2020: A Year in Review

Wow.

Logging on to my blogger.com account for the first time in over 12 months and realising that my last posts were a three-part review of the 2018 season (published in March 2019):

Missed me?  Somehow I doubt it, but a lack of willing audience has never stopped me from offloading my thoughts and opinions on the world so here I am, back with a not quite a bang but more of a fizzle, to talk you through some of my personal highlights of the 2020 harness racing season in the UK.

TWENTY TWENTY.

OK, so maybe it's not going to go down as a vintage year but it's certainly going to be a year that we'll never forget, even if it wasn't always for the right reasons.

I am, however, in my heart an optimist and as we look forward to waving goodbye to a year that has tested us, I find myself looking back at some of the positive moments of 2020 that at times kept my head up.  Sometimes when the world feels like a very bleak place, those moments become like glimmers of light which I have clung to, and magnified, so that more than ever I have felt compelled to celebrate people's success with the same enthusiasm that I would celebrate my own (if not more).

Although it was a shorter than normal season (starting in June with qualifiers, and July with racing; and finishing in early November), we managed to cram plenty in to the 46 meetings staged exclusively across the 4 hard tracks.  As promised by the powers that be, stakes races were honoured for 2, 3 and 4 year olds; STAGBI fulfilled its commitment to stage the Future Broodmares Series and Golden Girls Final and people from within our wonderful sport dug deeper than ever to fundraise and sponsor to ensure racing could happen.

I can't talk about it all.  And I know that by selecting my favourite moments I run the risk of knocking some noses out of joint but I assure everyone who reads this that week after week I have endeavoured to let the world know of your achievements.  No win has gone unnoticed by me, and I have tried my best to congratulate as many of you as possible as and when those wins arise.  Be proud of what you have achieved.

So here goes.

Oakwood Anabella

Who can forget the emergence of one of, if not the, best two year old fillies this country has ever seen?  Late to the party, with her first start coming on 15th August (some 4 weeks after the first 2YO events of the season at Tir Prince), Anabella had impressed in qualifiers from the get go.  It wasn't the times that she posted in those qualifiers that had caught the eye of many, but the manner in which she went about her work and the improvement that she found so effortlessly each time she stepped onto the track.  Early doors the 2YO Fillies division looked to be a wide open, with Said To Be Sweet, Ayr Contessa, Imperial Attitude, Ayr Ambition and Showtime Im A Lady all making their way to the winner's circle in various stakes events.

Like a bowling ball with the perfect spin, Anabella sent the pins flying.  A 10 length winner on her first start at York in mixed 2YO company, she followed this up two weeks later with a convincing win at Tir Prince to land the £4000 Breeders Crown.  Upon her return to York a week later she blew away her competition and secured her place in the inaugural British & IHRA Juvenile Final at Portmarnock with a 15L win.  Her last start on British soil saw her break the 2 minute barrier and set a new track and British record for 2YO Fillies in 1.58.3 - and it was this performance in particular that I have to mark as one of the most memorable parts of the 2020 season.

Anabella's season didn't finish there, and she twice raced on her home soil in Ireland (at Portmarnock), winning the British & IHRA Juvenile 2YO Fillies Final and the IHRA Sire Stakes where in the former she set a new track and Irish record in 1.58.6.  I firmly believe it's going to be a very long time before we see another of her ilk again.

Shes Treacherous

This may have gone slightly under the radar across the wider harness racing community, as Corbiewood often does, but one of my stand out moments of the season was the richest final of the season (at that point) - the Alistair & Helen Allan Memorial Final on 4th October.  The 'crowd', largely made up of connections of horses racing on the day, was split in their allegiance between two of the heat winners - Shes Treacherous and Cash All, the latter coming into the meeting off the back of his first sub-2 minute mile at York the week before when finishing second, with the former recording 3 wins from her last 4 starts.  Corbiewood is known for its atmosphere and the lack of spectators each week was a noticeable absence no matter how those of us allowed to attend tried to pretend things were 'normal'.

