News

Great first win for Back on the Trail

This evening at Wolverhampton Back on the Trail became Paul and Paula Smith's first home bred winner under jockey Luke Morris.  The Singspiel gelding out of Paul and Paula's Boleyna was backward last year and was not rushed.  He has done nothing but improve with racing and this narrow success was well deserved.  Well done to Paul and Paula - this was the first horse that they have bred themselves and he has done them proud.

Kickingthelilly scores last gasp success

kickingthelillyKickingthelilly once again showed her liking for the polytrack at Lingfield winning in the final strides under jockey Chris Catlin for owners Tim Hailstone, Steve Piper, Des Scott, Tony Hirschfeld and Rae Guest. That was her sixth career win and her third at Lingfield after a disappointing effort on the heavier surface at Southwell. For most of the race she was not ideally positioned after missing the kick from the stalls, but Chris was not fazed and took a gap when it appeared with a furlong to go to score by a neck. A good ride and a game horse. Good prize money as well and a nice race to win. Well done all, including Naz who has been riding her.

Secret of Success wins first time out

Mr Metzger's home bred Johannesburg filly Secret of Success got the yard off the mark for 2013 with a good win at Lingfield under Chris Catlin.  She is a well bred filly who could be very fast and she showed she was sharp enough to lead from start to finish despite a sustained duel with the well backed favourite.  Rae is hoping that she will come out of the race well and will plot her campaign from there.  Well done Fran Ferris who has been riding her at home.

Frustrating week so far

Let's hope that these things do not come in threes.  Twice this week Rae has set off to go racing, twice this week he has had to turn around and come back without getting to the racecourse.  First the A1 was closed precluding a trip to sunny Southwell, then the M25 en route to Lingfield.  Kickingthelilly beat the traffic on the way there but did not seem to enjoy the surface and then got stuck on the way back but Andrew had to turn Rosie Future around on the M25 and come home.  Very annoying.

Let's hope things go a bit more smoothly at Lingfield tomorrow when Secrets of Success makes her debut and we see if Hester Street can run a bit better than on her first two racecourse visits.

Happy New Year

and of course happy birthday to all the horses who turned a year older on 1 January.  We will get some better photographs for the website later in the year when the horses look a bit less hairy in their winter coats.

It's worth lingering for a moment on the success of 2012.  Not just Olympic and Jubilee year, it has also been breakthrough year for Rae, with 36 winners including one Listed winner in Ireland and a strike rate of 20%.  Add to that 25 seconds, 20 thirds and 17 fourth places in 2012 and you see what great form the horses have been in from start to finish. Not many trainers averaging 30 - 40 horses in training a year can boast a year like that and four Group 1 winners in a 24 year long career.  It really is something to be proud of and reflect on for a minute.

So Rae's thanks go to the strong team behind him - head lad Steve Lodge, consultant head lad John Wilsoncroft, assistant head lad Steve Davis, assistant trainer and office manager Nick McKee and travelling head lad Andrew Bubb.  Well done to them and everyone else at Chestnut Tree Stables.  A hard act to follow but let's see if it can be done in 2013.