Page 17 - March 2007 The Game
P. 17

Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper The Game, March 2007 17
All Roads Lead To Cheltenham – The Festival March 13-16
By Nigel Griffiths
Cheltenham Racecourse, set in a natural amphitheatre looking across to a backdrop of the Cleeve Hills, some 115 miles northwest of London, is where you will find this Olympics of steeplechasing. When the tapes go up for the meeting’s traditional opener, the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, the burgeoning anticipation of the crowd is released with an avalanche of sound that cascades down to the 2 mile start. A huge roar sends the horses on their way. It’s a race meeting like no other, where, for four days in March, speculation, excitement and uninhibited passion reach a climax.
The rivalry between England and Ireland is legendary. The Irish, by the thousands, make the pilgrimage to support their horses and of course, to beat the English. It has been said that many a church roof in Ireland has been paid for by the winnings from ‘a good thing’ and certainly many big payoffs have been produced from the Irish horses. They come to win and in recent years, they have been doing just that. Gone are the days when the Irish had to sell their good horses across that narrow sea to the English, today Ireland is a prosperous country and the best horses stay in the Emerald Isle.
Last year the Irish dominated. They won the all three Championship races, the 2 mile Champion Hurdle with Brave Inca, the 2 mile Champion Chase with Newmill and to round off the trio, the prestigious 3 mile 2 furlong Gold Cup with the aptly named, War Of Attrition.
This will be the fourth year at The Festival for Brave Inca; his figures read an impressive 1-3-1. Brave Inca was the first horse for owners, ‘The Novices’ Syndicate’, which has been a dream come true. What an album of memories this tremendous horse has given them. Also back will be last year’s Gold Cup winner, War Of Attrition, who had a monumental duel to the line in the 2004 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, with Brave Inca prevailing by a neck. Brave Inca continued his career over hurdles, while War Of Attrition went over fences and now, having reached their respective pinnacles in this demanding sport, are both are back to defend their crowns.
There are also plenty of youngsters coming along to make a name for themselves.
Trying to take the Champion Hurdle crown for himself will be 5/2 favourite Detroit City. This useful stayer off the flat won the 17 furlong Triumph Hurdle last year and has prevailed in both his starts this season, but as a 5-year-old against these battle-hardened hurdlers, he will have to be at the very top of his game.
The 3 mile World Hurdle already has a very hot 4/6 favourite in Black Jack Ketchum, unbeaten, in eight races. The price is very short, but there is not much to find fault in. He has a great racing attitude, he travels well, jumps very fluently, will handle the ground/trip, but would you back him at 4/6?
While Detroit City continued over hurdles, the runner up in the Triumph Hurdle, stablemate Fair Along has proved more than useful over fences and his trailblazing, exuberant style has gained him a strong following among racefans. He’s now 11/4 favourite for the 2 mile Arkle Novices’ Chase and one thing’s for sure, he’ll lead them a merry dance around this demanding track.
The horse gaining all the media attention is Kauto Star. This French bred 7year-old fell at the third fence when favourite for the Arkle Novices’ Chase last
year, but this year he has shown us all what a quality horse he is. Making his seasonal debut a winning one over 2 mile 4 furlongs, he was then stepped up in trip to 3 miles for the first time. Although in unknown territory, he beat a decent field comfortably and won with ease. Next time out was in the G1 2 mile Tingle Creek where he again won with authority. Sent off the 8/13 favourite for the King George on Boxing Day, he travelled well, until making a horrendous mistake at the fourth last and had his supporters reaching for their heart medication when doing something similar at the last. With all this excitement, he somehow still made it to the wire first and he became a solid favourite for the Gold Cup.
That win gave connections the second leg in the Betfair £1 million (C$2.33 million) Bonus, now with one race along with 22 fences standing in their way......the Cheltenham Gold Cup. It could be said that those finishing behind him at Kempton were best at distances short of 3 miles and it’s a fact that he may not be able to get away with similar mistakes over the stiffer Cheltenham fences, but he’s a horse of tremendous potential and although a French bred, one we would all hope to see around at the highest level for a few years to come.
This is the Festival where the gloves come off and some serious betting is done, creating a battle of wits between the bookmakers and the punters. An estimated £50 million (Cdn $116.5 million) is wagered on-course over the four days of the festival and the betting industry expect to take another £150 million (Cdn $349.5 million) through its shops and online accounts. Freddie Williams is one of the leading independent bookmakers at the meeting and is never frightened to take a bet or two and last year he took on one of the high profile bettors in Irish owner, J.P McManus.
J.P wagered Cdn $233,000 on his own horse, Reveillez, at 6-1 (starting price 9/2). The horse was given a power-packed ride by champion jockey Tony McCoy and Freddies satchel was Cdn $1.4 million lighter. The big betting Irishman had four horses running in the Pertemps Final Handicap Hurdle but backed only one, Kadoun, with a relatively restrained Cdn $11,600 each way at a tempting price of 50-1. When the bay surprised with victory, Freddie Williams was out another Cdn $757,000.
Jumps racing tests man and beast, but the demands of the The Cheltenham Festival tests them to the very limit.
You can listen to the previews, interviews and the races live every day on Festival Radio, which can be picked up on the internet at www.cheltenham.co.uk. Click AUDIO. Races start at 9:00am EST, Tuesday March 13 to 16.
Bookie Feels Safer in a Helicopter for Cheltenham
By Nigel Griffiths
Are the high profile bookmakers at Cheltenham vulnerable to criminal activity? Last March, book- maker Freddie Williams, one of the busiest at the track, was robbed of an estimated £70,000 when his car was ambushed during last year’s festival. Consequently, Williams has made the unusual and expensive decision to be airlifted in and out of Cheltenham by helicopter this year.
Williams has resorted to his own security measures despite Cheltenham’s response to last March’s crime-spree; for the first time, players will be allowed to deposit money at the track after each day’s racing.
Williams, whose exchanges with major gambler JP McManus are an annual feature at the fixture with McManus frequently betting in six-figure sums, has always felt the only answer is an on-site bank.
“I am being picked up at my hotel in helicopter each morning and returned there at night,” said Williams. “Then I only have prob-
lems if they shoot
down helicopters.”
Williams, his daughter Julie and her boyfriend, were badly frightened from last year’s incident. As they were driving to their hotel in Bibury, a car forced them to stop and four men jumped out of a second vehicle, attacking Williams’ car with crowbars before stealing a large
sum of money from the trunk. The same night, fellow bookmaker Keith Harris, of Liverpool-based Pat Whelan Racing, had £32,000 taken from a rented bungalow at Bredon, near Tewkesbury, while he and colleagues were
out having a meal. Cheltenham, obviously
concerned for the well-being of its bookmakers, elected to offer a method by which money could be left safely at the track. Bookmakers would be charged a fee for the service, but Williams is not completely assured.
“The real solution is an on-site bank,” he emphasized. “I can’t understand why banks are not breaking their necks to get on the racecourse. Then, bookmakers could take out in the morning what they want and deposit it again at night. Don’t forget there are 40,000 Irishmen at the Festival and their pockets are full of money, and they are going back to their hotels and hiding it under their beds when they go to dinner. Instead of another hot-dog stand, a bank on site is what we want.”
Did You Know...
That more than 200,000 pints of Guinness, 125,000 pints of lager, 18,000 bottles of champagne and 8,000 gallons of tea and coffee will be sold during the four day Cheltenham Festival in England.
The Pavilion Bar at the Cheltenham Festival -
at a staggering 110 feet long, is the longest temporary bar on record.
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