What does wind surgery on a racehorse involve?

Since January 19, 2018, racehorse trainers in Britain have been required to declare when any horse in their yard, which has previously raced, has undergone any form of wind surgery. For the sake of simplicity, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) does not require the type of wind surgery to be made public, so any horse having its first or second run since a procedure to improve the function of its upper airway is denoted by the small letter ‘w’ next to its name on the racecard.

Wind surgery can be a confusing subject to anyone other than a qualified veterinary surgeon, but the BHA rule is specifically intended to cover epiglottic surgery, tie back, tie forward and hobdaying operations and soft palate cautery. Epiglottic surgery may be required to correct a condition known as epiglottic entrapment, when structures in the larynx, or voice box, become abnormal and create breathing difficulties. Likewise, a hobday, or tie back, procedure involves removing the left vocal cord, or permanently suturing it, to prevent obstruction of the airway.

A tie forward procedure, on the other hand, pulls the larynx upwards and forwards, so that it prevents displacement of the soft tissue at the back of the mouth, a.k.a. the ‘soft palate’; soft palate cautery, as the name suggests, involves burning the surface of the tissue to stiffen it, so that it does not become unstable during strenuous exercise.

Who rode Harbinger in the King George?

According to Timeform, Harbinger remains the co-eighth highest rated Flat horse since ratings were first published in 1948. Indeed, his Timeform Annual Rating of 140 – albeit adjudged, effectively, on just race – was the equivalent of that achieved by Shergar, Dancing Brave and Shergar.

A son of Dansili, whose progeny typically progess extremely well, Harbinger won two of his five starts as a 3-year-old, including the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood, but did not reach the peak of his powers until his 4-year-old campaign, in 2010. That season, he reappeared with an impressive, 3-length win in the John Porter Stakes at Newbury, followed up in the Ormonde Stakes at Chester and completed a hat-trick in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Having been ridden, exclusively, by Ryan Moore on his first eight starts, Harbinger was passed over by his regular jockey on his first attempt at Group 1 level, in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot. Perhaps understandably, Moore, who chose to ride his Derby-winning stable companion, Workforce, instead, with French jockey Olivier Peslier picking up the spare ride on Harbinger.

Some ‘spare’ it proved, too. Sent off at 4/1 second favourite behind Workforce, Harbinger was held up fourth of the six runners in the early stages, but was travelling best of all turning for home and when he ranged alongside his toiling rivals at the two-furlong marker the race was all but over. In the closing stages, he cruised clear to beat the Irish Derby winner, Cape Blanco by a record 11 lengths.

 

Is a Four-Fold Each-Way Accumulator a Good Bet?

There are many types of multi bets from the simple to truly extravagant. The most basic could be a win treble consisting of 3 selections while a Super Heinz has 7 and an amazing 120 bets with 21 doubles, 35 trebles, 35 four-folds, 21 five-folds, 7 six-folds and one 7 horse accumulator.

There is literally something for everyone.

These types of bets are the bread and butter of bookmakers and those who wager are sometimes called mug punters.

It’s worth noting that even professional gambler Jack Ramsden made use of this bet type winning hundreds of thousands.

The pro side of any accumulator is that you can win a large sum of money for small change.

Stories of a lucky punters winning six-figure payouts come from such bets. Who could forget back in 1996 when Frankie Dettori rode seven winners going through the card at Ascot. In fact, the odds of that accumulator were 25,051/1.

A bet of £40 would have won over £1M.

The downside is that most punters lose.

The trouble with multi bets is that one loser means your bet is almost obliterated. For example, a Canadian bet consisting of 5 selections and 26 bets would result in 15 bets going astray with a solitary loser.

This point really shows the difficulty of winning with these bets.

The paradox of multi bets is they give the illusion you have more chance of winning. Giving the impression you can afford to make a risky selection. In truth, you simply cannot afford one loser. Trying to pick 4 winning favourites is hard work let alone a the rag (outsider).

How often have you including one big-priced selection to achieve that elusive big win?

In my opinion, a four-fold each-way accumulator is a bet that gives you the chance of winning big but also has an aspect of safety involved, which is no bad thing when you consider the implications of one loss with an exotic wagers.

With the four-fold accumulator you need only to have your horses placed to get your stake money back if not win a few quid. It’s true such bets are all or nothing and the win side of the bet you need all four to make the big cash. However, you always have the option of laying off some of the potential win if you have three winners and fearful the last selection will fall short.

From experience, I would suggest you just bite the bullet and let them run and go for gold.

My advice for making multi bets pay is to only bet when you are confident you have very strong selections. A weak link will see your betting slip crash and burn. Safety first are the keywords to see a return on your stake.

It’s been 25-years since one lucky punter won £500,000 on Frankie Dettori’s Magnificent Seven and you could well be waiting another quarter of a century for the next to happen.

Don’t push your luck too far.

Which horse was Sheikh Mohammed’s first British Classic winner?

Of course, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emir of Dubai, has owned numerous British Classic winners. They have either borne his own maroon and white silks, which were first registered in 1977, or the royal blue silks of Godolphin, which began its international operation in 1994. The first of them was, in fact, Oh So Sharp who, in 1985, just came out best in a three-way photograph with Al Bahathri and Bella Colora in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket, winning by a short head and the same. For the record, the first British Classic winner in Godolphin colours was Balanchine who, in 1994, won the Oaks at Epsom, having previously been beaten the minimum margin in the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket.

Trained by Henry, later Sir Henry, Cecil and ridden throughout her 3-year-old campaign by Steve Cauthen, Oh So Sharp went on to find further fame by completing the Fillies’ Triple Crown. Sent off 6/4 favourite for the Oaks, she won easily, by six lengths. Two defeats, by Petoski in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot and by Commanche Run in what is now the Juddmonte International Stakes at York, followed, but Oh So Sharp was still sent off 8/11 favourite for the St. Leger at Doncaster in September. She could never quite shake off the attentions of her stable companion Lanfranco or Phardante, but won by three-quarters of a length and a head to preserve her place in history.

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