Tag: Blackbeard

‘It’s Been An Incredible Year’ – Coolmore Laud No Nay Never

We've all seen that video; it was in the month of March when Aidan O'Brien opened the gates at Ballydoyle to the Irish press and, tasked with naming his best 2-year-old by Brendan O'Rourke, the champion trainer did not hold back in his praise for Little Big Bear (Ire).

After nominating Little Big Bear as being top of the class, O'Brien also advised O'Rourke, a renowned Irish racing commentator, to double his stake from a fiver to a tenner on the colt winning his maiden on debut at the Curragh the following weekend.

Although Little Big Bear found one too good on that occasion, all has since been forgiven in the O'Rourke household, with the colt winning each of his next four starts, including a seven-length tonking of his G1 Phoenix S. rivals at the Curragh last month.

Little Big Bear may well be the poster boy for the Ballydoyle-trained juveniles this season, but Blackbeard (Ire), Aesop's Fables (Ire) and Meditate (Ire) have all confirmed themselves as top-notch prospects for one of the most powerful stables in the world.

And what do they all have in common apart from the fact that they are all trained by the master of Ballydoyle? That they are also by the sire of the moment, No Nay Never.

 

Coolmore's Mark Byrne said, “I had to laugh, that video resurfaced on Twitter again. 'What's his name, Chris [Armstrong, O'Brien's racing secretary at Ballydoyle]?' 'Little Big Bear, Aidan.'

“I don't think anyone could have imagined what would have happened after that. It's been an incredible year for No Nay Never. He has the ante-post favourite for the 1000 and 2000 Guineas already.”

An incredible year, indeed. Little Big Bear is likely to miss the G1 National S. at the Curragh on Irish Champions Weekend, but the hope is that he will run again this season, while fellow Group 1 winner Blackbeard, successful in the Prix Morny at Deauville when last seen, will continue to fly the flag for the stable and the stallion.

Byrne said, “Hopefully we'll see Little Big Bear back by the end of the year, Aesop's Fables could be anything, Blackbeard won the Prix Morny just like his father and his great grandfather [Johannesburg] and then you have Meditate as well. And they are just the Ballydoyle-trained No Nay Nevers I am talking about.

“It is an incredible feat for No Nay Never. He got off to a great start with Ten Sovereigns (Ire) and Alcohol Free (Ire), who is still running at the top level, but it's been a pleasure to see the standard of the mare that he has covered on the rise season after season. It's incredible to think that there could be even better to come.”

He added, “No Nay Never has sired the winner of 12 2-year-old stakes races in Europe already this season. That's remarkable. He's also sired [the winners of] both of the Group 1 2-year-old races in Europe this season as well. It's hard to knock him from any angle, really.

“Everyone is looking ahead towards the last Group 1 races of the Flat season for 2-year-olds and then all roads lead to the Guineas. It's conceivable that he could have two or three of ante-post favourites for the 2000 Guineas and possibly likewise for the 1000 Guineas by the end of the season.”

If there is one question mark hovering over No Nay Never, it may be whether or not his brilliant batch of 2-year-olds will stay the Guineas trip next term. However, Byrne thinks Little Big Bear and Aesop's Fables have emphatically enhanced their claims for Classic glory with their respective performances this season.

He said, “When Little Big Bear won the Phoenix S., there were three of them in a line a furlong and a half from home, and he went on to win by seven lengths. How could you say that he wouldn't get the mile on that performance?

“Aesop's Fables returned from 119 days off the track to win the G2 Futurity S. at the Curragh and he only really got going inside the last couple of furlongs that day. I'd have no doubt that they'd get at least a mile and there's still some lovely types out of Galileo (Ire) mares that we have here [at Coolmore] that will definitely get the mile and beyond in time. I have no fear about that whatsoever. As well as that, Meditate was doing her best work late on to win the Debutante quite comfortably, so it's a hugely exciting time.”

It's not just No Nay Never that everyone in Coolmore is thankful for. On that Scat Daddy line, Justify has emerged as a force to be reckoned with and Byrne thinks that the US Triple Crown winner can develop into a top-class stallion in his own right.

He said, “He has got off to a mind-bogglingly good start at stud. It might sound crazy, but you could compare him to Gun Runner in America, even at this very early stage. He actually has four stakes winners in America already, which is more than Gun Runner had at the same stage of his stud career, and interestingly, of those four stakes winners, two have been on turf and the other two on dirt, so he has versatility as well.

