Name your favourite ......

[bowles10]

If you had a chance of naming your favourite jockey/horse/trainer, who would they be. They should be in your lifetime to have some meaning as to why you picked them. Favourite Jockey - Steve Cauthen I recall Steve coming over from Kentucky as a youngster & it was at the time i was getting into racing in a much bigger way & i recall those days he rode for Sheikh Mohammed & the season long battle vs Pat Eddery for the elusive title when they both rode close to 200 winners. There werent as many fixtures around then either so that was a great achievement. I had a decent bet on Reference Point with Cauthen up. Favourite Apprentice - Chris Rutter Again, a lad i followed when i was getting into racing. He always seemed to ride 33/1 chances & i had a few nice EW touches with Chris before he lost his claim. He used to ride Come on the blues which ran in a blue/white hooped colours. Favourite Trainer - Henry Cecil / Paul Nicholls I have picked 2, one for the jumps & one for the flat. Cecil due to his old days when he was champion trainer & had Cauthen riding for him. Nicholls for his achievements in recent years, second to none these days over the jumps & to win the last 3 Gold cups with Kauto Star (2) & Denman just sums up what this guy has achieved in racing. Favourite Horse - Reference Point This is very hard as i have named Come on the blues, Reference Point above which are two i remember following from the old days. Kauto Star is also up there in my book as is Master Minded especially after the ante post last year before it had ran in public in Britain. Another from 2 years ago is Sierra Vista (sprinter) who i followed every time it ran & was rewarded with a few nice wins.

[Irishbugger]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Jockey: Neil Callan / Tony McCoy NC: The finest exponent of a front-running ride on the planet. An absolute master of controlling the pace and kicking with something left. I'd have his babies. / AP: Absolute genius, wins when he shouldn't, simple as that. Apprentice: Chris Catlin I loved him riding for Ken Ivory, the first stable I followed almost blindly. He never seems to give a bad ride. Still a competent jockey, but when claiming, he was gold. Trainer: Ken Ivory I fell in love with racing on all-weather tracks, with this man master-minding the art of well placed horses. A gambling stable, when the money was down it was time to get on. Did really well, with limited resources and limited horses. Favourite Horse: Ivory's Grab Hire / Shantou / Lord Gyllene / Flagship Uberalles / Motivator - Jesus, sorry, I can't pick, from the low-grade handicapper I had a dream about, to the horse that shone for Frankie, to the national winner who jumped for fun, to the speed machine, obstacle flicking perfection, to the cruising maestro ..... I could name 50 more and I'd love them all too.

[mowgli77]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Jockey - Kieren Fallon. I can not remember the likes of Lester Piggott, Willie Carson, Steve Cauthen and caught Pat Eddery towards the end of his career. From all the jockeys I've ever watched Fallon stands out a mile, seems to get an extra 5%-10% out of a horse that other jockeys can't, similar to McCoy over the jumps, great judge of pace, never seems to panic and has won some memorable Gp1 races. Over the jumps I like Choc Thornton, always shaving his head for charity and is apparently a very nice down to earth bloke with a sound attitude. Has made me plenty of cash on horses like My Way De Solzen and Voy Por Ustedes. Apprentice - Keith Dalgleish. This lad was like a beanpole, really tall, looked nothing like a jockey and struggled to make the weight for his claim yet rode plenty of winners for Mark Johnstone before he had to give up the job and work in the stables. Might not have been the best jockey in the world but to try and live his dream for that long knowing it would have to end must have been hard. He was interviewed a while back on Racing UK and I did not recognise him, really filled out now and still working in racing. Admire him for trying his best to make a career as a jockey before having to be realistic and quit. Trainer - Michael Stoute. Dominated top class group races for years and provided plenty of top class rides for Kieren Fallon, seems quite down to earth and thankfully does not wear a silly trilby or wax jacket like so many other racing folk. Was good enough to let Fallon ride out for him during his ban which ensured he was not left out in the wilderness and was still involved with horses on a daily basis, helping him with fitness levels and riding work. Seems like a nice guy with a genuine affection for racing. Jumps trainer would be Alan King, seems to get his horses to peak around Cheltenham/Aintree time, does not have the firepower of Paul Nicholls yet always runs him close at the festival and again seems like a really decent fella. Favourite Horse - Impossible to name one, favourite flat horses were Azamour, Falbrav, Russian Rhythm and Ouija Board, especially the latter as it just ran so many great races and had a blinding turn of foot. Over the jumps it is Inglis Drever, My Way De Solzen, Voy Por Ustedes and Star De Mohaison, personal favourites of mine that really got me interested in a side of racing I had ignored for too long.

