July 9th Update

It was good to see Surrey Belle put in a much improved performance at Ffos Las on Tuesday evening. Once again, the priority was to keep her calm and continue teaching her to settle but as the betting suggested, she went into the race with a definite chance. Both before and during the race she was far more relaxed than she had been previously and the hood seemed to help. Richard Kingscote settled her nicely in third but unfortunately wasn’t able to get a clear run in the home straight. However, once clear she finished strongly and would have been much closer had she got out earlier. The Racing Post summed it up well in their post race analysis when saying - “It would be pushing it to say she was unlucky but she may have given the winner more to think about had she got clear daylight earlier. She settled better in the first time hood and this is something to build on” We know she needs further and probably softer ground but the shorter distances are helping her settle at the moment as they go a little quicker and Richard thought she should stay at 1m 2f for another race or two. Hughie was delighted with the run and feels it was a big step forward, even if she was still a little green. 

Hughie has said that Surrey Charm has never looked better. She did another piece of fast work with Surrey Belle this week and finished stronger than the week before when she got tired. It is now a question of getting her race fit, which should be in about two weeks. It may be a coincidence but Hughie has felt that respiratory issues that have plagued Charm could well be a reaction to all the rapeseed being grown near his yard. The peak time for rapeseed pollen is May and since the crop flowered, Charm and many of his other horses have been much better in themselves. The yard’s strong performance since the beginning of June certainly reflects this.  

Surrey Fire is progressing nicely and Hughie is starting to vary his work. This week he has been working on both the grass and the all weather. Provided the ground stays good or softer, Hughie will increase the amount of time Fire spends on the grass and also increase the speed of his work.   

Surrey Noir was gelded on Monday. He was walked that evening and the procedure went so well he was back being ridden on Friday. He will trot until the middle of next week before he resumes cantering. With the post operation antibiotics his respiratory infection is also clearing up. We will give it a couple of weeks and then talk to Charlie about plans for the rest of the season.  

With the recent rain in Newmarket, Surrey Force has been able to work on the Limekilns grass gallop. This is the first time he has been on the grass gallop and worked upsides over 6 furlongs. He was led for about 4 furlongs and then joined the lead horse before galloping on well to the finish. Kevin was pleased and liked his attitude but noted that he is still a bit weak. Provided the ground stays soft he will work more regularly on the grass over the next few weeks.  

Surrey Mist continues his rehabilitation. He is walking twice a day and going in the spa once a day. His leg is iced for 40 minutes after walking. The key to this sort of injury is continual gentle movement. He will be rescanned in 7-10 days’ time and we can then plan from there.  

Surrey Shadow has been given an easy two weeks but will be back on Warren Hill tomorrow. The plan is one canter every day for the next fortnight before stepping up his work to two daily canters. Tom is going to take a few photos and a video tomorrow but says the short break has done him the world of good and he is looking much stronger. He is still growing and has put on a fair amount of condition. It is also great to see Tom doing so well since his Royal Ascot win with a further 3 winners in the past couple of weeks.  

Although we are very much in the middle of the flat season, the NH trainers have now turned their attention to getting their horses ready for the jumps.  Shoes went on Surrey Lord on Tuesday and he is being ridden daily from the field. Toby is a big fan of incorporating roadwork into the pre-season routine. Surrey Fortune is back in from the field and was ridden for the first time since his break on Wednesday. He is not yet living up to his stable name of ‘Bucker’, despite his freshness but is very well. For both horses it is simply a case of building up their work with a target of late September/October for their bumper debuts. 

Surrey Quest was examined by the vet last week and he gave him the all clear to start walking. It is still early days but the steroid injections seemed to have reduced the inflammation in the shoulder/neck and Quest seems to be moving more freely. He will walk for the next couple of weeks before starting schooling. By then Jackie will have a much better idea of the degree to which the injections have worked.

No entries are likely this week but a couple of trainer’s event to note: 

2023

July

Friday 14th – Tom Clover - pre-racing drinks & nibbles at his Kremlin House Stables from 11.30am
                       Kevin Philippart de Foy – July festival picnic in the O&T Car Park July course from 11.30am 

September

Saturday 9th - Billy Aprahamian Owner’s Morning