“To think that Justify has achieved all that he has already and he didn't even hit the track at two himself, he could be one of the most exciting young sires in America. That whole Scat Daddy sire line is really taking off–you've got Mendelssohn, who has had a 'TDN Rising Star' already, and it goes right down to Sioux Nation, who has two group winners and 28 individual winners already.

“We've also got Caravaggio in America, but he also has some very good crops in Europe, including Tenebrism, a Group 1 winner at two and three. There is also Maljoom (Ire) to look forward to and few would bet against him finishing the season as the best 3-year-old miler in Europe. I know that is a big statement to make but he looked unlucky in the G1 St James's Palace S. at Royal Ascot and the form of that race is looking stronger and stronger.”

And that's just the start of the Scat Daddy pipeline that Coolmore has been mining with great success in recent seasons. Those taps are in full flow now, with progeny of Ten Sovereigns going down well at the August Sale at Arqana and the Premier Yearling Sale at Doncaster, which bodes well for the future.

“It's very early days at the yearling sales but the progeny of Ten Sovereigns have been extremely well-received. When you go to Book 1 and Book 2 at Tattersalls and the Orby Sale at Goffs, that's when you'll really see a different type of yearling coming along. The demand for these horses is just going up and up.

“Then we also have Arizona, who has his first foals on the ground, and in a couple of years' time, hopefully we will have Little Big Bears and Blackbeards as well. It's a line that keeps getting stronger and stronger.”

 

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Seven Days: Out of the Frying Pan

Sir Mark Prescott will happily recount the story of the time he bashed his former pupil assistant William Haggas over the head with a frying pan for oversleeping. He will also reflect with pleasure on the great pride he felt when Haggas won the Derby in 1996 with Shaamit (Ire).

When it comes to being a benevolent dictator, the Prescott pendulum has, by his own admission, swung more from dictatorship towards benevolence in recent years and, more than anyone involved in British racing, the master of Heath House cares deeply for the history of the sport, its milestones, and its continuing traditions.

Prescott will certainly be enjoying the fact that Haggas currently has the best horse in the world in his clutches, Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who notched his perfect ten in the Juddmonte International at York on Wednesday, earning a provisional Timeform rating of 137 with his imperious six-and-half-length romp over last year's winner, Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}).

But when it came to moments of exultation on the Knavesmire last week, there was as much jubilation for the victory of the Prescott-trained Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in the Yorkshire Oaks as there was for Baaeed. Alpinista had been runner-up to the Oaks winner Love (Ire) in the Yorkshire Oaks of 2020 and, despite adding British Listed and Group 2 victories to her tally since then, her big-race successes had all come overseas until last Thursday.

Even if Kirsten Rausing's grey mare had retired last year at the end of her 4-year-old season she would still have been a treble Group 1 winner who had  achieved the remarkable feat of emulating her own grand-dam, Albanova (GB), by winning the Grosser Preis von Berlin – famously beating subsequent Arc winner Torquator Tasso (Ger) – then the Preis von Europa and Grosser Preis von Bayern. But we were treated to an extra season, and what a year it has been so far for the current star of the prolific Lanwades breeding programme. Two-for-two in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud and Yorkshire Oaks, Alpinista looks set for a rematch with Torquator Tasso at Longchamp on the first weekend of October. Whether or not she will also face Baaeed in the Arc remains in doubt. The crowd are certainly baying for it, and indeed the manner in which the Shadwell homebred won the Juddmonte International did nothing to suggest he would not see out another two furlongs. Haggas raised the idea that the Irish Champion S. could be the colt's next port of call for what looks likely to be his penultimate race, but wherever and however he ends his career Baaeed will surely be Horse of the Year.

Maybe because he didn't race at two and isn't a Classic winner, Baaeed is somehow not afforded the level of adulation deserving of a horse of his calibre, which is a shame, because let's face it, he's bloody brilliant. Naturally he is most often compared to two previous winners of the International in his own sire Sea The Stars, for whom it was one of six consecutive Group 1 wins in 2009, starting with the 2,000 Guineas and ending with the Arc, and Frankel, who brought York to a standstill a decade ago with his seven-length victory.

The debate will rage endlessly among racing folk as it which of those two greats was the greatest, but it doesn't really matter. What is more important is that both Sea The Stars and Frankel have gone on to be important sires in their own right, with their offspring lighting up racecourses around the world, just as Baaeed and Alpinista did last week at York.

