Cheltenham 2008

[Treasurer]

how about something like the Racing Post's Stable Competition? 

[AZOffaly]

How does that work? I have the RP today, but I haven't looked at it yet. Was planning to have a gander tonight.

[Treasurer]

Look at it online  http://www.selectastable.co.uk/CleverTV/en/tmg/rp990/15730/selectteams.do

Basically ten horses in (one each in ten of the big races), two selected as bankers, could just borrow their scoring system..

[Louth Exile]

True enough. I suppose your way would be better, but a lot of people would be confused I think, especially those that don't like betting.

We'll probably run a sweepstakes on the Gold Cup anyway, maybe I'll run a sweep on the big race every day.

Gold cup is not a great one for a sweep this year with the top two so far ahead of everyone else, there are 7 of us in the office so I am going to pick the top 7 in the betting in a race each day. €5 a man, winner gets the €35 and there are no long shots  In the event of the winner coming from outside the top 7 the pool fund rolls over until the next day

[Louth Exile]

Cheltenham escapes worst of storms

Cheltenham racecourse has survived the forecast storms so far, with clerk of the course Simon Claisse expecting only a little more rain before the start of the Festival.

Strong wind and heavy rain were forecast over the weekend but Prestbury Park has avoided the worst of the weather and it´s all systems go for the four-day racing bonanza.

"It hasn´t been so bad here," said Claisse. "We had wins up to 50mph last night and they could have been 60 or 70mph so I think we got away quite lightly.

"We´ve had 10mm of rain, most of it came in the early hours of this morning. I´ve just changed the going on the Old Course which will be used on Tuesday and Wednesday to Good-Good to Soft in places, the Cross Country course remains Good and the New Course for Thursday and Friday is Good to Soft-Good in places.

"We expect to get a little more rain later today and a little more tomorrow morning."

http://www.irish-racing.com/v4news2.htm

[AZOffaly]

True enough. I suppose your way would be better, but a lot of people would be confused I think, especially those that don't like betting.

We'll probably run a sweepstakes on the Gold Cup anyway, maybe I'll run a sweep on the big race every day.

Gold cup is not a great one for a sweep this year with the top two so far ahead of everyone else, there are 7 of us in the office so I am going to pick the top 7 in the betting in a race each day. €5 a man, winner gets the €35 and there are no long shots  In the event of the winner coming from outside the top 7 the pool fund rolls over until the next day

That sounds good.

[Louth Exile]

True enough. I suppose your way would be better, but a lot of people would be confused I think, especially those that don't like betting.

We'll probably run a sweepstakes on the Gold Cup anyway, maybe I'll run a sweep on the big race every day.

Gold cup is not a great one for a sweep this year with the top two so far ahead of everyone else, there are 7 of us in the office so I am going to pick the top 7 in the betting in a race each day. €5 a man, winner gets the €35 and there are no long shots  In the event of the winner coming from outside the top 7 the pool fund rolls over until the next day

That sounds good.

I thought so too, I forgot I was dealing with women though!! They first of all couldn't understand the simple concept, then decided that they were going to be the next generation of JP's and want to bust the bookies with their €5 instead as "we'll make more money that way" latent greed is what I think, anyways was a nice simple idea until I remembered that I work with women 

[AZOffaly]

God forbid they might spend a tenner. €5 with you and €5 breaking Paddy Power. I will face the same hurdles, no pun intended.


Just floated the idea. Lukewarm so far. How about instead of rolling over to the next day, the winner is the best placed of the horses ye picked?

[Louth Exile]

God forbid they might spend a tenner. €5 with you and €5 breaking Paddy Power. I will face the same hurdles, no pun intended.


Just floated the idea. Lukewarm so far. How about instead of rolling over to the next day, the winner is the best placed of the horses ye picked?

Absolutely, why not, whichever receives the best repsonse from the ladies, definitley the way to go on the friday anyway (unless it rools over to the midlands national in uttoxeter or something like that  )

[pintsofguinness]

Who's everyone backing tomorrow?

Pints thinks he'll go with Deep purple in the 2.00
Kruguyrova in the 2.35
Katchit in the 3.15

[Nimbus]

Harchibald is a bit of a drifter this past few hours.

[Homer]

Harchibald is a bit of a drifter this past few hours.

Needs good ground and won't get it.

[Hardy]

I'm poorly prepared for Cheltenham and haven't made up my mind about much, but I'm going strongly for Sublimity tomorrow, especially with  the ground going against Harchibald. You'd be worried by how lightly he's been raced, but it did him no harm last year. I'd ignore his run in December - he was nowhere near fit (Mick Fitz was saying he couldn't believe how fat he was walking around behind him at the start). He has been tuned specifically for this race. I know you could say that about every horse in it, but this team have got it spot on before and know what they're doing.

Sizing Europe is not good value based on his form. He may turn out to be super, but I don't think we know that yet and in retrospect he didn't beat an awful lot in the AIG and his other main claim to favouritism is a win in a handicap (albeit over course and distance) last November. November handicap form means nothing now and there's nothing there in my opinion to justify investing at 5/2 at best and certainly nothing on his form sheet to match the horses Sublimity left behind him in last year's race. And I don't see anything else in the race that's better than what Sublimity beat last year.

[Louth Exile]

The ground will probably inconvenience harchibald more, but sublimity likes good ground too! Fitz also came out with a great one about him at the preview night that I was (referring to last years race) "He went by me like we were standing in a lay by and Carberry pulling double"

I agree that sizing europe is no price, was listening to them on the radio on the way home and thought to myself that horse should be about 4's and would have considered him at that, but 9/4 or 5/2 is crazy stuff. I wouldn't say he beat nothing in the AIG though!! Conor O'Dwyer said that he went as fast as he ever went on Hardy that day and Donn Mc Clean keeps banging on about the time of the race compared to the maiden hurdle and the bumper that day. It is good form in my book, my concern about him is that is the only real top class form he has. To use that old racing phrase, he could be anything! And maybe by this time tommow he will be, but at that price I would have no interest in punting on him.

[Shamrock Shore]

Doing an e/w double on Captain Ceebee and Subliminity.

I think I got this @ 40/1 - and shure why not?