Kelso returns along with the onset of man flu, both inevitable with the changing of the seasons and the falling of the leaves. Saturday night I knew it was coming and Sunday I set off with a sense of impending misery, not because they give the results out with the racecard at Kelso, but because the in car sneeze rate was around 1 a mile. Alfie joined us again for a watching brief and I apologised up front for my bad humour, Simon opined that he was unlikely to notice any difference- he's settling in nicely, the boy. Anyway, that's my excuse/reason for the late posting of this blog and also for its brevity. Late and short- you win twice you lucky people.
1) Blow a Fortune for the max and smashed up favourite Step Out for a bit meant we had a small win on original favourite Jumping Susie but the other jackpots never featured and we were off to a modest start.
2) Stood 2nd and 3rd favs for 2/3 max, jolly onside and it looked like we were hitting a loss when Faithful Flyer was cruising but The Navigator stayed on gamely and we had a solid enough win with a bit of a top up as the each way bogey, Famous Liss, went unplaced.
3) Fav 1/2 out to evens and a nasty looking each way race meant the book was as bad as you'd expect it to be. Our friend SD had a cheeky each way "fractions" bet which led to a good 30 second hunt for the actual fractions key on the keyboard- it'd been 6 months since we'd last been asked. It's the pink one in the middle and we eventually found it. A tidy bet as the board price was at a tiny win and place margin for us and the fractions tipped the odds very slightly in our punter's favour- but we're nice like that. 20 minutes later the odds were decidedly in his favour as the field halved in price with the massive drift at the top of the market.
"You should've laid it on the machine when you opened" was the advice we received as the jolly got snagged on the line. In fairness, it was great advice and that sort of opinion is always appreciated on the CairnBet stand. If we were being a tad picky, we could do with knowing that it was going to double in price, hit 1.01 in running and then get snagged on the line by a nose 30 minutes before the off rather than 30 seconds after the end of the race, as we'd now be on a beach this week but, as I say, that is being a tad picky.
Anyway, half max loss in win book, a loss that was, almost inevitably, doubled in the place market with a third of the total loss nabbed back in the "betting without" market. The ring twirled, we sagged.
4) Done on a rag alert. Well, if not quite a rag, then a good winner for the traditional layers. And not quite "done" either as we played a 0-0 draw, but getting the 2/1 fav beaten by one half way down the market would normally indicate a result. Not this time. As in race 3, this is how we do it and we take it on the chin when it goes against us. Not all bad though as another Mr Miyagi moment for me as Simon told every single punter they'd "Do No Wrong" with every bet on the 2nd favourite. Wax on, wax off.
Arc break. Small win on Bluestocking as the top 4 in the market were the top 4 in the race. Had to check it was the Arc we'd priced up, and not a novice hurdle we'd inadvertently bet on at Uttoxeter instead.
5) More like it! A decent result for both the take what you stand and the straight batters as Breizh River gave us a lovely win from Malystic who would also have been on the profit side of the ledger. Nicely ahead again with the joy of split race(s) to come. We were smelling a very decent day.
6) Stood Their She Goes and OGradys Hill for the max along with Iwa which meant we got away with another nil - nil job on the well bet jolly Rickety Gate. And, yes I did break into song with every bet on the 2nd fav. I was sick, but the feeling still remained. I thank you.
7) Stupid split race. Been better off with 6. Another jolly to close proceedings and this time we didn't avoid it with a half max
A wages day, but no more, when with 2 to go a more substantial day looked a distinct possibility.
I've already failed the fitness test for Hexham on Saturday- I'm asthmatic and the cold is sitting stoically on my chest, unlikely to shift until next week. So Kelso again at the end of the month is our next time out. Until then...
Comments