And in the case of those two most recent Group 1 winners, equally important is that they both represent families which have been the cornerstone of their respective breeders' empires for generations. From Sheikh Hamdan's purchase of Height Of Fashion (Fr) from the Queen in 1982 stems Baaeed, while the purchase of Alpinista's fourth dam Alruccaba (Ire) in 1985 by Kirsten Rausing and Sonia Rogers from the Aga Khan has resulted in an impressive dynasty being assembled largely, but by no means solely, at Rausing's Lanwades Stud. Alpinista's run of success is all the more special to those who enjoy the continuity of the great families for it being the centenary of the Aga Khan Studs, an operation which owes much of its own success to her tenth dam, one of the greatest greys of all time, Mumtaz Mahal (GB), who was born 101 years ago and still exerts such influence over the breed.

Trevaunance at the Double

On the subject of anniversaries, the 60th year of Moyglare Stud continues to be marked with great success on the track. As well as an Irish 1,000 Guineas victory for Homeless Songs (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), and racing the top stayer in Europe, homebred Kyprios (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), in partnership with Coolmore, Eva-Maria Bucher-Haefner's operation celebrated back-to-back group wins for Trevaunance (Ire) in the G2 Prix de la Nonette. Trained by Jessica Harrington, the daughter of Muhaarar (GB) had previously won the G3 Prix de Psyche at Deauville's opening meeting 18 days earlier.

Trevaunance marks the blending of two notable Irish stud farms. Her dam Liber Nauticus (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}) was bought by Moyglare from the Ballymacoll Stud dispersal of 2017, and is from a celebrated family which includes dual Breeders' Cup hero Conduit (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}) and Irish 2,000 Guineas and Champion S. winner Spectrum (Ire) (Rainbow Quest).

Never Again – and Again

Nine years ago No Nay Never bounced from victory in a Keeneland maiden to the G2 Norfolk S. followed by the G1 Darley Prix Morny, and he is now the sire of a Morny winner following the success of Blackbeard (Ire) on Sunday.

It has to be said that a five-runner Prix Morny with no French-bred or -trained horse was a little disappointing, but there is nothing disappointing about the winner himself, who has had a busy first campaign and has now won five of his seven starts for Aidan O'Brien, including the G2 Prix Robert Papin. 

Twenty-four hours earlier, No Nay Never had been represented by a Group 2 juvenile double at the Curragh, courtesy of the exquisite-looking Meditate (Ire) and Aesop's Fables (Ire), both Ballydoyle stable-mates of Blackbeard and the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. winner Little Big Bear (Ire). No Nay Never is steaming ahead as the leading sire of juveniles in Europe this year, with Whitsbury Manor Stud's freshman Havana Grey (GB) in determined pursuit.

Deauville's other group races on Sunday fell to Richard Hannon, with the Rathasker Stud-bred Aristia (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) going one better than her finish behind Nashwa (GB) in the G1 Nassau S. to win the G1 Prix Jean Romanet, and to William Haggas, who completed a fantastic week in style with simultaneous victories in the G2 Prix de Pomone with Sea La Rosa (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and G3 Tally-Ho Stud Ballyogan S. at Naas with Perfect News (GB) (Frankel {GB}). 

Sea La Rosa also brought up an impressive double for both her dam Soho Rose (GB) (Hernando {Fr}) and breeder Guy Heald following the win of her brother Deauville Legend (Ire) in the G2 Dante S. at York. 

Only Yann Barberot managed to keep a group race at home for the French trainers this weekend, and that has been a theme in Deauville again this summer, with 13 of the 17 group races having been won by British or Irish trainers, including all five Group 1 contests.

Golden Moments

Both Nathaniel (Ire) and Golden Horn (GB) have covered a number of National Hunt mares this year, and indeed the latter is now officially standing as a dual-purpose sire at Overbury Stud from next season. But both are still eminently capable of getting decent Flat runners, as exemplified by results at York this week.

Godolphin's Trawlerman (GB) landed the valuable Ebor H. under Frankie Dettori, while Haskoy (GB) became the second of Golden Horn's daughters to win the Listed Galtres S. The Juddmonte-bred filly, who was making just her second start, is out of a mare by Nathaniel, who also featured as the damsire of G3 Solario S. winner Silver Knott (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), the first foal of Group 1 winner God Given (GB).

