Over the stable door: It’s horses for courses so please go easy with the water on race day

I fancy Gordon Elliott’s horse, Backstage. He was unseated in the race last year by a loose horse when well in contention and will appreciate the better ground. Having slightly erratic form, Gordon has chosen to campaign him in Irish point-to-points to build his confidence. An interesting contender, but at a ridiculously short price of 12-1.

Sir Alex Ferguson‘s runner, What A Friend, is bred to stay the trip and is improving, winning 50 per cent of his chase starts to date.

Ground conditions vary so quickly at this time of year. Decisions must be made by racecourse clerks on when and how much water is needed to make the ground safe when no rain is forecast. Courses are watered to remove jar in the ground making it safe; it should not be added to alter the going. Too much watering can cause patches of inconsistent ground, causing injury to tendons and ligaments. It’s an incredibly difficult task to perfect.

There is increasing frustration felt by owners and trainers when taking fast-ground horses to meetings only to find over-watering has led to anything but the predicted going. Some courses are renowned for it.

Tor Sturgess, a friend who trains in Lambourn, travelled three hours to Hereford recently for the good-to-firm ground reported when she made her declaration. After walking the course and speaking to the jockeys, she rather angrily scratched her horse from the race, knowing it would not cope with the soft going over-watering had led to. The owners were left with a £300 transport bill and a long journey home.

Yorkshire’s amateur Gold Cup, ‘the Grimthorpe’, was held at the Middleton last Sunday and won by an experienced lady jockey, Tina Jackson. She rode Rimsky, a horse owned by her partner, Howard Thompson, who has long held ambitions to win Yorkshire’s £500 feature race.

Rimsky, a top hurdler in his time, was bought by Howard at Doncaster sales last year having lost his way under rules. Tina has successfully rekindled the 10-year-old’s love for the game, aided by a pair of blinkers.

With my riding ban taking effect this weekend, I will be forced to miss a number of rides, including at Bangor today and the Bedale point tomorrow, one of my favourites.

The on-course bar there boasts an impressive turnout of eligible local bachelors on the prowl for suitable partners, rather like the pheasant cocks courting for female attention in my fields at the moment. Many a happy match has been made in the marquee at the Hornby Castle track, although I have never had time to visit it, so maybe tomorrow will be my chance.

Dad’s horse, ‘Gunner‘, one of our intended runners, has finally started acting like a racehorse. Since winning, he has a sudden interest in overtaking everything in sight. Let’s hope it’s a good sign. Mark Walford will be aboard and is riding plenty of winners at present.

Mark probably won’t be accepting a lift from his pal, Miles Seston, tomorrow, after his experience a few weeks ago. Miles had a light weight to carry on a young horse one day when driving Mark to the races.

The temperature in his car was hotter than a Turkish sauna – so desperate was Miles to shed his last few overweight pounds.

Mark, uncomfortably overheating in the passenger seat and barred from opening a window in case hot air escaped, was finally forced to strip down to his underpants. When the two eventually arrived at the races Mark had to carefully peel himself off the leather seat.

Onlookers were forced to pull on their shades as his transparent body emerged from the steaming car.

It is common knowledge Mark is to thank for the recent upsurge in men’s underwear sales on Malton market day.

To anyone attending the meeting, please note the A1 is closed between Dishforth and Catterick on Sunday morning.