So happy for Mick
@MickApplebyUK
. 11 years ago we bought our first horse with him, Miako, for 6000gns & he was one of the most expensive horses in the yard. Amazing to make it at the top level from the very bottom. Great bloke and the very best of trainers. Well done, Mick. π€
It's so easy to make Nicky Henderson a scapegoat for a huge industry problem in UK NH racing. Agree or not with his decision re Constitution Hill the whole NH programme isn't fit for purpose in the modern day. Fewer fixtures & fewer conditions races will give us so much more.
Detest everything about trolling anyway, but this made my blood boil.
@McsweeneyOisin
is 19 & just starting his career & has to deal with this ****. He rode our horse, Tukhoom, exactly to instructions & couldn't have made a better impression. Thanks for the ride Oisin. πππ»
Note to punters to not get lulled into crap ante post markets in the Cheltenham preview mayhem. Look at SP's of M Nationale, Impaire Et P, The Real Whacker, Impervious. All eg's w/out mentioning those that didn't win & went off vastly bigger prices than taken by many a week ago
Just in recent years
@PFNicholls
has won G1 races with, Irving, Ptit Zig, San Benedeto, Black Corton, Diego Du Charmil, Quel Destin as well as multiple premier G1 wins with Dodging Bullets, Clan & Politologue. Now Frodon. Genius
Fantastic to see that from A Plus Tard
@haydockraces
this afternoon. Flawless 10/10 & genuinely think we'll talk of him in the same breath as Kauto Star & Sprinter Sacre in years to come. Haydock crowd brilliant too. Nice reminder there's more to NH racing than Cheltenham! ππ
Hi
@BHAHorseracing
, it's 3 weeks until March & we don't yet know the full race programme for next month. Can we expect this soon so owners & trainers can make plans?
Enjoyable day on
@RacingTV
alongside
@cdixon82
& as promised we've donated the Β£330 returns from our Β£20 charity-bet challenge straight to the
@mndassoc
that
@BurrowSeven
runs in aid of. No doubt Burrow Seven will be winning on the track after a promising run in the 3.15 πππ7οΈβ£
Brother or not that's superb listening to
@cdixon82
going through the race, the bet & the emotion of Big Country winning again in our colours
@ChelmsfordCRC
on
@RacingTV
. Fantastic work Chris. Oh &
@MickApplebyUK
is a genius at work. πππ»ππ»
Whatever you *think* the result should've/shouldn't have been, this isn't good enough. Safety is paramount, let alone clarity of a result. Race times need adjusting to not push the sunset time so close.
Sad to see Big Country leave our ownership yesterday after 3 years. He's been brilliant fun, with 6 wins & some great memories. Huge thanks to all
@MickApplebyUK
for their hard work & good luck to
@osbornejamie
& the Melbourne 10 in Dubai.
Penzance is really on the up and makes it two course and distance wins here inside eight days in the Β£15,000 Race Predictor By Racing And Sports Handicap.
Congratulations to
@Ali_rawlinson
, the
@Horsewatchers1
and
@MickApplebyUK
Like a lot of others no racing for 6 weeks means no pay or earning potential, but it also means 6 weeks quality time with my two boys. See you on 1st May, folks. π΄
Myself &
@cdixon82
got hooked on racing betting pieces of Wrigleys gum in the 90s. Looking forward to renewing rivalry in a charity-bet challenge together
@CatterickRaces
on
@RacingTV
tomorrow. We'll donate returns to
@BurrowSeven
charity who have a runner in the last π₯π
Someone
@ITV
needs a career change if 'The Masked Singer' is the best they can come up with for prime time Sunday. 30 seconds of a singing octopus was enough for me to get back to Southwell replays.
This is a massive step backwards & will only put off prospective new owners/syndicates. Makes such a difference to the sustainability of ownership. Unacceptable & unaffordable π‘
Only one race
@NewcastleRaces
tomorrow evening worth more than Β£3k to the winner - this is so wrong. Costs a fortune to get there for most and running for π₯.
Great memories of seeing Thundering Blue win the Stockholm Cup under
@Franmberry
2 years ago to the day on my only visit to Bro Park. Condolences to
@DavidMenuisier
& connections. He was a π.
Possibly
@MickApplebyUK
finest work yet for The Horse Watchers given how hard he's been to get 100% sound. Tremendous effort by all the staff & very much appreciated.
