Hi there! There is always something of a lull after the excitement and drama of Cheltenham and this year is no exception, with a pretty dire week of racing and nothing to look forward to until Aintree, which starts a … Read More »

And so the great meeting is nearly upon us. With some relief I attend on the first two days as an observer and occasional player, whereas in previous years I’ve worked pretty hard  –  not that I’m going to bore … Read More »

Until Manchester United’s late winner on Saturday it looked like being a very good week. Of course, you have to keep 60,000 people happy and, as I set off for a walk at 2-2, unable to bear the tension and … Read More »

Hi there! Such has been the quality and quantity of informed content – already over 32,000 words – that I have received for this year’s Cheltenham Festival I have decided to publish my exclusive insights for the ten main handicaps … Read More »

1. What’s the difference in the Cheltenham Book & Cheltenham Package The book is literally the book and no other publications. Marten will send you a brief text message each day of Cheltenham. The Package is a huge amount of information. … Read More »

For a few years I concentrated on one race at the Cheltenham festival – the Stayers’ or World Hurdle, as it was called for a while. I decided to take short prices about Inglis Drever and Big Buck’s in their … Read More »

I would like to say congratulations to Marten I bet when Marten started his business nearly 50 years ago and decided in 1979 to publish his first Cheltenham Bulletin Book he didn’t think he would still be self-publishing it 40 … Read More »

Cheltenham, Cheltenham Festival

I was wandering down Burgess Road in Southampton the other day, thinking about the long, hard winter of 1962-63. Racing was off for several weeks in the big freeze and one of the first winners when it resumed was Severn … Read More »

Hi there, Although the news that racing can resume on Wednesday was very welcome the BHA’s ruling that no entries will be accepted from horses that have not been vaccinated in the previous six months may extend the period of … Read More »

I am not an obsessive reader of obituaries, although every now and then they inevitably touch on events from my past. Like a lot of people, I glance at the bottom of the article to see how long the subject … Read More »

Hi there! We are normally seeking out the mudlarks in the first week of February, especially in Ireland, but the ground for the second day of Leopardstown’s weekend festival was changed to good, with good to firm patches, on the … Read More »

Cheltenham Trials Day Review 12.40 – JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle (2m179y) Irish raider Fakir D’oudaries elevated himself to the head of the betting for the Triumph Hurdle with an impressive 13 lengths success in the hands of JJ Slevin. … Read More »