies and then are races that carry the name Derby in their title. A Derby that is a handicap is not a true and bone fide Derby. Once upon a time there were Scottish and Welsh Derbies and regional Derbies, as there are regional ‘Nationals.’ They are peripheral and some might say pseudo-Derbies and play no significant part in racing’s narrative. The Irish Derby should be a central pivot of the Irish racing story as was the case when it was known as the Irish Sweeps Derby.
Epsom Derby winners went to the Curragh. The Eclipse at Sandown was hardly ever considered as the natural next destination for a Derby winner. Times have not changed; breeding has changed. Breeders, and I make no apology for the criticism, are ruining flat racing with its insatiable desire for speed, speed and more speed. Very soon there will be a call for four-furlong races as so many sprinters are not able to stay five-furlongs. As there are calls for the Irish Derby to follow the example of France and reduce its Derby to ten-furlongs due to the lack of stamina in the national herd. Thank the sweet Lord that Coolmore remains true to old-fashioned standards, though even they are increasingly looking to get more speed into their mares and stallions.
On this topic I am two-faced as I have long advocated that the Doncaster St.Leger should lose its classic status and be replaced by the Eclipse being restricted to 3-year-olds, allowing for the English classic season to be done and dusted by mid-summer. I am not expecting my revolutionary idea to come to pass, and if it did it would further diminish the appeal of the Irish Derby, which I would dread to witness.
The problem is that the main owners, nearly all of whom are of foreign descent, race to make stallions as that is where the money is to be made and the more breeders that favour speed over stamina, the less appeal any Group 1 over further than 10-furlongs will have for them. Bizarrely for a country renowned for their sprinters, Australia is becoming home to far more of our 12-furlong + plus horses than is healthy for our summer race calendar, with the 2-mile Melbourne Cup still its dominant race.
And that is the rub. Because the English and Irish race programme has grown from seeds planted 200-years ago when stamina in horses was of necessity, the majority of our top flat races are run over distances further than 10-furlongs. Yet breeders insist on over-producing sprinters, which is further diminishing the pool of stock to be sold as potential National Hunt horses. It is a problem that needs to be addressed, as is proved by the paucity of horses that now take part in the highlight of Ireland’s flat season. Six of the eleven entered for the Irish Derby this week-end are trained by Aidan O’Brien. That is not healthy.
The criteria for a race like a Derby, be it at Epsom or the Curragh, is that it should be possible for there to be a sweepstake on the race. When this is not possible, the alarm bells should ring and they should ring loud and long, for as long as no one is prepared to do something about the situation. I have few solutions, I admit. The best of which is to include within the prize-money a six or seven-figure bonus if the winner or placed horses at Epsom go on to win the Irish Derby.
The Irish Derby must be a hard sell to both possible sponsors and the public. Something other than altering the distance should be done and done quickly as except for Coolmore, the race is becoming an irrelevance on the world’s racing stage and in a land where the breeding of thoroughbreds is of world renown, that is wholly unforgivable. 

​Not even someone with as saturnine a soul as myself could be critical of the 5-days of Royal Ascot. I will also contend that prize-money is perfectly satisfactory and that to concede to the argument that more money is needed to be applied to the Group 1 races in order to achieve greater foreign representation is to concede that the honour and privilege of winning at Royal Ascot is less worthy than the prize for winning. Instead of ballooning prize money, perhaps Ascot should contribute to the shipping of horses from foreign parts to Berkshire.
It may add to the occasion to have horses trained in the U.S., Europe and far distant countries competing against the best from Britain and Ireland but they add little to the actual excitement of what fascinates us between the white rails. It may matter to the exclusive few which horse tops the International rankings at the end of the year but the thinking of nameless faces and the attributing of trite numbers to the names of horses have little bearing on racegoers and the rest of humanity. Nor should the Breeders Cup be the accepted destination for every Royal Ascot Group 1 winner. Royal Ascot is Royal Ascot. It should be the destination. After all, it has heritage and history and prestige, recommendations that the billionaires’ paradise that is the upstart Breeders Cup does not and can never have.
I speak as someone whose affection for flat racing has in recent years cooled to lukewarm, yet Royal Ascot, to me, is a proper race-meeting, with races to suit every type of horse, except those who favour soft ground, from 2-year-old sprints, 3-year-old sprints, to the toughest to win handicaps, to the longest race in the entire calendar. I enjoy the handicaps the most, doubtless because I am drawn to cheering-on the little man, the jockey rarely in the spotlight, the working-man’s syndicates, the trainer with only a couple of dozen horses in training. The underdog has an opportunity in the Royal Hunt Cup or the Wokingham, even if rarely does the trophy not go to one of the leading lights. But the chance is there and that is what I like.