I couldn't make it but well done to
@MickApplebyUK
@cdixon82
and all concerned as Raasel's fine season sees us pick up the Flat Owner's special achievement at the Nothern Racing Awards πππ
Stone Mason runs for us in the 5:45 at Chelmsford on Saturday. With 4 owners guest badges going unused if anyone is keen for a night out on track then let us know & we'll arrange it
@cdixon82
Top bloke, great friend, brilliant trainer. The
@itvracing
Opening Show feature with
@MickApplebyUK
well worth tuning in for this morning. Mick's story is hard to believe, especially in the context of our industry.
Looking forward to tomorrowβs Opening Show from
@Sandownpark
featuring a revealing chat with trainer Mick Appleby about his early life and overcoming adversity to get to where he is today. Delighted heβs in a good place now and doing so well. Donβt miss it.
@itvracing
9.30 ITV4
Presenters
@martdixon
and
@Niallhannity
sailed through the action at
@haydockraces
this afternoon but then came the final furlong - a quick wrap-up of the action. Well, it was meant to be quick! π π
Wednesday is work morning
@MickApplebyUK
. Here's one of our new horses, Malika I Jahan (rail), been put through her paces. She's a daughter of Australia that we bought at Ascot in November. ππ
Harchibald's full brother, no less. What's The Scoop: still running, still a maiden, second at Newcastle on Saturday (matched at a low of 1.25 in play). It's all in the blood.
First Gold Cup day for
@RacingTV
& a pleasure to be part of it with
@LydiaHislop
@nickluck
@Niallhannity
et al. Fantastic week of racing. Epatante & seeing Min get his Cheltenham win a couple of personal highlights.
Great to have last year's all weather star ZEALOT back tonight. 7.15 Wolverhampton. He had a setback last spring & it's taken time but hopefully he can get back to where he was. Likely to improve for tonight but hopefully can run a nice race.
@MickApplebyUK
@Horsewatchers1
This has been v well thought out imo. The bottom would have dropped out the sport but for such intervention. Our low-grade horses race for too little in the 1st place though, & to keep owners at the lower end I think some should be skimmed off the top to go to grassroots anyway
Wow!
@MickApplebyUK
strikes again. Patience in the first 12 months of owning Saaheq is paying off now. Lovely prize to win under an excellent ride from
@HollieDoyle1
to ping him out & get him tanking. Loads more to look forward to through the summer now. Thanks to all πππ
If you have a spare 10 minutes, I chatted to
@olibellracing
about our horses in training for 2020 with
@MickApplebyUK
&
@omeararacing
. Hopefully some winners & improvers amongst them. ππ
π Meet the team: Martin Dixon
@olibellracing
's series continues as
@martdixon
takes him through some of the horses who'll be running under The Horse Watchers and Rod In Pickle banners this year.
They include:
π« Garsman
π« Kasbaan
Check it out π
The Horse Watchers will be busy putting together an exciting new team of horses for the 2021 season at this year's HIT sales. We'll be offering up to six 10% shares in all new purchases to be trained by
@MickApplebyUK
&
@omeararacing
. DM's are open for more details.
Just catching up with an excellent
@LuckOnSunday
. We've all heard/read a lot of negativity in the last 7 weeks but i found
@RogerCharlton
's realism & subtle positivity to a difficult situation the perfect tonic. ππ»
A few thoughts after a thoroughly enjoyable day alongside
@nickluck
@Sandownpark
.
Ride of the day:
@charliedeutsch2
on Ibelo ππ»
Performance of the day: Metier, by a distance, for
@HarryFryRacing1
π₯
Eye-catcher: Early Du Lemo - sustained strong pace for long way. Ahead of mark
Seeing the videos of some of our horses working
@MickApplebyUK
has really whet the appetite for racing's comeback. More than ready to get stuck back in now. Here's Garsman (rail) this morning, who'll be aiming to make it 3-3 for us as soon as we're racing. ππ ππ»
A good piece of work by our progressive young filly, Merryweather (rail), this morning. She's been kept fresh by
@MickApplebyUK
& is ready to go as soon as racing returns.
Good luck with your next chapter Ed. Worrying sign of the times when a trainer of Ed's calibre makes this decision off the back of one of his biggest wins. Current levels could be accepted short term but it's paramount that p money is addressed or many more O&T will follow imo.