[Irishbugger]

Re: Name your favourite ...... 'Falbrav' :notworthy

[Jonesy Knows]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Jockey - AP McCoy The greatest Jockey that ever lived and still going strong. Nobody better at galvanising a horse in a finish...even seemingly lost causes, he gives it everything. Champion Jockey: 995/6, 1996/7, 1997/8, 1998/9, 1999/2000, 2000/1, 2001/2, 2002/3, 2003/4, 2004/5, 2005/6, 2006/7, 2007/8, 2008/9 Best season: 289 winners in 2001/2 - A British jumps record. Recorded his 3,000th winner in February this year! The Guy is an absolute legend! Apprentice/Claiming Jockey - AP McCoy When he came over here from Ireland in his first season in 1994/95 he was Champion Conditional riding a record 74 winners. The following season he was Champion Jockey. Trainer - Martin Pipe Champion Trainer 15 times and on 8 occasions he trained over 200 winners in a season. Also with a record tally of 243 in 1999-2000 and an amazing lifetime tally of 4183 European winners. He trained 34 Chetenham Festival winners including 2 Champion Hurdlers, a Gold Cup & a Grand National. He was also decent with his horses on the flat gaining 256 victories including 6 Royal Ascot winners. Horse - Dancing Brave The most devastating burst of pace on a horse that I have ever seen was possessed by Dancing Brave. He would have been unbeaten on these shores if it had not been for a ridiculous ride by Greville Starkey in The Derby in 1986. He won The Craven, 2,000 Guineas, King George, The Eclipse & The Prix De L'Arc De Triomphe. I think there will be nobody better as a combination of Pipe & McCoy. I won so much money from following them. Dancing Brave was probably the 1st reason why I got into racing it was a wonder horse and although I used to watch the Racing on TV with my Dad when I was younger this horse completely grabbed my attention by it's speed and I got my Dad to back it for me every time it won. I was devastated when it got beat in The Derby and I wanted to kick the shit out of Starkey! Because if it wasn't for him this horse would be talked about like "Pegasus"!

[runadrum]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Jockey - Joe Mercer, mainly due to his association with Brigadier Gerard and John Reid during the Sangster/Chapple-Hyam years. Trainer - leaving aside those who have trained ours, I guess Dick Hern as a master of the craft and Gordon Richards over jumps. Horse - jumps first - Sea Pigeon. Loved him when he was racing and was honoured much later to meet him in person on a weekly basis after discovering, without realising, that we had chosen his retirement home as the stud at which we would board our own horses. On the flat - Start with Brigadier Gerard before my betting days (was 10 when he won the Guineas) followed by Ahonoora (my first remembered winning bet) and through him his sons Dr Devious and Chaddleworth (the father of our second-born). More recently - Giant's Causeway, a real tough horse. Like most people I guess, I could name far more equine favourites than human.

[markmywords]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Jockey - Fallon :consistent Trainer - Mrs P Sly : she knocks out some big priced winners Horse - Young kenny : Was the first horse I could rely on to bet I would up my stake to £5 ew on him and he rarely let me down should have been a martelll victor