Reflecting on the final day. The highlight was Callum Shepherd getting some kind of redemption on Isle of Jura, the winning of the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes payback for holding his tongue after the despicable actions of the Gredley family in jocking him off Ambiente Friendly in favour of the popular yet same division of jockey as himself Rab Havlin. As I said at the time, I suspect Frankie Dettori was involved somewhere within the decision-making.
Callum Shepherd proves, as did Tom Eaves earlier in the week, that the reality is that most of the jockeys riding possess the ability, though not the opportunity, to win major races when given the right horse to ride. Yes, Buick, Murphy, Moore, Doyle and Marquand, get the job done on a regular basis but because of their track record they have the connections and the confidence to know if it goes wrong today, tomorrow they will get other chances. If Shephard and Eaves had messed up at Royal Ascot, they would know there would be a good chance they would not get a second opportunity. Now, I hope, Callum Shepherd goes on to win the Group 1 King George & Queen Elizabeth back at Ascot at the end of July.
Anyone thinking of backing ante-post either Fairy Godmother or Bedtime Story for the 1,000 Guineas next season should bear in mind what Aidan O,Brien said in the aftermath of this year’s Guineas races. He no longer hard trains his classic horses early on as he is mindful that it is a long season and those same horses were needed to be fresh for the big races in the Autumn. City of Troy is a superstar in June but back in April he was undercooked and underprepared to make even a bold show in the 2,000 Guineas. Opera Singer is only now beginning to look like the filly everyone thought her to be at the end of last season. Even with the sires now being used by Coolmore having a greater influence on speed than in the chronicled days of Sadlers Wells and Galileo, Aidan is not minded to train a horse with only the Guineas as its main target. Aidan is unusual for the modern trainer as he is prepared to use races to bring a horse to full fitness, as his comment ‘oh, the race will bring him on, no doubt’, testifies. 
For me, it is downhill from here on in. From June onwards my thoughts drift to the Cambridgeshire, Cesarewitch and the start of the jumps season.

​A thought came to me on day 3: if the Cheltenham Festival were to be staged in mid-November, field sizes and competitiveness would be the equal of Royal Ascot as there would be a larger pool of horses still available. Come March, many of the lesser number of class horse are always going to be sidelined due to injury sustained throughout the season. I am not suggesting the Cheltenham Festival be moved to the start of the campaign, it is just a good reason why people should stop making comparisons between the top two meetings of the year.
In Willie Mullins and Aidan O’Brien, horse racing has two of the greatest trainers, numerically and as harvesters of the major prizes, in the sport’s history. No question. No debate. The difference between the two, I suggest, is that Mullins and his team have to search for the superstars of Closutton, whereas O’Brien has no need to traipse around the sales for the Coolmore superstars as the majority are home-bred, with a select few bought by ‘the lads’ themselves.
I reckon, perhaps unfairly, that Ryan Moore wanted to win the Gold Cup far more than Kyprios did. Great horserace, two great jockeys fighting out the finish. Trawlerman was brave in defeat, Kyprious won while whistling through his teeth and looking forward to supper.
It would not have happened in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the tardy time-keeping of the royal procession. Early one-day, so late the next day that we feared something diabolical had occurred. And on the first day, the King chatted through the national anthem. Will not do, sir. Must do better.
There is an accident waiting to happen, mark my words. Owners leading in their winners, that is my reference. Kyprios was unhappy with the swelling crowd inside the winners’ enclosure and it was only by the grace of God he did not trample on the woman in the pink dress(?).  The B.H.A. must look into the matter otherwise bad publicity is coming our way.
What I admire about Ryan Moore, and the same with Frankie Dettori, is he always tries to win without resorting to the whip. Kyprios needed a reminder to concentrate, his other winners, including Fairy Godmother, were hands and heels effort.
Although the connoisseurs will always look to the Group races for their greater enjoyment, I have a preference for the handicaps, the Royal Hunt Cup, the Ascot Handicap and the Wokingham, along with the Queen Alexandria, being my favourite races of the meeting.
Rachel King was a great addition to the jockey ranks this year, almost sneaking a surprise win in the Sandringham for the Gosdens, a team that have knocked on almost all the doors this week. Holly Doyle has also knocked on several doors to no avail, the photo-finish camera not being her friend so far. Hayley Turner also finished a runner-up. Hopefully Saffie Osborne can get one in for the girls today and also get Sir Michael Stoute on the winners’ list.