The reason this race will stay in my memory for a long time is for one reason, and one reason alone: the eruption of noise as Shes Treacherous, the long time leader who had been all but cleared down the back straight in the final quarter by Cash All, rallied to regain her lead and ultimately win by open lengths.  As stand-in commentator Alan Greenhorn called it, "Shes Treacherous not giving in on the inside and begins to come back" - at which point the members of the former 'vanstand' made enough noise that I thought everyone racing at Tir Prince that day could hear them cheering.  That, that was a moment.  Finals do funny things to people.  Which is why you'll never hear me calling for them to be scrapped...

Bill Cardno photo

Ayr Regal & Stephen Lees

Don't call me out for having seasonal highlights that I wasn't present for, this is my blog and I can do what I like.  Nobody needs reminded of how much I think of this young man, or indeed this plucky little horse.  If 2019 was enjoyable watching the rejuvenation of a former stakes star under the guidance of Steve Lees culminating in the Pacer of the Year title, watching his young trainer sit his tests and get his licence was even better.  They are nothing short of a match made in heaven, and shrewdly placed in the Tir Prince Star Makers Series when meeting the conditions, albeit leaving Stephen with the worst draw each week.  On the third attempt of asking, being drawn 8 of 8 wasn't going to stop them and the duo romped home 9 lengths clear of their nearest competitor to record Stephen's first driving win aged just 15.

Not being there for that moment would be my biggest regret of the season, having opted to attend Corbiewood on my doorstep that day instead; although I huddled around someone's phone to watch the live stream with 5 or 6 others, cheering them on all the way down the home straight.  The win itself was memorable, but so was the outpouring of congratulations on social media in the aftermath.  The participants of our sport did not let themselves down on that front, making sure Stephen knew how much we all celebrated his success that day.  Well done kiddo.

                              

                                              

Beryl De Bercy & Ryan Askwith

A bittersweet memory now in light of the tragic death of 'Beryl' in the past week, but a memory that was always going to be included in my seasonal highlights regardless.  Like Stephen, Ryan sat and passed his driving tests this year at York although almost exclusively on trotters.  For a very long time I was convinced Ryan was either a mute or terrified of me, having never directly said a word to me since we met in Paris in January where he proved to be very good at going to the bar to bring the drinks over, but not much of a conversationalist.  Although he does like a photo, even if he slags me for not sending them when in fact I send them before posting them on my page...*turn on your data Ryan*.

Despite this lack of verbal connection which I usually strike up with people, every week that Beryl and Ryan raced (and usually led), I was cheering them on from my little corner of the track.  They came close twice when finishing second behind Diamant De Godrel (1st August) and Universal Cat (9th August), on both occasions being the proverbial sitting duck in front with truly class animals chasing them down.  I knew it couldn't be long before we got the first win, and on 5th September everything fell into place in the Prix Sans Victoire (non winners race, for those non-French speakers amongst you) as they ran out 1 1/2 length winners over Cimmino & Rocker Laidler.  Truly the greatest moment of all was Ryan cheering as he approached the line and crossed it in front; I knew how much that must have meant from his reaction.  As Jason Podmore said after the race, that IS what it's all about.  The photo doesn't quite do the volume of that cheer justice, because it was loud enough to set me off laughing hysterically - I didn't know at first if he was shouting at the horse or just shouting because he had won.  Turns out it was the latter.  I love reactions like that.

And FYI, after a particularly uncomfortable incident involving a decorative plant Ryan and I are now friends for life.  Some things can't be unseen.

Miraculous

Comeback stories.  They're pretty high up there for me as the overly-emotional, overly-romantic soul that I am.  Crying connections also work very well for me, until I'm accidentally crying too.  So thanks to the team behind this fella for ticking all the boxes for me in 2020.