Meanwhile, though the G2 Lonsdale Cup was drastically depleted by the defections of Stradivarius (Ire) and Trueshan (Fr), there was plenty to enjoy about the emphatic victory of Nathaniel's five-year-old son Quickthorn (GB) for his owner/breeder Lady Blyth.

While we are handing out bouquets, the mighty mare Highfield Princess (Fr) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) deserves an extra-large one for winning back-to-back Group 1s in Deauville and York within 12 days, to take her tally to 11 wins from 29 starts for her owner/breeder John Fairley and trainer John Quinn.

Another should go to the Whitsbury Manor Stud broodmare Suelita (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}), who added the G3 Acomb S. winner Chaldean  (GB) (Frankel {GB}) – a rare non-homebred runner for Juddmonte – to her list of black-type performers which now numbers five and includes the G2 Mill Reef S winner Alkumait (GB) (Showcasing {GB}). 

Finally, one trainer who almost certainly hasn't been bashed over the head with a frying pan by Sir Mark Prescott, but who, like Haggas, has enjoyed a fruitful week, is Ralph Beckett. Within five minutes on Saturday his stable was represented by the G2 City of York S. winner Kinross (GB) (Kingman {GB}) and Listed Chester S. victrix River of Stars (Ire), who was one of five stakes winners for Sea The Stars last week. Beckett's good week also included the aforementioned Haskoy among his seven winners.

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You’re ‘Verry’ Welcome

Following the frantic Saturday, a sense of serenity returns to the European racing scene on Sunday with Deauville hosting the leading action including the G1 Darley Prix Morny and G1 Darley Prix Jean Romanet. In the latter contest, France says bienvenue to the Australian wonder Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed {NZ}) who makes her eagerly anticipated Northern Hemisphere debut under Frankie Dettori for the Francis-Henri Graffard stable. Her astounding 11 Group 1 wins in her former country make her a figure of worldwide renown, but a 12th in Europe would truly set the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup heroine apart.

Last in the winner's enclosure at Randwick six months ago after the Chipping Norton S., Jomara Bloodstock's 7-year-old has several formlines to suggest she can deal with this transition. There is a strong contender lying in wait in Robert Moran's June 8 G3 Munster Oaks and July 7 G3 Stanerra S. winner Rosscarbery (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), so this will be no soft landing.

“It will be a new experience for her on the other side of the world,” Dettori told Racing.com. “She's had a bit of a break, so we'd expect her to come on for the race. When you look back at the Caulfield Cup, she beat the Derby winner Anthony Van Dyck, so if you can match that form that's pretty decent. I managed to speak to Mark Zahra and I will talk to James [McDonald], but the most important thing is just to keep her quiet the first part of the race and make the finish. It is her comeback race and obviously her long-range target is the Arc, so it's the first step forward to get to that.”

 

 

 

Ballydoyle Hold The Key To The Morny

Aidan O'Brien ruled the roost at The Curragh on Saturday and even managed to snag a black-type contest here on the same afternoon, but they are all probably the appetiser for the G1 Darley Prix Morny which Rosegreen dominate with the July 17 G2 Prix Robert Papin first and second Blackbeard (Ire) (No Nay Never) and The Antarctic (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}).

Blackbeard was the operation's first black-type winner among the juvenile crop in 2022 and since his battling display in the Listed First Flier S. at The Curragh May 2, the stable have garnered another 13, including 11 at group level. Blackbeard has aided the cause with further wins in the May 21 G3 Marble Hill S. also at The Curragh and Chantilly's Robert Papin, while The Antarctic came here to take the G2 Prix de Cabourg which serves as this race's main course-and-distance trial Aug. 2. The latter, a full-brother to Battaash (Ire), has three lengths to make up on his warrior stablemate, but the master of Ballydoyle suggested this is no foregone conclusion.

“We always thought The Antarctic was a very good horse, which is why we supplemented him. He's just taking a little bit of time to come, but he's getting better,” he said.

Deja Vu?

Twelve months ago, Richard Fahey brought a G2 Norfolk S. winner here, booked Christophe Soumillon and the rest was history. This year, Steve Bradley's surprise winner The Ridler (GB) (Brazen Beau {Aus}) gets the treatment and if history can repeat itself, then the follow-up act to Perfect Power (Ire) (Ardad {Ire}) will be able to put a controversial win in that June 16 Royal Ascot contest behind him.

“He ran through the line at Ascot over a very stiff five and I just think the further he goes, the better he'll go,” Fahey said.