Without originality, I suspect, at the beginning of the season I predicted that Billy Loughnane would in a few years become champion jockey, not ruling him out of going close this season. After two Royal Ascot winners already this week, his season can only go in one direction and though it is highly unlikely he will catch and pass Oisin Murphy, he might yet prove his deadliest rival. He is the new Lester Piggott, thankfully a smiling version of the legendary one. At the time of my birth the tall fellow was the super kid on the block; as I dither towards the end of my life, Billy the Kid is the wonder boy. George Boughey has invested wisely in Loughnane; I doubt though he will be in a position to keep him for more than a few seasons.
I like Sheikh Mohammed Obaid. Even without being asked the question, he made the commitment to keep both his Group 1 winners in training next season. Just the boost British racing needed during these troubling times. Hopefully other owners will follow suit.
In my eyes, Royal Ascot is perfect, with no meddling required.

​Sean Levey regular proves he is a top-notch jockey, when given class horses to ride in classy races can get the job done as well as any other jockey. As Richard Hannon, tongue firmly in cheek, said. “He is lucky that he rides for a good trainer.” Though said in jest, Hannon is correct. What should equally be said is that Hannon is lucky to have Levey as his retained jockey. Long may the duo be successful. 
Also, Sean Levey is a characterful jockey, someone who should be better used to promote the sport to people of the same skin colour as himself, to demonstrate that horse racing is a diverse community that allows opportunity for success to one and all.
Willie Mullins is a serial achiever, be it at summer festivals in Ireland, the big festivals in the winter or Royal Ascot. His eye for opportunities is almost supernatural. And he invariably gets horses fit for Ascot by winning a maiden hurdle, sometimes at obscure places like Ballinrobe or Sligo. Who else would take that path to success? The only question left to be asked about Mullins is this – is he a better genius than Aidan O’Brien? I would say yes, others might disagree.
Kevin Blake’s love affair with electronic data amuses me, though I fear for his marriage with all the candle-burning he must do to be able to present all the gobbledygook figures in a way to have them look even remotely helpful. It is my contention that electronic data will prove as misleading as informative as horse racing is far from scientific due to horses being sentient and prone to whimsy. It is a game of fate, with a hundred and one throws of the dice in every race. Dear old Blakey will say the data proved correct in the Prince of Wales yesterday, though many ‘experts’ were of the opinion that Inspiral would fail for stamina without consulting the runes of electronic data. Also, the mare fell out of the stalls and because of the suicidal pace set by pacemakers, she was so far out of her ground by halfway she had no chance of winning, with Kieran Shoemark looking after her in the final two-furlongs.
What is always a pleasure is witnessing Sir Mark Prescott training a big winner, as he did on the opening day. Possibly the greatest man of present-day racing and by far its best promoter; a man, if he should ever retire and hand the keys of Heath House over to ‘poor William’, should be head-hunted by the B.H.A. to avail the sport’s regulatory body of his immense wisdom and knowledge.
I have no doubt that Kieran Shoemark will establish himself as a worthy successor to Frankie Dettori at Clarehaven once the Gosden horses get into full-swing. But his achievement thus far is that, despite the early problems he got himself into, he is well-liked by almost everyone. Addictions of all kinds distort the personality of people. It is why the B.H.A. policy of giving jockeys both the help they require and a second chance at their career cannot ever be called into question.
I took a liking to Highbury when he won a maiden at Leopardstown and though beaten by stable companion Illinous at Ascot yesterday, I believe he is the one to back for the St.Leger. He was ridden with tomorrow in mind, with Wayne Lorden riding him out hand and heels and not subjecting him to an overly-hard experience. A horse with a big future, I predict.
Horse racing has so many good people at its summit, with Oisin Murphy being one of the brightest lights. Yes, he is a little goofy when compared to Ryan Moore or Will Buick but a jockey who owns, and rides, show-jumpers and even owns an event horse, is someone who clearly has a love of the horse, not simply a love for his career. That he still visits a mental health councillor tells you that he recognises his flakiness and is resolute in his desire to become a better man that he is already. Sounds corny, but I hope he finds true love and will be able to dispense with the chats with his ‘not inexpensive’ councillor. 