Having not won on British soil since 2017 (with only one win in 2019 at Portmarnock, where he lowered his lifetime mark to 1.54.6), a lot of people had Miraculous written off.  Coming in to the Star Makers Final on 25th October, he hadn't been out of the first 4 in 2020 and was regularly racing around the 2 minute marker at Tir Prince and York, but victory eluded him.  Going by the name of the series you wouldn't think it was designed for horses like him, however he met the conditions and, like Ayr Regal, this was something of a shrewd decision by connections to enter him.

Drawn 5 in the ballot, Richard Haythornthwaite wasted no time in going forward and making the competition come after him.  Some felt this wouldn't be the game plan, having employed the same tactic in previous starts only to get beaten in the closing strides.  Well it worked this time alright, and Miraculous tasted victory again.

I still feel as though this win flicked a switch in the horse's head.  I know I'm the guiltiest of anthropomorphising (check me out); but I just think that win, that leading out and not being headed, that old familiar feeling of returning to the winner's circle reminded Miraculous of what this game was all about.  The following week he lined up against the stiffest competition the country had to offer in the Crock of Gold and he went about his work the way you would expect an experienced free for aller to.  He was driven completely differently by Richard, they bided their time and when the door opened for them to make their move up the inside of Ayr Paparazzi in the stretch, the horse didn't need to be asked twice to go forward.

To see Miraculous win his second Crock of Gold, for the first time outright without sharing the honours as he did back in 2017 with Evenwood Sonofagun, to see him back at the top of his game, that was a moment worth remembering.  This was a major race for Richard to tick off his bucket list and you could see how much it meant to him (there were nearly tears); thankfully owner Alan Dickinson wasn't quite so disciplined with his emotions and when I turned around to see him stood, alone and away from the hustle and bustle of the horse and driver and trainer and stewards, tears streaming down his face with the biggest smile to go with them, that's when it hit me.  Winning races of that calibre can make grown men cry.  Money simply cannot buy that feeling.

Univers De Crennes

What was I saying about comeback stories?  Oh yes that's right, I love them.  I first met this horse back in July when I was asked to do a surprise photoshoot for trainer Kayla Morris' birthday by her husband, driver Lee.  I'd finally visited my parents in Wales after 5 months of not seeing them and managed to fit the shoot in on my journey up to York for the racing later that day.  I was very nearly late for the first qualifier because time genuinely flies when I'm having fun and I literally could have stayed talking to Kayla and Lee all day long. 'Pig', as he is affectionately known, was such a character.  I had to employ some creative Photoshop skills during the editing process as he has a tendency to display his bits freely and with reckless abandon and naturally when someone has got a camera stuck in your face you want to get your willy out.  Thank GOD the drivers don't share in this mindset because I'm not ready for that.  This is a family show after all.

Anyway the back story of Pig is that he sustained a shoulder injury which vets suggested would signal the end of his racing career.  Kayla showed me the indentation in his shoulder, which was fairly large, and explained some of the rehab treatment he was going through.  We tastefully staged the photos so that the shoulder damage couldn't really be seen and generally aimed for his 'best' side.

Over 12 months since his last start, Pig made his seasonal debut on 4th October finishing 5th; a week later he improved to land a 3rd.  I missed the first of his wins on 18th October and upon my return on the 25th likely jinxed him as he finished 4th.  However, that win was not a fluke and I was not a bad luck charm either as he followed up in his last two starts with resounding wins over a mile and then a mile and a quarter.  Three wins from his last four starts isn't bad going for a horse that professional experts believed earlier that year would never set foot on a racetrack again.

It's not just a comeback, it's a story of belief and patience and perseverance and turning around to those who say 'give up' and replying with 'not today'.  And it's doing it with this quiet confidence that the decisions you have made to get you to where you are were the right ones and then doing a little victory dance when you think nobody is watching (I'm always watching guys) and refusing to take the credit on the mic in the post-race interview even though you truly deserve to stand in front of a camera and say 'I was right'.  Kayla, and of course Lee as well, I take my hat off to you.