In a renewal lacking a single French runner, the July 7 G2 July S. winner Persian Force (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) adds intrigue but the shadow of Little Big Bear (Ire) (No Nay Never) hangs over all after he put seven lengths between them in the Phoenix.

“I was amazed with that race in Ireland–I was staggered that something could beat him that far,” trainer Richard Hannon said. “He's a very good horse and hopefully he's able to show it on Sunday.”

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Seven Days: Homebred Heroes

Goodwood's trio of Group 1 races all went the way of owner-breeders, results that are both pleasing to see for the people who invest so much thought and money into the sport over generations, and which also highlight how hard it can be for prospective owners to get into horses at the top level.

This season, ten European Classics have been won by homebreds, with two of those, Sammarco (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) and Mangoustine (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}), having been offered for sale by their breeders but bought back. Only 1,000 Guineas winner Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}) and Derby winner Desert Crown (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) have actually changed hands in a sale ring, the former for 60,000gns as a breezer and Desert Crown for 280,000gns as a yearling. 

The victory of Kyprios (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the Goodwood Cup continued a banner anniversary year for his breeder Eva Bucher-Haefner of Moyglare Stud, who races him in partnership with the Coolmore team as a result of a foal-share agreement. Following the 4-year-old's victory in the Gold Cup at Ascot, and the emphatic Irish 1,000 Guineas success of Homeless Songs (Ire), it brings the tally of 2022 Group 1 wins to three for Moyglare, and counting. 

For this observer, Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) has now lit up two seasons, but his absence as a 2-year-old and lack of Classic performance means that he has not quite been taken to the hearts of many as a horse of his calibre should. One of the many irksome things about social media is the 'Yeah, but what did he beat?' brigade, who clearly don't reserve their weary cynicism solely for Baaeed but were out in force last Wednesday after he posted his ninth successive victory. 

His trainer William Haggas is all too aware of the likely fleeting nature of Baaeed's tenure at the top, and in his stable. He commented at Goodwood, “I said this to Jim in the paddock, we've got him for two more races after this so let's just enjoy him and make the most of him, because he will most likely go to stud at the end of the year and I'll spend the rest of my training career trying to find the next one.”

Indeed. Here's hoping he turns up at York for the Juddmonte International and continues to delight his owner Sheikha Hissa Hamdan Al Maktoum by adding another dimension to his record with a win over ten furlongs. Baaeed is a mouthwatering stallion prospect, and will, thankfully, be one of the sons of Sea The Stars who does not get whisked off to a National Hunt stud. 

And then there was Nashwa (GB) (Frankel {GB}). What a thrilling filly she has been so far for Imad Al Sagar. This sight of him almost skipping from the grandstand to the winner's enclosure to greet his star at Goodwood on Thursday after the Nassau S. was to underline the pure joy a horse of such quality, particularly a filly, can deliver for a breeder. Nashwa's second Group 1 victory after the Prix de Diane was as much about the future of Blue Diamond Stud and elevation in stature that the eventual inclusion of a Classic winner in the broodmare band can bring. But for now, and next season, she races on, likely heading to Paris next for the Prix de l'Opera, followed by America and the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Godspeed.

Classic Leaders

The French Classic winners Vadeni (Fr) (Churchill {Ire) and Nashwa are certainly doing their best to uphold the 3-year-old division this season after disappointments and defections from some of the leading players, including the injured Derby winner Desert Crown, who may or may not be back before the end of the season. 

In Germany, Sammarco (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) looks a special colt for Helmut von Finck and, like Vadeni and Nashwa, he has now added a Group 1 victory over ten furlongs against his elders to his German Derby success. 

Of course it is not all about the Classic winners, and two particularly plucky 3-year-old fillies stood out at Goodwood as being worthy of praise. The hardy George Boughey-trained Oscula (Ire) (Galileo Gold {GB}) made ten starts as a juvenile, from as early as May 19, and won the Woodcote at Epsom on her third appearance. She ran right though to the end of October, winning the G3 Prix Six Perfections and earning four Group placings, including when third in the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac. Not bad for a 4,000-guinea Book 4 purchase, and I must admit when I watched her run last in the gruelling deep dirt of the Saudi Derby in February I thought it might well be the last we saw of the light-framed filly. Happily, I was very wrong indeed. 

