Owners visit

Yesterday it was great to welcome James & Jane Symonds to the yard to see their horse, Fairwood Dante, work on the grass.  The ground was lovely, as we have had quite a bit of rain!  We are also lucky because if it doesn’t rain, we have a lovely place we try and only use in the summer, which has great old downland turf with moss in it, and it is always springy.

Fairwood Dante is back galloping and I am very pleased with him and he is settling great and moving well.  We are hopeful that we can give his sporting owners some fun during the winter. 

Dante (the dog!) on the left with James and Jane Symonds (and Merlin the black lab), coming to visit Fairwood Dante

We also had a lovely lunch at the Symonds’ last Sunday where I was lucky to sit opposite Toby Balding.  It was great to talk with him about the past and people we knew in common.  He has trained Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and Grand National winners plus Breeder’s Cup Chases (with Morley Street).  I could have spoken with him for hours.  I have great respect for the Baldings as I started life in racing as an apprentice with Toby’s brother Ian.   Although I was always going to go jumping, Sue Horton found me the job at Ian Balding’s flat yard when I was 14 and I can’t tell you how much I learnt there.