Fantastic effort from the genius
@MickApplebyUK
to get Liberation Point winning at the first time of asking for us
@RiponRaces
after over 10 months off the track. 9 winners & counting for 2021 & another smart prospect π
Absolutely love this horse. He has a bit of attitude but 7 wins already in 2022 & a 21lb rise up the ratings even before today's win. Superb again from
@MickApplebyUK
& the team. Owners dream π¨π₯π
Haven't enjoyed a meeting as much as the last 2 days
@NewburyRacing
for
@RacingTV
for a good while. A few thoughts: Epatante looked special faced with a speed test, Deyrann De Carjac should have a big handicap in him & One For The Team perhaps the main horse to follow.
Liking these staggered starts to meetings rather than immediately having 2:00, 2:10, 2:20 & so on. Anyone know if that's here to stay? I still don't understand why we wait until around 2pm in the summer to kick off the racing
Fantastic to see Saaheq do it again under
@Luke_Morris88
, quick turnaround was a worry but brilliantly prepared yet again by
@MickApplebyUK
. A first winner for us
@Sandownpark
. Now on to
@NottsRacecourse
for the valuable grassroots final. πΎππ»πππ
..3 hours waiting for
@TheRAC_UK
to recover me & still waiting π.... so I'm going to share some notes/thoughts on the likely SUPREME NOVICE runners... hopefully someone disagrees/agrees/engages.... mute me if I fill your timeline... if nothing else it'll kill my boredom
Lincoln day & we'v a runner in the big race.Who'd a thought it! Maybe 5 lb pen will do for Big C, maybe the ground will, maybe the draw, but he's 100% fit, in top form & will give his all. Plus, it's nice to have already have hit a big pot for the yr. Good luck to all other O&T's
Doubt i saw a Guineas winner in two days at HQ but suspect Canberra Legend could be a live one in the Derby. Faultless temperament & trip> ++. Canberra Coast, Pinafore, Ferrous, Times Eye & Nogo's Dream all should do well in handicaps. Onto
@NewburyRacing
for
@RacingTV
ππ
Absolutely no chance the guy on the right can do 8-0 & ride 150+ winners a year.... Podcast well worth a listen though with
@Luke_Morris88
&
@cdixon82
.
A memorable day that Kasbaan gave us last year. He was moved on today, bought for 65k by Voute Sales
@Tattersalls1766
. Thanks as ever to
@MickApplebyUK
& good luck to new connections. He'll give them plenty of fun!
It's less than a week until
@Tattersalls1766
autumn HIT catalogue is published. We'll be busy at the sales again & this year will be offering opportunities to join The Horse Watchers in new syndicates for some purchases. Follow
@Horsewatchers1
if interested. RTs appreciated
Hopefully the first of many Horse Watchers winners trained by
@omeararacing
. A very likeable effort from Rhoscolyn under a top ride from Danny. He should give us plenty of fun this summer ππ
Great to see Rhoscolyn get his head in front for the first time in our colours
@Beverley_Races
today under a class ride from Danny Tudhope. Thanks to trainer
@omeararacing
& sponsors
@Timeform
YES!!! Speed Merchant kicks off slipstream racing's
@awchamps
season with a win. Slick performance from the front & there should be more to come. 3 horses, 1 all-in price. Retweet if you'd be interested in getting involved in a future Slipstream Racing syndicate π πΎπΎ
Delighted with this filly. Off the mark within 3 weeks if buying her for just 8,000gns
@Tattersalls1766
. Thanks to Sean & all the team at Mick'sπ΄πΎπ₯
Pleasure to have Ryan Moore ride Big Country
@Sandownpark
this afternoon. No less than expected- but first class pre race, during race & post race as far as owners experience & feedback goes. Good run in 3rd by the big fella.
Top work Mick et al & a perfect ride from the underrated & improving
@Ali_rawlinson
who has been paramount in getting Kasbaan to thrive. Back for the big pot on Saturday, all being well! ππΎπ΄
That is richly deserved
@LydiaHislop
. There's nobody more passionate about our sport & always brings out the best in an interviewee/pundit. Well done Lydia ππ»
Wednesday work morning again
@MickApplebyUK
. Today's clip is the 3yo Bulldozer (rail) who's still green & is shaken up to educate him. Mick's gallop is about 7f, Bulldozer probably wants further & may benefit from headgear on the track.
We've just sold this fella, Hakam,
@GoffsUK
for 30k. Bought August 2016, 5 wins for us, including a memorable G3 in Norway. Thank you Hakam, and thank you all
@MickApplebyUK
. Good luck to new connections.
Fantastic start to the afternoon. Thank you
@omeararacing
,
@MickApplebyUK
& two fantastic rides by
@D_Muscutttt
to retain a 100% strike rate in our colours ππππ»ππ»