A good freshen-up through the early spring clearly worked wonders and, along with other notable representatives from her stable, especially Cachet, Oscula has continued to advertise the talents of her young trainer. Since returning to Epsom this Derby weekend to finish second in the Listed Surrey S., the Nick Bradley Racing-owned filly has not been out of the places in black-type contests. Her tally of wins has increased to five, with her late-lunge of a victory in the G3 Oak Tree S. being typical of her never-say-die manner, coming just four days after she was beaten a nose by Jumbly (GB) in a Group 3 at Ascot. Oscula is a lovable wonder.

More sparingly campaigned but still noteworthy is Sandrine (GB) (Bobby's Kitten), who twice beat Oscula as a 2-year-old when winning the G3 Albany S. and G2 Duchess of Cambridge S. She, too, notched a Group 1 placing that year, taking third in the Cheveley Park S. behind Tenebrism (Caravaggio) and Flotus (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}). 

Launched straight into the 1,000 Guineas for her 3-year-old debut, the Lanwades homebred ran a creditable fifth, less than three lengths behind Cachet, and she was a throughly deserving winner of the G2 Lennox S. at Goodwood when dropping back to seven furlongs after gaining yet more Group 1 black type in the Falmouth S.

It could be a very exciting Arc weekend for Kirsten Rausing if Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}) lines up for the main event and Sandrine tackles the G1 Prix de la Foret.

Coventry a Corker in Hindsight

The Coventry S. form is looking jolly good, isn't it? The winner, Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}), is two-for-two and heads next to the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. at the Curragh on Saturday for his first appearance since Royal Ascot.

While he's been at home with trainer Archie Watson, the rivals he left toiling in his wake on June 14 have been busily proving themselves here, there and everywhere. Runner-up Persian Force (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) has subsequently won the G2 July S., in which he was chased home by Show Respect (Ire) (Showcasing {GB}), who had been 11th in the Coventry.

Third-placed Royal Scotsman (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) landed the G2 Richmond S. on Thursday, and Blackbeard (Ire) (No Nay Never), who was fourth at Ascot, has won the G2 Prix Robert Papin as well as being beaten a short-head in the G2 Railway S.

Unsurprisingly, all four are entered in the G2 Gimcrack S. on August 19, though the G1 Prix Morny two days later will doubtless lure some away, despite the increase in prize-money at York to £250,000 for the Al Basti Equiworld-sponsored race.

Welcome To The Races – Or Not

Some racecourse wandering over the last ten days has included trips to fairly major days at Ascot, Goodwood and Newmarket, as well as to the small National Hunt course of Newton Abbot, and to Vichy for the track's Festival du Galop.

There is nothing more thrilling than seeing some of the best horses in the world up close and being able to study them in the paddock beforehand, but there is also nothing less welcoming than having your bag searched on arrival and then being marched past a sniffer dog before being allowed entry to a racecourse.

This is now the norm for major days at racecourses in the UK, and what a sad indictment it is of British society in general. It is hardly the fault of the racecourse management teams that they have to enforce such measures in the wake of on-track  brawls, behaviour which is doubtless exacerbated by alcohol and drugs. But it sets a bad tone for the day, compared to an outing to a country course in midweek, or to the laid-back, family atmosphere one finds at racecourses in France and Germany.

Two particular occasions stand out over the last year, and they really are what British racing should be aiming for in order to halt the dwindling attendance figures and encourage a love of the horse from a young age. At Baden-Baden in September, its unusual walkway of stars from the racecourse back to the winner's enclosure was lined with children patiently waiting for an up-close glimpse of the horses returning post-race. It is far less easy to interact with the horses on some courses in Britain, where people are restricted to certain areas of the racecourse depending on the badge they have. 

At Vichy last week there were umpteen small ponies wandering around the racecourse for children to ride or lead, and the demand for them from the many families on course was consistent throughout the evening. Small ponies are what led me, eventually, to a life in racing, and I am sure they would perform the same role for others if given the chance.

Compare that to a recent scene on an English racecourse where a mother with two young children who had put a rug on the floor (no picnic) was asked to pick it up and was moved along from where she was sitting. Picnic rugs (and picnics) abounded in both Germany and France, where it also doesn't cost an arm and a leg just to get through the gates. 

The problem of drink and drugs is not exclusive to racing, of course, but it would be very easy for racecourses to fix the latter issue with a bit of imagination and a more welcoming approach to families, not least with reduced entry fees. Who knows how many of those children enjoying pony rides and picnics will return to the races in later life as the owner of a proper horse who wants to book a hospitality box for the day?

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