[fintron]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Favourite jockey Flat: Ryan Moore.I never worry about them being given a poor ride when Ryan is on. If its good enough, he will win with it. Really looking forward to seeing him to battle with Fallon next year, if Keiron stays clean. Jumps: Robert Thornton. Perhaps not as gifted as AP in terms of ability but talented nonetheless, another that always gives his horse a chance of winning and can be followed regularly, with better value available on his mounts than that of the likes of Ruby and McCoy. Favourite apprentice Flat: William Buick. The baby-faced-assassin looks like he is barely out of nappies but behind the youthful exterior is an intelligent young man that will be up there with the best of them in the years to come IMO. Jumps: Tjade Collier. Rides for Sue Smith, they often team up on juicy outsiders, especially around the Yorkshire tracks. I'm not sure if the Dutchman has now ridden out his claim, but will keep an eye out for at the usual places like Wetherby and Catterick over the winter. Favourite trainer Flat: Sir Michael Stoute. I don't know if anyone has ever noticed but I always refer to the Barbados-born-bookiebasher by his full title, and that is because I have the utmost respect for Sir Michael and rate him as one of the best around. In terms of money spent on horses vs prize money won he would slaughter Godolphin, and he comes without all the guesswork of Aidan O'Brien - who is punter unfriendly at the best of times - yet still wins top class races with some regularity. The soft spot I've had for a few years, with horses such as Conduit (St Leger) and Kingsgate Native (this season) winning at big prices to show you can back them at good prices for him too. Jumps: Alan King. My policy at Cheltenham is just to back every runner from this yard. Last year it threw up Katchit in the Champion Hurdle, amongst others, and although it was less profitable this season, Oh Crick went in at big odds and Medermit came ever so close when flashing home on day one. What I said for Choc goes for King really, you can get good value on the yards runners, as they are less hyped than Paul Nicholls, yet he still bangs in some great winners. Favourite horse Flat: Borderlescott. In terms of level stakes profit I am massively ahead with this one. Since 2006 I have been lucky enough to back him for all of his big wins. That includes in the '06 Stewards Cup, and the '08 and '09 Nunthorpes, as well as many times when I've backed him to place only. Since I began following him he has been out of the frame only four times in thirty starts, that is incredible consistency. He is likeable sort that always runs his race. His win in this years Nunthorpe was my biggest win of the season at the time, and I felt obliged to write to Robin Bastiman after to praise his small yard, based at Wetherby less than a hour from my house, to thank him and his team for the terrific work they have done with this horse. Jumps: Madison du Berlais. I just love this one for taking Denman to the cleaners on flat tracks last season. I can understand why Denman has so many fans but a horse that is sent off circa evens every time it runs is not my cup of tea so I was delighted to jump onto the MdB bandwaggon and be on for his wins at Kempton and Aintree last season - both at big prices. I hope the Scudamore's have kept it in good shape ahead of the forthcoming season and that the headgear continues to do the trick as he will no doubt be overpriced when up against Denman in future.

[StuSimmy]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Favourite Jockeys For the Flat I would have to say Kieran Fallon just because the first horse I ever backed at a very young age he was on and it won. Ever since then I always remembered his name and I think pretty much 90% of horses I would get my dad to put on for me, Fallon would be on top. Glad he is back and if I fancy a horse now, it will be a big positive if his name is next to it as the horses Jockey. Jumpswise it has to be AP McCoy the guy is a legend, simple as. Never gives up on a horse even if it is just to finish in 3rd place. The best one that sticks in my mind is Wichita Lineman at Cheltenham this year, the horse looked like it had no chance of winning when it blundered halfway round but McCoy dug deep and got the horse to win in fantastic fashion. This is just one of several occasions this has happened. Superb jockey. Favourite Trainer Definately Mark Johnston. Just before I started getting into horse racing properly around February 2008 I had a few punts on the A/W. Had two winners that day and both were Johnston's horses. Ever since then I looked at the racecards everyday and had a punt on all his horses up until around summer. I still look out for his horses and back several but obviously with the right study now I don't back them all. Can't really think of a favourite horse or apprentice at this moment in time but might add to it.

[SteveO]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Favourite jockey - Keiran Fallon. The greatest flat jockey I've seen during my lifetime. Piggott is probably the best ever but I only recall bits and pieces of him. Despite all the scandal if I backed a horse Fallon is the jockey whom I'd prefer to be on my mount. Favourite apprentice - Lisa Jones This South African lady was a great jockey and I won quite a few bets when she was a 7lb 5lb claimer. Haven't heard of her since, don't know if she retired or rides elsewhere? Favourite horse - Celtic Mill/Quito Began following Celtic Mill back in 93 I think and in one race Quito managed to pip in on the line at a double figure price. Quito went on to bigger an better things and picked up a Group1 and I've never seen a gutsier horse over 6 - 7f. Made more money on Celtic Mill though than any other horse I ever backed but sadly he never progressed in the way that Quito did the highest rated race he ever won was a listed race.

[jtw1]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Fav Jockey - PIGGOTT was / is / has been the best ......... EVER . Steve Cauthen was tops when i was was really following our 4-legged friends. , stylish and strong . Trainer - Flat - CECIL had few better in his heyday and you knew your's was always a trier . NH - G RICHARDS / M DICKINSON , was priveliged to see some of the best they had running at Kelso /Ayr when they were at the peak of their training career . Horse - Flat - GOLDHILLS PRIDE , who you might ask and why not , but i followed this one after seeing him win his 1st at Mussslburgh , he was good enough to run at Ascot and the highlight was winning the old Portland Handicap at the St Leger meeting @ 16/1 :dude Always ran to win . CROW - Brilliant French trained winner of the '76 St Leger and a good few others to boot -

NH - SEA PIGEON and PEATY SANDY were 2 i never missed when they ran .........good memories ;)

[marron]

Re: Name your favourite ...... Always liked to watch Lough Derg race, never gives up!