Finally, and this is not a knocking exercise, why was Auguste Rodin a ‘decisive’ winner yesterday, when other horses winning by a similar distance are usually only described as ‘just getting on top’ or words of a corresponding meaning? He won tidily, in my opinion, and doubtless would have won if the race had gone on for another half-mile. But he was not decisive. He won and that is all that matters, I suppose. But Illinois won in a similar manner but his victory was not described as ‘decisive’. To win decisively, to my mind, is to win with ease, which Auguste Rodin never bothers with. Just getting the job done is the be all and end all as far as he is concerned, though he seems to have diminished from being a ‘collectors’ item’ to only ‘very special’ since last season. That said, in the unlikely event he should tackle City of Troy this season (the Arc) I would back him to beat his more illustrious stable-mate.

​As many people have said, to get horses into the main parade ring to allow spectators plenty of time to cast their eye over their fancies should be an easy win for the B.H.A.. It is only a matter of going back to the way things used to be. Mind you, it is a telling indictment on the sport’s regulator that no one at B.H.A. headquarters has paid any attention to the situation and that it has taken a long ‘campaign’ by people such as Richard Hoiles and Ken Pitterson to achieve some progress in the matter. All that is needed now is to put out an edict (or to politely inform trainers of their responsibility to the fee-paying racegoers) that horses must be in the main parade ring in time to do at least 3 circuits before the jockey is legged-up. And emphasise the word ‘parade’ as that is the purpose of the ‘parade ring.’
Of course, the B.H.A.’s initial response is to talk the matter over with relevant parties before coming to a decision. Delay, delay, delay, when for no expense the racegoers experience will be improved by acceding to the demand of those who want nothing more than to see horses walking around the parade ring before they canter down to the start. I should imagine the racecourse where it will be most beneficial to racegoers to have a good view of all the runners is Newmarket, where once the horses have left the main parade ring, the horses are forever going away from the stands as they canter down to the start.
Perhaps what the B.H.A. should do over the next few months is to conduct a survey/investigation into ways to improve overall the racegoer experience at racecourses, to establish a required minimum standard of racegoer care and how best to encourage local people to support their local racecourse. It is said that the B.H.A. have no real power in which to govern a multi-faceted sport, which is doubtless true, but they might use the regulatory powers they do have to conduct research, or even just to have visibility at racecourses to learn the gripes and moans of those who do go racing, both on a regular basis and of those new to the racecourse experience. It is all very well paying someone a large salary to meet and greet politicians and to represent the sport at swanky sporting gatherings, but what about meeting the people who actually attend race-meetings, especially those who go through the turnstiles at the bread and butter meetings?
Incidentally, the B.H.A. is advertising for a Chair – not something to sit on, things are not yet that bad but what might have once been termed as a Chairman, Chairwoman or Chairperson, the position now reduced to that of any old Windsor chair, not even a Chippendale or Sheraton. Slightly classier, don’t you think, than Chair would be the position of ‘Sheraton.’ – with a £100,000 salary, though anyone wishing to apply for the post must be willing to work for at least 2-days a week. How many actual hours that entails is not established or whether the position allows the successful candidate to work from home. If interested, applications close on July 15th.
Yes, the phrase ‘jobs for the boys’ does come to mind, even if a female is to be appointed. If you presently work in horse racing, no matter the amount of experience you have, I doubt you have much chance of being selected for this particular gravy train appointment.
Royal Ascot next week, so obviously the ground is going to dry-up so as to prevent Alan King from finally being able to give Trueshan and his connections a chance of Gold Cup glory.

​Though no female jockey is yet to break the gold-glass ceiling of winning a British classic, though, of course, Holly Doyle has achieved the fete by winning the French Oaks on Nashwa, the steady rise of the female rider continues unabated. 
The ease in which Saffie Osborne has risen from new girl kid on the block to top-ten professional is impressive. Seemingly, Hollie Doyle had to fight tooth and nail to establish herself in the top echelon of the sport, whereas for Saffie it has been one seamless ascent. Of course, it was helpful to Saffie that her father is a winning trainer and was able to get her started and that she had a successful background in junior eventing, yet it was not her father who propelled her forward trajectory but the likes of Ed Walker and Charlie Hills who recognised her talent. This season, and perhaps the signature that underlines her arrival as one of the flat’s top jockeys, is that Sir Michael Stoute now regularly uses her on the occasions when Richard Kingscote and Ryan Moore are unavailable to him.
I was fortunate to see one of, if not her first, rides, at Ascot, if my memory is not playing tricks, and made the claim that she would make her name as a rider. Not that I expressed the opinion that she would become a leading light of the sport. All she needs now is that one big winner, not necessarily a classic but a race of significance. She has a Chester Cup to her name and a clutch of Group 3’s and listed races and with Royal Ascot just around corner where better place could there be to find that significant winner to take her career on to the next level.
