Peter Bowen hits the mark in Cartmel feature
23/07/2012
As the runners headed down by the woodside with two to jump, Olympian Boy must have been trading at odds on with the betting exchange as he seemed to be cantering all over his rivals with Paul Moloney not moving a muscle on board.
But after cruising to the front jumping the last, the recent Newton Abbot winner quickly ran out of steam on the long run in and Moore’s persistence on Lamboro Lad carried him into the lead and away for a comfortable 14 lengths success. Olympian Boy finished the same distance ahead of the third horse Iona Days.
Lucy Alexander, the most exciting female jump jockey for a long time, produced another tip-top performance in the saddle to bring home 20-1 shot Pete in the Betfair Sponsors The Stable Staff Canteen Handicap Chase.
Not many riders get the better of Jason Maguire in a tight finish, but just when it seemed he would complete a quick double with Saturday’s Cartmel winner Red Kingdom, Pete came through to snatch it by half-a-length.
Trainer Barry Murtagh was full of praise for his jockey saying: “Pete has ability, but is a very frustrating horse and doesn’t always do himself justice, but Lucy has given him a peach of a ride here. That was a great riding performance”.
The win means Lucy Alexander is now a close second behind Jason Maguire in this year’s Cartmel Jockeys’ Challenge.
The disappointment of having victory snatched away for Red Kingdom’s trainer Dianne Sayer did not last long as the Penrith handler was quickly on the mark with Solis in the Burlington Stone Handicap Hurdle.
Although there were doubts about the gelding’s ability to see out the 2m6f trip, jockey Ryan Mania convinced owner Dennis Coppola to run and the decision was fully justified with an easy victory by 13 lengths from Dundock.
Alan Lamont has had lots of winners all over the country, but the Scotsman, who now lives in Leicester had never had a runner at Cartmel before Nodforms Violet won the Betfair Don’t Settle For Less Beginners Chase.
“When I lived in Edinburgh, I used to spend every bank holiday at Cartmel. I would travel down, stay at Grange-over-Sands and come racing here and I always said I would love to have a runner here. It’s a fantastic place and I am delighted that my first runner is a winner” he said.
