13 April 2010 Scene & Heard: Pytchley - Guilsborough
by Carolyn Tanner
COOLEFIND - 5 wins at Guilsborough
photo: Steve Hunt
Coolefind continued his love affair with Guilsborough, scoring his fifth course victory by taking the Men's Open in the hands of Dickie Barrett.
It was a first runner of the season for trainer Bill Warner, whose charges have been plagued by "rashes and lumps," said owner Judy Wilson, for whom the triumph provided some cheer, her French Opera having been found to be lame on the morning of his intended run in the Novice Chase at Aintree the previous day.
Coolefind has twice finished third in the Horse & Hound Cup but has yet to qualify for this year's renewal. He requires either one placing in a Hunter Chase or two further Open successes in order to earn his place in the line-up.
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"He's trying to be an Appaloosa." Judy remarks on the white flecks which have appeared in various places on Coolefind's coat.
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Dickie had earlier won the Hunt race on Richard Bowers's home-bred Pennytino, trained by joint-clerk of the course Gerald Bailey who, with Doug Harkin, had again produced the track in excellent condition. "She was a sweet mare when we got her but she can be a little bit tricky - she's never been the same since Rowan Cope took her hunting one day and she decked him twice," grinned Dickie, who had to work hard to get Pennytino home in a close finish.
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True Legend, beaten only a length into third, was given a fine positive ride from former leading pony racer George Saunders, who had made his Pointing debut the previous day at Horseheath and looks a promising recruit to the senior ranks.
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"Women do have advantages when you can get an allowance." Dickie is grateful for Pennytino's 7lbs pull in the weights.
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Dickie's double was matched by Tom Ellis, who triumphed on two five-year-olds, taking the Confined on Pocket Park and the Maiden Division One on Lady Mandana.
"That's the best he's jumped today," claimed owner-trainer Michael Kehoe of Pocket Park, who was purchased as a yearling and who has the Marie Curie novice championship at Garthorpe as a possible target. Michael was probably the only person at the meeting who managed to get wet on what was a dry and sunny afternoon, his wife Fiona having failed to completely avoid him when throwing a bucket of water over Pocket Park in the unsaddling enclosure.
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"You wouldn't get past either of them in an alleyway." Tom compares his mount's frame with that of the owner.
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Lady Mandana, who had got bogged down in the Garnons mud on her only previous outing, was continuing the good run of form for trainer Fred Hutsby, and is surprisingly the first mare raced by his father Ken. "We've had them in the yard for other owners but not for ourselves," Ken explained. "We first saw her in Ireland as a three-year-old but she was too much money, so we went back 12 months later and got her a lot cheaper."
The Hutsbys may give Lady Mandana one more run before turning her away, although Fred would be prepared to sell for the right offer. "The trouble is that dad gets too attached to them so he wants to keep everything," he laughed.
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Division Two of the Maiden went to Pete Mann on another mare, the Roger Harvey-trained Abouttimeto, who made virtually all the running, despite losing her off-fore shoe at some stage during the race. "The plan was to be handy, but she was keen to get on with it and I didn't want to disappoint her," said Pete, for whom it was a spare ride and who admitted to being impressed by the feeling the chestnut had given him on the way to post.
Abouttimeto was bred by Georgie Guest, who jointly owns her with Dorinda Dixon, out of the winning hurdler Miss Lawn, and she is a half-sister to both Jubilee George and Miss Zarnni.
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The two hour plus journey from Berkshire proved well worthwhile for Karen Hobbs, who saddled Commander Kev to win the Restricted in impressive fashion under James Banks. Trainer and jockey have teamed up on four occasions this season and have yet to taste defeat.
It was a first visit to Guilsborough for Karen, although her husband Peter is no stranger to the track, having previously been course inspector there. Commander Kev is owned by a syndicate, most of whom frequent the Queen's Arms in East Garston, with the exceptions being Peter's brother and sister-in-law Philip and Sarah.
"He's qualified for the Grant's Cherry Brandy final at Folkestone, but he's had leg problems so it will depend on the ground," said Karen, who described her charge as "always as bright as a button - he's never down."
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Kelly Smith has been in cracking form this season, and she recorded her seventh success of the campaign on Inaro, trained by Mike Burman for Philip Perkins, in the Ladies' Open. "We knew he was well because he bit Julie [Mike's wife] this morning," smiled Philip. Mike was quick to hand the credit for the success of his stable inmates to groom Jade Duncan. "She does all the work with them and is absolutely fantastic," he declared.
Inaro himself is fortunate to be alive, having been on a drip for three days at Christmas due to suffering from a severe bout of colic.
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Trainer Nibby Bloom was delighted to discover that the changing room valet was none other than John Buckingham. One of Nibby's runners at the meeting was his own Johnny Buck, named after the former Grand National winning jockey. "I rang him up," grinned Nibby, "and said ‘I've got this horse who's out of a Buckley mare [Buck's Gift] and he's a bit of a b.....d, so the only person I could think of was you!'" Johnny Buck was pulled up when well in arrears.
