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Turfani was eliminated from her handicap Wednesday, which is a shame because she’s really ready for a run. She was 16th on the list, which would have just given her the last spot in the 2,400-meter race on the fibersand in Deauville, but there were 27 start declared and two had priority because they had been eliminated in previous races. So we wait. The next best chance for her is Aug. 19 in Deauville, this time on the turf, so it has to rain.

Skid, meanwhile, is entered for the bit Tierce handicap on Monday at Clairefontaine, Deauville’s second track. He seems very ready to run, and this would be a good time for him to step up and do well. Nadege will ride, which is a bit of a risk because it’s her first try at the big handicap, but I know she is very motivated to do well and will keep her head together. I am getting quite a bit of pressure to change to one of the big-race jockeys, but I think she deserves her shot, and I’m going to give it to her. Doing well here would help her career a lot, she knows the horse well and she wants to win. Skid will go without the earplugs this time and is stepping up to 1,400 meters in distance, but I think he can stay that and I think the turn might help him.

Pixie has a race the following Friday, also at Clairefonetaine, in an 1,800-meter handicap. She has been lowered to a sensible 29 rating, so she should be in more suitable company now.

Tarruji debuted for me yesterday in a claimer in Deauville, finishing 5th of 16 and closing very well. While he wasn’t claimed, a trainer from Senonnes-Pouance was interested in him for slightly below the claiming price and we sold him on. Tarruji was originally bought with a partner with another client in mind, but this seemed a good deal; we paid just under 5,000 euros for him and he was sold for 10,500, which seemed a bit too good to refuse. He will go on to win, I’m sure, probably at a slightly longer distance.

Meanwhile, we’re looking forward to running Turfani in a 2,400-meter handicap on the fibersand on Wednesday. It’s a bit touch-and-go whether we’ll get in, because the field is limited to 16 and she’s currently sitting in the last spot, with two horses who have priority below her. We’ll know the final list tomorrow so I’m hoping she gets in. If she runs, she will carry the colors of her new owner, Alan Kennedy, for the first time.

The rest of the yard is doing well, and Skid Solo has an entry in the big Tierce handicap at Clairefontaine next week. He’ll be stretching out to 1,400 meters for the first time, but I think he’ll stay the distance. It will also be his first run with a turn, so it will be interesting to see how he handles it. He’s working well, and we know he has all the ability. These big handicaps are tough, but I still like our chances.

Tarruji, one of the three new horses we bought in Newmarket at the July sales, will run in Deauville on Saturday, trying out a 1,500-meter claimer on the fibersand. He seems to have settled in well and certainly likes French cooking. His manger is always licked clean and he’s working well, so now he’ll get a chance to stretch out and show us what he can do.

Turfani, meanwhile, has an entry on Deauville’s fibersand next Wednesday; she works tomorrow and I’ll make a decision on whether or not to run after that.

The two other English newcomers, Blessing Belle and Derringbay, are following divergent paths. Belle is doing very well, and hopefully will be ready to race by mid-August. She had some back stiffness to work out, but seems on the right track now. Derringbay has soundness problems, unfortunately, and I’m not sure when – or if – he will be ready to try something. He may be looking for new employment, but I’ll wait until the end of August to decide. He got loose today and seemed sound as a bell when sprinting for home, but I think there are still issues to resolve. Meanwhile, all eyes on Tarruji…

Pixie’s Blue had a disappointing run in Chantilly yesterday, but Hard Way finished a courageous third in his handicap, so Champagne all around anyway. Hard Way fought well down the stretch and should have been second; he was thrown into the rail by the horse that did eventually finish second, ridden dangerously and nastily by Anthony Caramanolis. There was an inquiry, but the placings weren’t changed, unfortunately. Despite being slammed, Hard Way kept his wits about him and fought on, and we’re very pleased with him. He’s still learning (unfortunately a bad lesson in how NOT to be afraid of other horses) and he will improve from this. Still, picking up 3,600 in purse money, plus the 1,700-euro premium for his being a French-bred horse, is not bad at all.

As for Pixie, I’m not sure what to make of her race yet. Her character has drastically changed from last year, when you couldn’t hang onto her in a race. Now, she lobs along like she doesn’t have a care in the world, which is usually not such a bad thing but in her case is slightly worrying. She did put in a slight effort toward the finish, but too late, finishing only 7th. I will have to find the solution. At the moment, I don’t see many excuses. The ground was slightly softer than Maisons-Laffitte and Chantilly is a right-handed track, while Maisons-Laffitte ran left-handed that day. But I don’t think these factors had much to do with it, frankly. In any case, she seems to have come back well, as did Hard Way. Both horses ate up everything overnight. And so we cracked some Champagne last night. It turned into quite a party, actually, so stay tuned. The party is sure to get bigger…

As most of our friends know, Champagne is a major food group around our house. When you deal with horses, you develop a thirst that only properly chilled Champagne can quench. This can clash with supersition, of course. I have two horses running Monday in Chantilly, and frankly, they both have good chances (Hard Way probably a slightly better chance than Pixie). Then again, I expected to win two races last week and came home with a fourth and a seventh. So, stock the fridge and risk jinxing your chances or make sure you’re prepared with the best happens? We’ve sort of solved the problem by reserving the bottom shelf for bubbly, but sometimes when you’re not paying attention, the stock runs down. I’ve got a good, fun bunch of owners so this can happen pretty quickly.

Hard Way has only 11 runners in his handicap, which is unheard of here – usually the second half of a Tierce would be a full field of 18 or 20. Pixie has slightly tougher company in her claimer, but I think she’s in with a good chance, too. Check this space Tuesday for the excuses if the two of them don’t win…but meanwhile, I’m off to the cellar to pop in a few bottles, just in case.