And that's probably where I should draw this to a close.  Of course there are races and horses and moments that are burned into my memory forever (or at least until the 2021 season starts, because then all the new races and horses and moments fill my brain).  There are people reading this who will wonder why I didn't mention their horse, or a race they won, when at the time I was seemingly so made up for them.  Know this:  I was, and still am, made up for you.  What you see post-race when I'm joining you in that victory dance, or hugging you, or doing that weird elbow bump thing that apparently is Covid-safe but is actually just really weird, is genuine.  I maybe don't feel the exact same emotions you do when your horses are racing but I tell you what, I'm not far away.  I simply cannot take you through them all because this is already on the verge of War & Peace as it is.  Go to my photography page on Facebook and take a look back at the photos.  I saw you, I saw what you achieved and I loved every second of being a part of it, no matter how small.  And I wanted the world to see that too.

I look forward now to the 2021 season; to seeing old faces and new, to starting fresh stories and continuing others where we left off.  Let's all hope that the world has, as far as it can, returned to something close to normal because for all that 2020 was, some things were missing.  Everyone pulled together as best they could and I think we can give ourselves a pretty big pat on the back for doing what we did.  I said it on Facebook and I'll say it again:  THANK YOU TO YOU ALL.

I want to sign off on this, but I have this niggling feeling in the back of my mind that I've forgotten something.  What moment of 2020 that I possibly enjoyed more than any other could I have neglected to mention?  What...could...it...be...

Ohhhhhh, yep that's right.

AYR PAPARAZZI
100% rattled connections as they trawled through all of the above looking for their mention.  Unless they just scrolled through the photos until they saw their little superstar and then started reading (in which case my ploy failed).  So HI GUYS :)

I am forever grateful to the people in harness racing who let me in to their worlds to enjoy the sport with them, but rarely does someone throw open the door and say 'come on in, join us on this journey wherever it takes us, be part of our team and enjoy it with us' the way that Joseph Riley and, possibly because they had no choice, his family, did this year.  I don't know if it's because I looked a bit lost having no horses of my own racing (I was), or if they thought it would result in a higher number of photos of them (it did), but I'm glad they did.

There isn't a stand out moment, it was simply a stand out season and an incredible journey.  It began at the rescheduled season opener at Corbiewood, where 'Big Red' was a noticeable strong finishing 4th; followed up a week later with an even more eye-catching strong finish to land a 2nd.  Then the winning started.  Hailed as 'The English Raider' by track announcer Charles 'Chico' Inglis Jnr, the first win came in a race fittingly sponsored by Chico & myself.  From there we headed to the grand arena of racing at Tir Prince and I know I'm not the only person who was surprised at the performance Joseph & Paparazzi put in that night.  Led out from the 5 hole, let Mick Lord & Ayr Pioneer take up the running at the quarter, passed the leader with alarming ease at the three quarters (at which point I turned around to the people stood behind me and said 'he's actually going to win this, isn't he?!') and was only headed right at the line by the massively in form Frankie B & Rocker Laidler.  This was the horse's first sub-2 minute performance and people sat up and took notice after that night.

Returning to Corbiewood, he posted back to back wins in the fastest times of the respective days (2.03.9 - 30th Aug; 2.03.7 - 6th Sept) before taking a week off in preparation for another bite at the cherry at Tir Prince on Crock of Gold night in the Anto Russell Memorial.  If you pushed me, this would probably go down as my favourite win.  I spoke highly of the duo on the Sulky Show that week and put my money where my mouth was at the track when betting them at a ridiculous 7/1 on the night.  The moment they left the gate, in my mind at least, the race was over.  It didn't mean that I didn't suffer the usual nerves through the race, but I think deep down I knew that everything was going according to plan.

