Cheltenham Festival is one of the biggest dates within the racing industries calendar. Throughout the four-day festival, 27 races take place and roughly 600million pounds is expected to exchange hands between the public and various bookies present.
For 2013 the fourth race on each of the cards will be the feature race and will be supported with grade one races and handicaps. Several horses are entered in to a variety of races throughout the festival but it will all depend on their weight, jockey and ground. To view the list click on to the Paddy Power Website.
On the day, whilst we have a small idea as to who will pass the post first, anything can happen.
When deciding who to put your money on it is well worth having a look at the horses before each race and studying their form. If you're there then take some time to have a walk down to the Parade Ring and see how the horses are looking.
To give you a little help, I've put together some handy tips I always take into consideration when picking my winners:
- A good muscle tone is important. To be in top form, horses need to be in good condition.
- Look out for a horse that appears bright eyed, has a shiny coat, forward-pointing ears and an alert manner and you'll be well away. These are all signs of a happy, content and healthy horse.
- Has the horse previously ran well at today's distance? If it has already proved itself at that distance without any struggle then you're in with a chance.
- How long has it been since the horse last ran? 30-60 days is a reasonable break for any race horse to have. Think of the horse like a violin. If it has had a long break since its last run it may need a race to "tune" it up again before it runs a good race.
- Pay attention to the way the horse moves in the Parade Ring. Look for a relaxed, forward moving horse. Those that get overexcited in the Parade Ring tend to have wasted their energy before they actually race.
- Take in to consideration the ground. If a horse prefers a certain ground type it will always run best on that. For example, if a horse has good form on soft ground then it may struggle when the ground is classed as "heavy".
- Look at who your chosen horse is up against. Has it beaten or lost to any of the rivals in its race?
- Weight is important. Look at the weight your horse is carrying as apposed to last time. A significant increase could affect your horses way of going.
- Blinkers don't always mean stay clear! My ex-racehorse used to wear blinkers when he was running. This didn't mean he was scared, they were simply used to channel his attention on the race and nothing else.
*Tip from my mum: If the horse does a poo in the Parade Ring you know he's carrying a lighter load in the race - "I always look out for this when picking mine". Well, I don't know whether that is quite true but you never know, she could be the next Clare Balding with that tip!
Whilst horse-racing can be a tedious game, the most important thing to do is enjoy your day out. The atmosphere is simply second to none and you never know you may always back a winner.
To add to the fun I have selected who I think will pip the others to the post throughout the feature races of the four-day festival.
Day 1 - Champion Hurdle 2013
Rock on Ruby, trained by H Fry seems a strong contender in this race. This 8-year-old looked on fine form at his race early in February in Doncaster racing against Darlan who was his biggest rival. Sadly, Darlan suffered a fatal fall at the last fence leaving Rock on Ruby to take the top spot in the winners parade.
Nicky Hendersons, 9-year-old Binocular is another possibility in this race. With a strong form behind him, Binocular could well just do it.
However, if I was going on names for the fun of it and not form, I would definitely go with Hendersons, 6-year-old "Cash and Go".
Day 2 - Queen Mother Champion Chase
Sizing Europe trained by H De Bromhead seems the most likely contender in this race with his impressive form to date.
However, the French, Sprinter Sacre trained by N Henderson is proving to be on good form having won all five of his previous races. This horse has been described to "blow the field away" when racing and makes even the most difficult of races seem a storm. I predict this horse is one to watch, he could well just own this race.
Another I feel is worthy of an each way bet is Sanctuaire trained by P Nicholls. This horse is another with an impressive form card that may well just pull out all the stops on the day.
Day 3 - Ladbrokes World Hurdle
Paul Nicholl's is bound to be distraught that his consecutive winner of this race from 2009-2012, Big Bucks is out for the season with an injury.
Solwhit seems like a good one to watch, but an injury some time ago set him back and although he won his first race in over two and a half years just a few weeks ago, this horse is described as needing to go "better" if he is to be in with a chance today. Once a high class horse though, he may well just be on form if the ground is soft enough for him.
French bred, Quevega, trained by W Mullins could well be a likely conetendor for this race. This 9-year-old has a decent form and is the David Nicholson Mare's Hurdle winner for the past four years at the Cheltenham Festival. Potentially another one to watch.
Day 4 - Cheltenham Gold Cup
This is what it all boils down to; one of the biggest races throughout the whole of the festival. Previous winners of this race includes Arkle, Best Mate, Kauto, Denman and Imperial Commander.
This race could well be anyones with some fantastic runners entered such as the lovely Imperial Commander, Long Run and Bobs Worth.
My Money may be on the double Cheltenham Festival winner and strong Gold Cup contender, Bobs Worth. With some good runs behind him, this may be another successful candidate for N Henderson.
Well, that is all from me - watch out for some more of my tips coming and to find out who my money will be going on. If you can't make the festival then be sure to tune in to the television to see all of the action.
Jargon (For those a little confused):
* Form - How a horse has previously ran. Usually shown on a race card as a series of numbers, for example: 115622. Each number represents a race and your horses position in that race.
* Bookies (Bookmakers) - Found at all races. These take your bets and show you the odds for each horse.
* Odds - Odds are given to each horse before they run. Horses with a previous good form will be given odds of 1 or 2 and then the payback if the horse wins is double this. A horse with odds of 500/1 is least likely to win but if it does will pay out more.
* Racecard - You can buy one of these when you attend a race-day. The race cards display all race information for that day, including tips.
* Ground - Soft, heavy.... Some horses prefer soft ground whereas others prefer heavy. Soft ground is what it says on the tin; spongy.
* Parade Ring - This is the area in which horses are paraded round and warmed up before each race. It is a great opportunity for the public to have a look at their horse before they decide which one to bet on.
* Furlong - The distance in which the horses run is measured in.
I started walking and trotting him in her back field which is on a big slope, but most of the time he got worked in the ring. Horse land in OK
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