APRIL 2010 HORSES

EL BANDINDOS     (P. Monteith)

9 year old bay gelding     (Darazari – Supreme Weasel)     5/42/711//15P52

In a limited career so far, El Bandindos has conveniently thrown up a strong pattern. Easy tracks have produced form of 2111, other venues 5475P52. Whilst the statistical sample is not huge, there is a definite case for saying that due to large numbers of runners, the races on easy courses were tougher, more competitive heats which he did not win by simply outclassing hordes of lumbering buffoons - which enhances the bias. By contrast, the last two runs have been five runner races, and the second at Ayr was a comfortable reverse, over an inadequate trip to boot. The area of interest / confusion / irrelevance (delete as you see fit) is the chasing career of El Bandindos this season. He won a handicap at the first attempt, but has since stuck to the wrong track and eventually reverted to novice chases as well. This means that the initial regressive look to the form does not necessarily indicate a loss of aptitude – but he could probably still cut the mustard in staying hurdles if required.

Races on an easy track, over 3 miles or more, on good or good to firm

MAURISCA     (C. E. Longsdon)

5 year old bay gelding     (Mauresca Sorrento – Maurise)     8-6543452

With this horse it is purely a case of jumbling the forgiveness with the amazement. The eye catching run was to be 18 lengths third of twelve in a novice hurdle to Menorah. The forgiveness is required when considering that this failed to translate into winning any of his subsequent runs. It should be borne in mind that his yard was suffering a spell in the doldrums since that race – not winnerless, but only six gained from 114 runners fielded. For that reason, it seems possible that we are yet to see the best of Maurisca, and his most recent appearance, when runner-up in a handicap chase was good experience for when things are firing better. Some might say that when the first tsunami from the Santorini eruption hit Crete, the Minoans said surviving them was good experience for the next ones, and that view went horribly pear-shaped, but cataclysmic destruction of pre-Roman civilisations and jump racing in the twenty-first century have some similarities, just not that many. Did ancient spin doctors overhype Theseus vs the Minotaur, only for some now long forgotten man to have been number one on the day (we shall refer to him as "Impo").

Handicap chases up to 2m 2f on good to soft, good or good to firm

MAX MILANO     (A. E. Jessop)

5 year old bay gelding     (Milan – Stellissima)     62

Max Milano’s racing career began on an ambitious note, in a novice hurdle at Ascot, where he was a 200/1 shot in a seven horse race. To the amazement of everyone (except, presumably, those close to him) at the third last he was still poodling along at the back of the pack in almost contention. A mistake at that flight got him off the bridle and losing ground, but he responded well for an inexperienced horse and limited the retreat after that, being beaten merely fifteen lengths. The winner of that race was Finian’s Rainbow, fifth in the Neptune Investment Management Novice Hurdle, and shortly after that race ended at Cheltenham, Max Milano was suddenly a popular betting ring contender at Huntingdon. That inexperience came to haunt him as he was pipped by a length or so, not quite managing to concentrate on running in a straight line after the last hurdle, a talent which is often misestimated – under by backers of the winner, over by backers of the miscreant. In this case, our hero probably lost less than he was beaten by, but when a note of warning is sounded (in this case B flat for people who were on him for the win only), it is worth taking some heed. A small amount of progress should be enough for him to get off the mark.

Max Milano is slightly confused to encounter a much smaller venue for his second run, but a lot more fuss and excitement.

RED NOT BLUE     (Simon Earle)

7 year old bay gelding     (Blueprint – Silent Valley)     164

Red Not Blue opened his account at the first attempt, landing a run of the mill bumper at Uttoxeter. Nothing particularly stood out about the race, but let us pick a horse entirely at random whose winning debut might have looked comparable – Cue Card. It was Red Not Blue's follow up that was interesting as an example of heroic failure. At Cheltenham for the Paddy Power meeting, he was a twenty four length sixth, behind decent and well regarded horses such as Ghizao and Lidar, plus one or two less illustrious but capable ones. First impressions were that it was a reasonable effort, but Red Not Blue was deemed by connections to be under the weather, and when he reappeared in March at Hereford, the yard had not had a runner in the meantime. It was not a great start over hurdles, with naïve jumps at the first two flights, and getting badly hampered later in the race when showing signs of the long absence catching up with him. Expect truer colours to be shown in due course – there is no reason to suspect it to be yellow, or black enough to turn punters into a swarm of moping Goths (unless they want to).

Hurdles up to 2m 5f

STRIKE THREE     (A. Fleming)

5 year old bay mare     (Presenting – Harvest Storm)     7F0

She last was seen in the same race as Max Milano, but her road to that location was a somewhat rockier one. Strike Three showed a touch of promise, the merest hint of one, in her bumper, ending up well seen off whilst only being a handful of lengths behind the third. A similar sort of hurdles debut followed, over two and three-quarter miles, when Strike Three was contending for a place behind a couple of decent mares in Queen Poline and Ryde Back when she fell. For the follow up, she dropped back to the minimum trip and had a midfield confidence booster behind Shilpa, although meeting some traffic problems on the final bend scuppered her chances, and with a clear run a much more obviously encouraging outcome would have been possible, even if not desired. She seems set fair for handicaps after one more try, and going back up in trip on better going may be the answer.

Handicap hurdles up from 2m 3f to 2m 6f, rated up to 105

Strike Three spots a dragonfly on the reservoir at Huntingdon racecourse, and forgets that she is there for some sort of racing

TARABALOO     (G. A. Swinbank)

7 year old bay mare     (Kayf Tara – Bellabaloo)     4313P/4322213-FP313

All credit to Tarabaloo, as she has never been outside the first four when completing a race, although the bees are buzzin’ in the trees that a certain four runner novice chase at Leicester is unworthy of being considered important in this respect. Despite such a record of consistency, there is a pattern of better results for Tarabaloo, and it revolves around the ground. When it is good or good to firm, she has won three from eleven, but at a tidy level stakes profit. As soon as the sun comes out, she forgets about her worries and her strife and is pretty much contending to win. The successes so far have come between 2m 4f and 2m 6f, but her latest race, a first try over further, was a decent enough effort and probably indicates that wherever she wanders, wherever she roams, she couldn’t be fonder of a three mile home – guaranteed last Bare Necessities reference. From a perfectly cynical point of view, the fact that she has won over fences and hurdles will hopefully prompt connections to respond to a dramatic loss of form by retiring her and saving us money!