After numerous thunder showers at a number of racecourses today, ground changes saw a few outsiders winning.  Ascot seemed to be ok for the most of the early races.  Newmarket evening meeting had heavy showers.  I was going to back one in a later race at Newmarket, but did not get involved.  On watered ground, the going can become very false underfoot, I always try to avoid having a bet, as it is the fast way to the poor house!

Tomorrow will be extra hard to find winners.  Saturday is the toughest day of the week.  Hopefully I can find a winner, a number of horses I follow are declared to run.  One horse I follow is Cracksman,  he could get underfoot conditions he is best at , with rain falling at Ascot.  It would be nice to see him come back to his best for jockey Rab Havlin, he takes over tomorrow  from suspended Frankie Dettori.

I have been watching a lot of racing today.  Goddess was a very below par in Ireland in a Group 3 6.35 Leopardstown.  When they run as poor as she did, and have been backed into 1/2 fav, it is too bad to be true, the performance is clearly below stable expectations.  I thought she was a penalty kick, she bolted up in her maiden last time.  Today when asked to go, she stopped in about 10 strides.

I always find July quite a difficult month, a few horses seem to run below par, for whatever reason, it’s never totally clear.  Some fillies can come in season, especially when the weather is warm, this can result in a below par effort on race day.

The weekend sees the big race at Ascot on Saturday.  The King George and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes (Group 1)  for three year olds and upwards over 12f.  Frankie Dettori will miss the meeting, he had his 10 day ban reduced to 6, on appeal.  Hopefully he will be refreshed on his return, missing rides though will hurt, especially if Cracksman or Coronet wins the big race, as Dettori would of had the choice of them.  It has not been confirmed that Cracksman will run, Coronet looks very likely to take her chance, in what looks a race to watch closely, it is wide open for me, so I won’t have a bet in it.

Another Winner yesterday for my subscribers.  Piece Of History won well at Chelmsford 8.10, he defied a poor draw (13).  He returned at 6/4, so very happy with that.  Well ridden by David Egan, who is in an important stage of his riding career.  He was champion apprentice last year, so riding winners when your claim has gone, especially when given chances for big yard’s like Saeed Bin Suroor, is a big plus.  I hope he continues to get plenty of rides on some nice horses, as he rides well, and he has no real weight problems, at the moment.

Very firm ground today at Bath, I fancied Rastacap in the 5.00 , but she was a below par 4th.  Possibly the firm/hard ground was just too quick for her to run her best.

Plenty of racing today.  The meetings at Newcastle and Chelmsford on the all weather have plenty of declared runners today.  Lots of trainers make use of the all weather tracks,  plenty of trainers from all over the UK, and a number of trainers from Ireland also use the all weather tracks in the UK,  as well as Dundalk in Ireland.

As the heatwave continues, small fields are very relevant.  I have always believed racehorses do not really like very fast ground on the turf, the same rule applies when the ground is very soft/heavy in mid winter. It can be a slog sometimes when it is heavy, it is usually a case of acting on it better than others, rather than enjoying it.

I like the look of one today at Chelmsford.  With no ground change issues, hopefully it can win for my subscribers and give another day of profit.

Late blog post today.  Quite a busy day.  I did not have a bet today, I was going to back a horse at one of the evening meetings,  if rain had arrived.  Cartmel day meeting did have some rain, not sure how much it affected the ground conditions.

Judging by the weather forecast over the next few days or so, dry weather for most parts.  Hopefully a drop of rain will arrive, as most of the tracks are badly in need of some natural rain, watering systems are pretty good,  at many tracks these days, but if rain arrives it can cause false ground, especially on watered racecourses.   Sadly that is when you get a higher number of horses being injured.

Another good day.  Whinmoor was a good winner at Redcar 3.45, he is progressive.  Very pleased to get my subscribers back on the right path.  A few bumps along the road this month, but you have to expect times of near misses, and also good and not so good runs of luck !

Linganno Felice yesterday was a really nice priced winner, he is fine this morning.  I spoke to his trainer, who said he has eaten up and seems fine.  He is such a big horse, over 16.3 hands.  The reason he was sent hurdling so late in life (8 years old) was because he has needed so long to fill his huge frame ! Hopefully the patience will reap more rewards !

A couple of horses I have been waiting for are entered this week, so I am hoping to finish off the month strong, currently this month +51.5 points, so the advisory service is doing well.

Great result today at Market Rasen. L’inganno Felice won the 188Bet Handicap hurdle, I advised my subscribers to back him each way,  on Friday at 12/1 , he returned at 8s, so always useful to back a WINNER when you have heard that the horse was in great form from the trainer.  He made all the running, and galloped on strongly when asked to go and win the race by young Ross Chapman.  Market Rasen was always a track I used to go to when I was very young with my father, as he was from Lincolnshire, and he enjoyed taking us to the races whenever he could. It was always a lucky track for me when I was a jockey, I probably rode more winners their than anywhere !

The football was good today here in Guernsey.  My son has 3 games tomorrow morning, they need a couple of wins to progress to the next round, 3 draws today, and 3 defeats.  The loss against Everton was a reality check ! They were really good, all of them were technically good, apparently they train 3/4 days a week together, and are not allowed to play for anyone else, including their school team ! And these kids are 9 years old.

My wife Kate has gone to Market Rasen with my youngest son.  Her horse Linganno Felice runs in the 188Bet Summer handicap hurdle today.  It is a very competitive race.  But he deserves a crack at it, he likes the track, having won twice in novice company.  Hoping he can run well, he needs to relax a bit better than he has been doing in his races, if jockey Ross Chapman can save a bit of excess energy, I think he will be in the mix.

I am going to watch football today, here in Guernsey. My 9 year old son plays in a BWCI tournament,here in Guernsey.   He plays for Guernsey under 9s, big day for him as Everton, Bristol City and Broughton have teams in it from the UK, as well as teams from Jersey and local clubs here in Guernsey, who are allowed to enter their under 10s.  It will be good to see him play, so I will have to record the racing today !

A lot of racing today.  7 meetings including Kilbeggan in Ireland.

Friday is always a taster for the Saturday meetings, as I see it.  Newmarket evening fixture has smallish fields, the first and last race being the only races that have 10 or more going to post. The 7:10 fillies Novice Stakes has a couple of interesting types lining up.  Arabian Gift was a big let down last time over 10f, she was fancied to win that day.  The drop back to 8f today could be more to her liking.  Scottish Jig has a penalty for her win over 8f at Newbury 36 days ago, she will be very competitive, it’s a race to watch with interest, as a few other big yards run some well bred types as well.

I was a bit surprised how fast the ground was last week, at the track.  It has a lush covering of grass, but still must of rode on the fast side, and with no rain, it will be quick ground again at tonight’s fixture.

Having just seen the first race at Leicester today.  The winner Desert Fire was a 12 length winner, at cramped Odds of 1-12 the last time I looked.  Trained by my old boss, Saeed Bin Suroor.  I bumped into Saeed at Newmarket races last week.  He was in good form, his horse Best Solution just won , we had a quick hello, and a well done!

I saw him again on the Saturday, we had a good chat.  He was his usual pleasant self, he is a nice guy.  He said he needs a few of the horses we had in the late 90’s and early millennium years, a Daylami or Fantastic Light would be welcome !

Looking forward to the big fillies three year old race at the weekend.  The Irish Oaks, looks a competitive event, as usual.  Magic Wand is current favourite, it is difficult to look beyond her for the winner for me.  She will be primed by the Ballydoyle maestro, her brilliant trainer will have her in good shape.