A review of racing on 17th July and a look ahead to 24th.

The heat has different effects on us all, equine and human.  For some, it improves our performance and for others, we do things which we would not normally do.

On the hottest race day of the year at Worcester so far, Lawney Hill who trains in Oxfordshire ran Cap Elorn in the opening novice handicap chase last week.

The horse’s results to date were 0 from 11 starts and the expectation of a win was therefore, understandably not that high.

However, with the stable in good form, win he did, having been well beaten at the course the previous week.

The trainer clearly thought she was safe in announcing she would jump into the large plastic pool in the middle of the parade ring, which is intended for cooling horses, if he did get his nose in front.  It was a good job she was wearing shorts for her dip!

The current warm spell is undoubtedly having an effect on the number of horses running at all the courses, as some trainers wait for the weather to break.

Declarations at Worcester have held up better than some, with 73 horses intended to run at the course last week, and entries for tomorrow’s race afternoon looking strong.

The very successful Jonjo O’Neill / Tony McCoy machine marches on.  Arriving at Pitchcroft via helicopter after a combined afternoon win at Uttoxeter, O’Neill and McCoy teamed up at our evening meeting for a JP McManus owned double, courtesy of Whistling Senator and Don’t Be Late.  O’Neill summed up the wins as ‘a good day at the office’.

Another trainer currently at the top of his game is Peter Bowen, whose only Worcester runner last week, the flat bred G’Dai Sydney followed up his Stratford win with a victory in the bumper contributing to his trainer’s current strike rate of almost 40%.

There were big celebrations in Claines over the weekend when Richard Newland’s Bobowen won the listed Market Rasen Summer Plate over 2 miles and 6 furlongs.

Newland ran 3 horses in the race and was rewarded with top honours by the Sam Twisten-Davies ridden Bobowen, who also ran at Worcester earlier in the month.

Indeed, the first 3 horses home in that feature race, including the winner, Paul Nicholls’ Woolcombe Folly who came second and third placed former Cheltenham Festival winner, Finger on the Pulse, trained by Jonjo O’Neill have all run at Worcester this summer.

This warm weather takes me back a few years to a trip during the same week to Jersey’s Les Landes racecourse, for what was a very hot Channel Islands Champion hurdle day.

For anyone who has never been to this delightful course, I can highly recommend a visit.  The track sits balanced on the cliff tops overlooking the sea and a sloping bank of grass provides the ideal viewing spot, negating the need for a Grandstand.

The 2013 Champion hurdle run at the course last week was won by I Had Him, owned by a delighted Sir Alex Ferguson, who described himself as ‘over the moon’ with the result.

Afternoon racing at Worcester continues tomorrow with gates opening at 12.20pm.