As Saffie’s career, or at least season, is heading upwards, at present she is seventh in the jockeys’ championship, Holly Doyle is suffering a rare lapse in either form or fortune. She is only rarely seen at the major meetings this season and on occasions she is travelling long distances for as little as three-rides at minor meetings. What is more, a couple of Archie Watson’s best two-year-olds have been sold to Wathnan Racing, meaning she will lose those rides, perhaps at Royal Ascot, to the other Doyle, James. It is not what is needed when the winners are not flowing as in past seasons. Last year, it must be remembered, she rode two-winners at Royal Ascot. The other factor not aiding her cause this season is that Nashwa is off-games until the Autumn due to ‘taking a long time to get over her trip to the Middle East in the spring’ and that it looks like Trueshan may be past his best. Though on that front, the ground may be soft enough next week for the old boy to finally get his chance in the Ascot Gold Cup where the 20-furlongs will be greatly in his favour. Crossed-fingers for Holly next week.
The other favourable aspect as far as female jockeys are concerned is the return up the ranks for Josephine Gordon who is riding winners again at the same rate as when she was champion apprentice. She was recognised as a major talent back then and there is no reason to suggest she is not just as talented now. Hopefully, rides will come her way at Royal Ascot.
Jo Mason continues to display her considerable talent, especially when winning at Chester’s May meeting. She is, to my mind, the equal of most of the top jockeys and one day soon one of the top trainers will also recognise her talent. Certainly, William Haggas took note of her when she won a race at the Shergar Cup for him. Unlike the majority of her female contemporaries, she did not come through the apprentice ranks, though she is a proper horsewoman, with a background in most of the different forms of equestrianism, especially point-to-pointing. She is a brilliant jockey, with an insatiable work ethic, whose chirpy personality is just what the sport requires in this post-Dettori era. Hopefully she will get on a couple of fancied lightweights in the handicaps next week.
Of course, any discussion about female riders cannot leave out the Queen of female jockeys, the grand old lady Hayley Turner. As I have said before, when the next history of flat racing is written, Hayley deserves a short chapter all to herself, so influential has been her career to the ascent of the female jockey. On or off a horse, she is a wonderful ambassador for the sport and remains a supremely effective rider when she receives the opportunities her talent deserves. Next to Frankie, she is the face of Royal Ascot and it will be a sad day for racing when she next announces her retirement.
The list of able and effective female jockeys is at present longer than it has ever been, with the likes of Georga Dobie, Faye Macmanoman, Laura Pearson and many others making their mark in the sport. Though I shall not live long enough to witness the satisfaction, it is not many more years before all the major races will feature at least one female jockey involved, and that can only benefit the sport.

​There is a call from certain influential people in the sport for trainers to be required to have their horses saddled and in the paddock nice and early to allow spectators plenty of time to inspect their well-being and demeanour. In a perfect world this would be a reasonable request, and even in a less than perfect world it is something trainers should aspire to. Lateness in any walk of life is close to unforgivable.
When Aidan O’Brien can saddle his Derby runners in the centre of the collecting ring – did you see how quiet City of Troy was during saddling, quite remarkable – I cannot understand the trend for trainers to saddle in the racecourse stables. Without accusing anyone of any rule-breaking, I would have thought stewards would not wish to encourage the habit of saddling out of the public eye, if only to prevent the temptation of nefarious practices. If a horse is not ‘wanted’ that day, the easiest stopping method is just to give the horse a bucket of water. I think the act of saddling-up in public view, or in view of stewards, might be considered best practice. 
Of course, there must be exceptions to the rule. Some horses can be dangerous to saddle when wound-up by the noise and activity of the racecourse and there is a strong case for this type of horse to be kept in a quiet area to be saddled if only for reasons of health and safety. Though even in this situation, I believe a steward should be present.
What any horse does not need in the build-up to race-time is to be hurried and hassled and to that effect perhaps there should be a longer period between races to allow trainers a chance to get a blow between runners, especially if they have had to collect a prize after the previous race. The racegoer is important but so is the trainer, groom and horse. That said, there should be an emphasis placed upon a trainer to have his or her horse in the pre-parade ring by the time the runners in the previous race are going down to the start, with it expected of any trainer without a runner in that race, having his horse saddled and ready to run by the time the judge is calling the winner of the previous race. I know Francesa Cumani would appreciate all the horses being in parade-ring at the same time during her paddock walk for the benefit of I.T.V. viewers.
