Go Pointing - Vol 33

GOPOINTING

DAZZLING DARREN BOWS OUT IN STYLE

COVER PHOTO: Tim Holt

POINTING POINTERS

THE POINT-TO-POINT PODCAST

Pointing Pointers is a regular podcast hosted by stud owner Ben Atkins and former jockey Sam Davies-Thomas, who are frequently joined by a cast of characters from the point-to-point community. Episodes range in length from ten minute snippets to hour-long in-depth interviews and cover topics ranging from meeting reviews and previews to reflections on the state of the sport from leading jockeys, trainers and owners.

All episodes for the 2023/2024 season will be sponsored for the first time by the PPORA, along with Connollys Red Mills and Foran Equine Ben and Sam also have a weekly slot every Wednesday on Nick Luck’s popular racing podcast. sponsored by ThoroughBid

The easiest way to listen to Pointing Pointers is to visit pointingpointers.co.uk and click the “Listen Now” button. This takes you directly to the latest episodes, and provides you with a link to listen on your preferred podcast platform. The podcast is available on Spotify, Anchor, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Pocket Casts and RadioPublic, or in your preferred web browser

This season, you are also able to watch and listen via YouTube where the Pointing Pointers page will host all episodes.

Photo: Alun Sedgmore

ON THE CLOCK

There were no fast figures recorded at the final meeting of the season but there was an excellent example of how a slowly run affair can lead to a shock result. Premier D’Troice (FR) was sent off at short odds to land the Grass Roots Conditions but, in a race run some 14 seconds slower than the Restricted, he was held up in last place and although staging an effort three from home, could not make up the ground. Victory went instead to Bistouri D’ Honore (74) who recorded a figure some two and a half stone below the form assessment of the race He had failed to reach the placings in 5 previous outings and is no doubt flattered by this result – although clearly better suited to these faster conditions than the winter ground he had previously encountered.

So, an extraordinary season came to a close with a record number of abandonments leading to several areas having an enforced break of almost two months and several horses being roughed off as the winter rains failed to relent.

Despite this there were some memorable performances both at the top end, with a heartwarming success for Sine Nomine at Cheltenham, and in the maidens, with those such as Jet Smart and Miami Magic setting a decent standard. Bring on November!

Fastest Performances

1. Its on The Line 137

2. Time Leader 133

3. Benny’s King 132

4. Sine Nomine (f)131

5. Annamix 130 6. Rebel Dawn Rising 130 7. Billaway 129 8. D’Jango 129

9. Famous Clermont 128

10.Forest Chimes 128

11. Isakandar Pecos128

12. What a Glance128

Mixed Open Race runners at Umberleigh

Photo: Tim Holt

IN TH E FRAM E

Ffree Pedro, Ed Vaughan (1st) Restricted Race

Photo: Tim Holt

Bistouri d’Honore, Alice Procter (1st) Conditions (Level 2) For Grass Roots Riders

Photo: Tim Holt

E

Just A Mystery, James King (1st) Maiden Race

Photo: Tim Holt

Ringsend John, Ed Vaughan (1st) Intermediate Race

Photo: Tim Holt

SPOTLIGHT ON: Darren Edwards

By Carl Evans

Left – Jet Smart Photos: Neale Blackburn Right, Top – Chosen Lucky, Middle – Hell Red, Bottom – Sykes Photos: Tim Holt

REPORTS

THE TORRINGTON FARMERS FOXHOUNDS

SUNDAY 8TH JUNE 2024

By Granville Taylor

Quite a collection of memorable moments signalled the end of the 2023/24 pointto-point season on Saturday (8th June) at the Torrington Farmers meeting at Umberleigh, North Devon.

Darren Edwards went into retirement from the saddle in a blaze of glory by riding a double, while teenage Welsh schoolboy Ed Vaughan reached a record number of point-to-point winners in a season for a novice rider

One of the leading riders in the country, the 39-year-old Devon born rider Darren Edwards had ridden the first of his 330 career point-to-point winners on Gerald Greenway’s Blade of Fortune at Chipley Park in the foot and mouth ravaged year of 2001. Three years later he partnered the Martin Pipe trained Maximize to a Cheltenham festival success in the Kim Muir Memorial, one of his 30 winners under rules.

In recent years a link with the Dean Summersby yard has provided him with the majority of his winners, and it was fitting that his final day in the saddle would provide that duo with a double

Lakota Warrior started the day well for them in the colours of John Gardener and Torben Hughes, displaying his toughness by defying a 10lbs penalty in the Area Conditions race This was the eight-yearolds third success of the season, just six days since finishing a creditable third in a hot Ladies’ race at Bratton Down. “He is a spring horse and was struggling in the soft ground in the winter His coat goes and he needs the sun on his back. He coughed a couple of times in the week though and this is not really his ideal track, but he has earned a break now,” explained the trainer, as the successful rider performed a Frankie Dettori style leap from the saddle, much to the delight of the large crowd gathered around the unsaddling area.

That was just a practice jump really because the rider repeated the leap when Dorrells Pierjo went on to outclass his seven rivals in the Mixed Open. This time it was his final ride, and he couldn’t avoid the traditional ducking by his fellow jockeys (and I also spotted Dean Summersby in the gang) heaving him into the water trough.

