.......racing into the 21st Century

Latest News

Check out the June 2008 OwnerBreeder Magazine

Take a look at the June edition of OwnerBreeder magazine, the official publication of the Racehorse Owners' Assocation and Thoroughbred Breeders' Association. They have included a feature article about our innovative training methods that use combined speed and heart rate monitoring for managing the horses' training programmes. A big thanks to Colin Mackenzie (words) and George Selwyn (pics) for a great article.

Galandora victorious over hurdles

Owner Paul Kemp drinking a celebratory glass of champagne following Galandora's win over hurdles at Huntingdon in October. That was a gallant effort from the little mare, beating 16 rivals in a competitive heat over 3 and a quarter miles. She showed real grit and determination to get her head in front that day and the form has been franked convincingly by the second horse winning and being placed several times since. Don't forget she has returned from a career-threatening injury on only her second start over hurdles when she sustained a fracture to a hind pastern. Paul has stood by "Lou" throughout and it was particularly gratifying that we could reward his patience by producing her to win.

See More Jock wins at Wincanton December 6th

It's always good to have a winner at our local jumps track Wincanton, and See More Jock made December 6th a very special day for us. "Jock" won very convincingly by a wide margin over two and three-quarter miles in soft ground, striding away from the opposition in the closing stages. The handicapper has taken a dim view of this effort and penalised him 13lbs for his efforts. So winning again will not be so easy!! He was ridden by Charlie Stud, who is excellent value for his 5lb claim. He gave him a very cool ride, sitting off the early pace that he considered to be quite strong in the conditions. As the early pace started to take its toll, he allowed him to make ground down the back straight, and once asked for an effort turning in, he was able to go on and win without being fully extended. The form has been franked with the third placed horse coming out since and winning his next race.

I am very pleased for Jock's owners, a partnership that was established last year. Well done to Lucinda Stokes, Toby Greenwood, Paul Dure and Paul Kemp (yes that's 2 winners for Paul in quick succession). He is a horse who has always shown loads to talent, on his first start under rules finishing second in a big field bumper and in doing so qualifying for the Cheltenham Festival bumper. We had intended to school him over fences after this run but now he has found his winning form we shall most likely keep him to hurdles for the time being. There is still a share for sale, so check out the horses for sale page.

Some Pictures of the yard and gallops from earlier this year.....

March 2007

New Yard Sponsorship deal signed

We are very excited to announce that we have just signed a new Yard Sponsorship deal with ETB Ltd (European Technology for Business). This will provide sponsorship for our owners to safeguard their ability to reclaim VAT on all racing and associated expenses.

In addition ETB are helping fund Debbie Holmes, an MSc student, to work with the yard in collaboration with the University of Bristol. This will allow Debbie to work under the supervision of Jeremy Naylor (the trainer) and Dr Sam Franklin (University of Bristol Equine Centre) to pursue a research project using ETB's novel gait analysis tool, the "Pegasus System". This will provide invaluable information on stride characteristics of horses in training and will help in developing optimum training programmes for our horses.

Please visit the ETB website at www.etb.co.uk to find out more. ETB are a leading innovator in the field of microsystems, with the focus on physical sensors, resonating structures and piezo-electric based devices. Their new "Pegasus System" incorporates a novel device for measuring stride and gait characteristics of exercising horses. This will revolutionise the study of stride characteristics of horses in a wide range of equestrian disciplines, including horse racing.