Pixie and Hard Way galloped this morning in preparation for races Monday in Chantilly. Hard Way will run the 2,400-meter handicap that is the second half of the big “Tierce” race, and Pixie will run an 1,800-meter claimer. Pixie’s trip is a furlong longer than in Maisons-Laffitte, and the company will be tougher because the price is higher, but I think she should progress from her last effort. She came out of that race well and worked well this morning. Hard Way hasn’t run since his handicap in Compiegne on the 30th of June, so I’m anxious to get him back out.

Turfani also worked this morning, but I’m waiting for softer ground before I can risk running her. She is very well but will have to wait until Aug. 5 on the fibersand in Deauville. The new horses, meanwhile, are settling in. Belle got her back put back into place by the osteopath and can now start doing slightly more work. Derringbay is just a big lazy growing boy, who is more interested in eating and sleeping than anything else. I will work with him for a few weeks and then decide whether to go ahead with training him here or send him up to Normandy to grow for a bit. He is still backwards and I’m not sure he’s up for racing just yet. Tarruji is doing well and will have an entry for Aug. 1.

Skid ran a handicap in Chantilly today, the same course and distance as when he was second about 10 days ago, but only managed to finish 7th in a field of 11.  He missed the break and never really got into the fray, and when Nadege asked him for speed, he didn’t have the same fluid acceleration as he showed last time out. I don’t see any immediate reasons for the subpar performance, but this was his fourth race in rather quick succession, so I think we just need to give him a bit of time. Normally I like to keep at least three weeks between races, but Skid seemed to take his racing well, so we went ahead. Now I’ll give him at least three weeks before we ask him again, depending, of course, on how he recovers. He seems to have come back well, so we’ll see. So far in his career, he has never managed to string together two good performances. But I’m sure he’ll be back strong next time out – hang in their Mark and Pippa, we’ll get you some black type yet! He’s a good, solid horse and we haven’t seen the best of him yet.

We can’t forget that he was gelded relatively late, in February, and he’s still adjusting. Also, this time out he was really calm, so maybe we overdid it a bit on relaxing him. I ran him with earplugs last time and again this time, but I’m pretty sure we’ll go without them next time out.

Pixie ran 4th of 17 runners today in her first race back since January, and while I had hoped she would win, she ran probably the most relaxed, best race of her career. Her gallop was relaxed and steady, with no pulling, which is a miracle for her. She has a bad back, and she tended to want to bowl along out front in her previous races; she won wire-to-wire in Maisons-Laffitte last year and was beaten in races since because she insisted on trying to do it again. But today, she sat in the pack and finished very well, which is really encouraging for the future. She decided to take a big breath just as the pace quickened in the stretch, then was blocked when she had the gas to move. When she did find room to run, she came on wonderfully and fought back to steal fourth place by a head. She recovered quickly and came home well, so it seems we’ve done our work with her and now can finally enjoy it!

The strategy for the race was really just to see how she wanted to run it. I told Nadege that if she needed to go to the front, go ahead, but see what was best for Pixie – the primary objective was not to fight with her and see how she wanted to run. She is a very touchy – but talented – horse, and it’s best not to get in the way sometimes. So given that, I’m really pleased she ran correctly and relaxed. While this race was just a low-level claimer, it was a big step forward for her in running style and I think we can look for better things to come. (It also, despite being the easiest race on the card, was the fastest mile of the day at 1 minute 38 seconds.) We will probably try her at a slightly longer distance next time out, possibly 1,800 meters in Chantilly on July 27th if she rebounds well.

Pixie’s Blue, our four-year-old Hawk Wing filly, will make her comeback to racing after five months off tomorrow at Maisons-Laffitte. She has been a challenge, to put it mildly, so we’re really looking forward to seeing how she does. Pixie is very talented, but has back problems that were compounded by ulcers over the winter. She had a layoff in Normandy while the ulcers were treated, and she has built up substantial back muscling to compensate for her touching vertebrae and seems fit and ready to go now. She has been an eating machine since coming back into training, and the extra work toward the race has not dented her appetite, thankfully. We’re dropping her into a really easy claimer at a mile, so now it’s up to her. If she wants to win this, she certainly has the ability, but it just depends on where her troubled head is tomorrow! Nadege is up, and she knows the horse well, so that’s a plus. It will be hot and the going will be good to firm, but trifling exterior factors like that never seem to bother Pixie. She’s in her own world, and if she decides to run her race, the going and the temperature won’t matter.

I made it back from Newmarket late last night, and the three horses we bought arrived this morning. It was a very tough sale, and we’re all exhausted. Only 423 horses catalogued were actually sold, and more than a quarter of these went to Kuwaiti buyers, who paid silly amounts of money for horses that should have gone for less and really skewed the market. We managed to get three three-year-olds, a filly and two geldings. None of them have as strong a pedigree as I am usually able to buy in England, but they are all correct, nicely made animals, so I’m sure we can  find races for them to win. The filly is especially nice – a big chestnut called Blessing Belle, by Traditionally. She will carry the colors of Steve Collins, a new owner. The two geldings, Derringbay by Mull of Kintyre and Tarruji by Verglas, are available for lease and will run under my silks for now.

For the moment, all of the horses are in better accommodations than their trainer. My bathroom is being redone and our house looks like a bomb dropped. This was exactly the moment, of course, that my husband’s back decided to give out, so he is stuck in the bedroom immobile amid the chaos until the pain eases. The deep bed in Blessing Belle’s box is looking pretty inviting right about now…