Changing of the Seasons

It’s been a busy fortnight for the yard with 15 runners since the last blog.

On Saturday the 28th, Headscarf Lil, Kajaki and Big Bad Bear went to Doncaster while Nells Son took a trip further south to Cheltenham.  He ran in a good race and we were all happy with his performance.
The next day, No Regrets ran in Sedgefield.
Houston Texas, Castle Rushen and Paddock Cottage ran at Newcastle on Monday the 31st. They all came home safe and sound.  This was Paddock Cottage’s first run over hurdles and it was definitely a good learning experience for him as he can still show signs of greenness.

On the 1st of February, Famous Bridge and Uncle Alastair went up to Ayr.

Our luck changed with the seasons on Friday the 3rd when Snowy Clouds and Hard Iron won their races at Catterick to bring home a double for the yard.  Snowy Clouds put in a brilliant round of jumping and won with a whopping 16 length lead!

Snowy Clouds and Sean Quinlan

This was Hard Irons first run for his new owners so it was amazing to give them their first winner.  It was also a hat-trick for Hard Iron who has improved lots this season.

Hard Iron and Brian Hughes

Yesterday, on the 4th of February, Parisencore and Wilhelm Vonvenster ran at Musselburgh and Universal Folly ran at Wetherby.  They all finished out their races well and definitely showed us that the horses are coming back into form.

Every yard has its ups and downs, luckily we’re a strong team and always manage to put our heads together and work through it.  As long as the horses are happy, we’re happy!

On Thursday the 2nd of February we took Rickety Gate, Fly by Milan and the unraced Nab Wood went for a change of scenery to Greenlands Equestrian Centre.  They went schooling over some cross country fences. Rickety Gate, ridden by Ella, was a brilliant lead horse as he has much more experience than Fly by Milan and Nab wood who were ridden by Jack and Conor.  The session started off a little warily as it was something new for all of the horses, but by the end, along with the help of their riders and some top tips from Brian Harding, they were flying around like they had been doing it their whole lives.

Brian on his own horse, with Jack Conor and Ella

For this blog, I’m going to introduce Everyday Champagne, the gorgeous 7 year old grey.  He took his time to show us what he’s really capable of but it was definitely worth it.  He’s been ageing like a fine wine and I’m sure he’ll keep learning and improving.
His most recent win came at Doncaster on his first run over fences.
Anyone that’s had the chance to meet him knows what a character he is, so he’s got a bit of substance along with the style.
I have to admit… although I don’t like to pick favourites, I definitely have a soft spot for this guy!

Everyday Champagne and Sean Quinlan