That said, as with any activity involving animals, it is easier said than done and there must always be wriggle-room when it comes to applying new guide-lines.
An aspect of race-day where thought should be applied is at the starting stalls. Before the advent of starting stalls, races were regularly late-off, sometimes by up to 20-minutes, due to the near impossible exercise of lining-up a large number of excitable horses in correct order behind a barrier. Starting stalls have greatly reduced late starts, though even the shorter delays achieved nowadays can be associated with incidents that risk the health of jockeys and horses, when recalcitrant horses hold up the start by arguing their case for a day off games. 
There needs to be a set number of minutes allowed for stalls handlers to have horses loaded, with any horse refusing to enter their stall at the first time of asking not asked again until the majority are loaded. Too much time is wasted getting misbehaving horses in the stalls, while well-behaved horses must wait in an enclosed space while ‘wired’ to race. Any horse that is not loaded within the time-period allowed for loading should be considered non-runners. At the moment, some well-behaved, perfectly schooled horses, are having their chances diminished by the unruly behaviour of horses, who when installed will have to stand still for far shorter periods.

​Ascot’s racing director, Nick Smith, is whining about the lack of foreign runners, especially from Hong Kong and Japan, at Royal Ascot this year, citing the poorer levels of prize-money for the middle-distance races when compared to countries overseas as the main reason. I would contend British and Irish racing have more pressing problems than prize money at the higher echelons of the sport.
While it adds interest to races like the Prince of Wales Stakes and the Queen Anne to have horses from the former colonies and Japan competing, extra money given to already well-endowed races would be better used to plump up prize money for the lesser races either at Royal Ascot or at its non-Royal meetings.
Also, given the financial pressures on even the trainers at the top of their profession, at this moment in time big prize-money needs to be staying in this country. Indeed, I would suggest Nick Smith would be better advised to ensure all races run at Ascot have prize money worth winning, rather than hoping to seduce overseas connections into sending their top horses to mop-up British Group 1’s, leaving the home trainers with crumbs of comfort. If races with £750,000 prize pots do not attract horses from around the word, especially given the prestige of winning at the Royal meeting, adding a quarter or half-a-million isn’t going to change trainers and owners minds as the pool of top-class horses around the world remains quite small.
As far as I am concerned, Royal Ascot is about competitive racing and even when stretched to five-days, that is exactly what is served-up year on year.

Nobody has made mention of this but then nobody who writes about racing shares my fascination with events that are hard to explain without veering into paranormal reasoning. The world works in mysterious ways, with coincidental events just that, coincidence. There was the woman who came across a young boy on the ground and gasping for breath. Using her medical skills learned on a first responder course, she is attributed with saving his life. Fast forward eight-years and that same woman while dining out at a restaurant got food stuck in her throat and a waiter using the Heimlich procedure saved her from choking to death. That waiter was the boy she saved using the same procedure. Coincidence? The stars aligning?
Last Friday at Epsom, Dermot Weld won the Oaks, two-days later a race was run in memorial to Pat Smullen, for so long Weld’s stable jockey. On the Saturday at Tramore, Pat’s daughter Hannah won her first race on a horse owned by her mother. I thought it a good news story. A story only the gods could have designed.

I have written to Tom Sammes, general manager at Epsom, on the topic of what to do about the lack of interest in the racecourse by locals and how to get the Derby back to where it once was in peoples’ perception. I outlined my thoughts in a previous blog and will not belabour the subject. I dare say my ideas will prove impractical, if only financially, though I hope it stimulates Tom Sammes brain into improving upon my suggestions. What I do hope to receive is a reply, as Jon Pullen at Cheltenham did, even if he politely poured tepid waters on the very best of my thoughts. Suleka Varma, on the other hand, at Aintree did not reply and no, as you might think given my criticism of her, I was not at all rude to her as I was trying to be helpful and supportive. Politeness costs nothing, especially if the reply comes by e-mail, as my mother used to say. Not that there was such a concept as e-mail back in the 1960’s. Not that she sent an e-mail during her 86-years of life.
What I did say to Tom Sammes was not to think of the Derby meeting as equivalent to Aintree or Cheltenham but to consider the attributes of the Punchestown and Galway festivals to make the Derby meeting unique. I have suggested a return to 3-days, with apprentice and amateur Derbies added to the mix, as well as the most valuable race in the world restricted to professional female riders. I wait with baited breath for his reply to either fall on the doormat or through my e-box.