The Lifton trainer has certainly rejuvenated Dorrells Pierji, who was winning races for such luminaries as Willie Mullins and Dan Skelton in his younger days The gelding has now won five times in the last six weeks. The 11-year-old looked in trouble entering the final circuit but cut through the field stylishly before heading the luckless Slievegar (Toby McCain -Mitchell) at the top of the hill. He has certainly given his quartet of current owners, Nick Banks, Will Dodd, Dan Stevenson and Alfie Gibson plenty of fun. “There was a lot against him today,” said Edwards.“The race wasn’t run to suit and I didn’t want

Lakota Warrior kicked off a winning finale for Darren Edwards

Photo: Tim Holt

him to quicken more than once.” As an added bonus this win gave the Edwards / Summersby combination their century of pointing winners together It will also be their last together because apart from the jockey’s final ride, Dean Summersby is planning to take out a full trainers’ licence later this year

The retiring jockey will still be involved in the sport in his capacity as a member of the PPA Board, but will mainly be concentrating on his role as a partner at the Exeter offices of the Fisher German company.

Ed Vaughan set the seal on his remarkable debut season by overtaking James Bowen’s novice rider record of 30 winners in a season set in 2017 16-yearold Vaughan, still with another year of A levels to undertake, took the Tim Forster Memorial Restricted on the quaintly named Ffree Pedro by a comfortable margin over Miss Carli Fay (Daniel Kyne). 22 of young Vaughan’s winners have been saddled by his father Tim, but this strong

Yeats eight-year-old is trained by Bradley Gibbs, and was notching his third victory of the season, all in the past three weeks. “We got him from Donald McCain. He has had lots of niggles. He got very sick at the end of March with a virus and needed antibiotics. I hope he will be good enough for one of the Intermediate finals next season,” said Hertfordshire based Gibbs.

On a day when a trio of odds-on favourites had put punters on top, the unconsidered 33-1 outsider Bistouri D’Honore galloped on relentlessly under owner/trainer Alice Procter to beat Mr Mafia and the favourite Premier D’Troice in the Grass Roots Conditions race The 12-yearold was scoring for the first time in two years and was giving his 20-year-old rider her first success of the season. “He wants quick ground,” said Alice who is based with Kieran Burke at Whitcombe near Dorchester. The runner up, 15-yearold Mr Mafia, with 14 wins on his CV, and just one year younger than his promising rider Freddie Keighley, has also earned honourable retirement.

It was fitting that the final race of the season should go to the champion jockey James King, who has wrestled the title back from Will Biddick, and reached his half century for the season in the process on Just A Mystery This six-year-old Doyen gelding, now up for sale according to his owner/trainer Max Comley, had been ridden by a claimer all season, but landed a mighty gamble here to give his trainer his 22nd winner of the season. The Naunton based trainer also has his sights set on a full National Hunt licence, “probably later this year.”

So a season which saw dozens of fixtures throughout the country lost to waterlogging ended on a high in the Devon sunshine with the area titles handed out to Darren Edwards (male jockey), Anna Johnston (lady and novice lady jockey) and Ed Vaughan (novice jockey).

LATEST RESULTS

UMBERLEIGH

08/06/2024

2:00 1. LAKOTA WARRIOR (IRE) D. Edwards 1-3F 2. SMITHSCORNER (IRE) Miss E. Herbison 9-2 3. KILRONAN CASTLE (GB) J. Bament 20-1 (4 ran).

2:35 1. FFREE PEDRO (IRE) Edward Vaughan 1-2F 2. MISS CARLI FAY (IRE) D. Kyne 33-1 3. SERENISA (GB) W. Barnett 6-1 (7 ran).

3:10 1. DORRELLS PIERJI (FR) D. Edwards 8-11F 2. SLIEVEGAR (GB) T. McCain-Mitchell 8-1 3. TIGHT CALL (IRE) Edward Vaughan 14-1 (8 ran).

3:45 1. BISTOURI D’HONORE (FR) Miss A. Procter 33-1 2. MR MAFIA (IRE) Freddie Keighley 4-1 3. PREMIER D’TROICE (FR) J. Earnshaw Evens (8 ran).

4:20 1. RINGSEND JOHN (IRE) Edward Vaughan (1 ran).

4:55 1. JUST A MYSTERY (IRE) James King 6-4J 2. GALLONRAY (IRE) M. McIntyre 14-1 3. HEDGEHOPPER (GB) Edward Vaughan 6-1 (9 ran).

1. Knightwick

2. Great Trethew

3. Badbury Rings

4. Dunsmore

UK COURSE MAP

5. Ffos Las Racecourse

6. Hexham Racecourse

7. Larkhill

8. Chaddesley Corbett

9. Wadebridge, Royal Cornwall Showground

10. Alnwick

11. Cocklebarrow

12. Horseheath

13. Buckfastleigh

14. Ampton

15. Sheriff Hutton

16. Revesby Park

17. Chipley Park

18. Friars Haugh

19. Milborne St Andrew

20. Garthorpe

21. Charing

22. Duncombe Park

23. Brocklesby

24. Higham

25. Askham Bryan

26. Kingston Blount

27. Didmarton

28. Charlton Horethorne

29. Howick

30. Charm Park

31. Cothelstone

32. Bishops Court

33. Guilsborough

34. Bangor

35. Dalton Park

36. High Easter

37. Shelfield Park

38. Hutton Rudby

39. Kilworthy

40. Brafield on the Green

41. Ston Easton

42. Overton

43. Trecoed

44. Siddington

45. Cotley

48. Trebudannon

49. Maisemore

50. Tranwell

51. Chilfrome

52. Bitterley

53. Cherrybrook

54. Edgcote

55. Dingley

56. Kimble

57. Sandon

58. Hornby Castle

59. Thorpe Lodge

60. Corbridge

61. Umberleigh

62. Lockinge

63. Lydstep

64. Paxford

65. Eyton-on-Severn

68. Flete Park

69. Parham

70. Woodford

71. Stafford Cross

72. Fakenham

73. Tabley

74. Godstone

75. South Hill

76. Vauterhill

77. Mollington

78. Witton Castle

79. Holnicote

80. Upcott Cross 81. Peper Harow 82. Bratton Down 83. Ystradowen

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