Having not had many runners since we did the Flu Vaccinations late in January, I was delighted to hit the ground running with the runners we have had since.
Kiltealy Briggs put in a fine display of jumping to win the valuable Class 2 novice chase over 2m4 at the Festival Trials meeting at Musselburgh on Saturday. Adrian set the perfect fractions from the front and he galloped on bravely from the back of the last. He handled the better ground well, and was strong in the finish. He’s become a man this season, and is stringing together some excellent form now, which is really exciting with the Ultima Chase being his next target at the Cheltenham Festival.
Kiltealy Briggs wins a Class 2 at Musselburgh.
Another horse with a Cheltenham entry is Git Maker, who remained unbeaten in two starts under rules with another authoritative win over 2 miles. He was found for a bit of speed when the pace of the race lifted, but when he met the rising ground, he opened his stride and lengthened well to get on top after the last to win going away. He jumped well, but tends to jump them, rather than hurdle them, which bodes well for novice chasing next season. He is in the Ballymore at the Festival, but we’ve yet to decide if he is to go there or not.
Git Maker remains unbeaten when winning under a penalty at Carlisle.
Representing Bob lost his unbeaten tag over fences in his bid for his fourth win of the season. He did, however, go down fighting in 2nd. The combination of a tight, undulating (unique) track and the drying ground didn’t really suit him, but he battled on bravely and probably would have won if he hadn’t had been tightened up at the last fence, where he jumped a bit too big, and the winner got away from it quicker as a result. He should be able to win again back on a more galloping track, or on slightly softer ground.