Until the lights went out.  For anyone reading this who wasn't there/hasn't seen the replays, the floodlights literally went out mid-race on the final turn.  I remember thinking 'OK that shouldn't be happening' as I watched my favourite horse in the country charge into the darkness lengths clear of the horses making efforts to chase him down.  I don't know if anyone else held their breath waiting to see who would emerge from the shadows in front (although my brother said he could see the flashing red light of my GoPro on Joseph so he knew where Paparazzi was, even if he couldn't see the rest of the field) - but I did.  Immediate relief, followed by remembering that I was meant to be taking photos, whilst also half trying to keep an eye on how close the next horse to step into the light was.  Not close enough.  They ran out 6 length winners, with another 6 1/2 lengths between second and third; they had them stretched.  And a new lifetime mark of 1.58.1.  Wow.  If people didn't rate the two of them before that night, they had to after.  If you haven't watched the GoPro footage of that race, go and find it.  Watch it.  Firstly because the whole lights out thing is mad, but secondly because I personally think it's a superb drive, getting everything from a horse without, in any way, knocking him about.

The abandonment of the last race on the card, the Crock of Gold, due to the floodlight failure only left one decision to be made: should Paparazzi head for the rescheduled new event, whenever that may be?  The answer was yes.

And then things started to go slightly wrong.  The next start at Corbiewood saw the horse pulled up due to a tack malfunction after he was impeded by a breaking horse in front; an attempt at a second Anto Russell Memorial, this time at Corbiewood, resulted in a third placed finish after setting strong fractions in the first half of the mile.  People started to think that Joseph was maybe aiming too high with the Crock of Gold, now scheduled for November 1st.  I wasn't one of them.

October 25th was the final prep run before the Crock of Gold; 11 runners meant this was the biggest field Paparazzi had faced and by virtue of his handicap mark he was drawn worst of all.  Joseph drove a peach of a start to get away mid field, parked but with cover and sat so patiently for the best part of the first half before mounting a bold three wide challenge on the leading horses; the move injected pace into the next quarter but the horses he was clearing couldn't go with him because he showed an incredible turn of foot to hit the front heading into the back straight.  He was as comfortable a winner that day as he was the night he won in the dark: Paparazzi was back, and smack bang at the perfect time as the Crock of Gold was just one week away.

It was at this point that Darren [Owen] suggested that should he win the season's premier Free For All the following week, that I write the story.  Who better after all than someone who has too much to say about most things, and who had basically lived the story alongside the connections?

We all know by now that I didn't get to write that story.  The fairytale ending didn't quite happen.  But for the full week leading up to it and for seven and a half furlongs on the day, the dream was alive and kicking.  Joseph and Paparazzi went into that race as underdogs; once again the betting market suggested they didn't have much of a chance.  The logical thinkers picked experienced Free For Allers with better draws.  And yet, I spoke to an alarming number of people from all over the country that wanted Ayr Paparazzi to win.  Logic left the equation for so many of us because there, amongst Free For All horses with faster personal bests and more prize money and higher handicap marks trained by public trainers and driven by A Class drivers, lined up a horse that started the season as a Grade 3, trained and driven by a father and son that a lot of people up to that point had only known by name, the only horse in their stable.  They represented every small stable that ever dreamed of racing in a major Group 1 Free For All.

They didn't win.  But they were as gracious in that defeat as they had been in every other, and in every success too.  I watched the GoPro footage back from that race, which has never been shared publicly, and I waited to see if Joseph told his horse that he was a good lad even though he was swarmed at the finish to ultimately get 4th.  And he did.  The most genuine of horses gave his all and he took Joseph, Joe, Philip and Louis (you don't need to know about Louis, there are some hidden gems in this world that I am simply not prepared to share) on one of the greatest journeys I have ever witnessed.  To hell with that, Ayr Paparazzi took me on the greatest journey too.  I loved every second of it.

I have said on plenty of occasions that Evenwood Sonofagun is my favourite horse of all time, and that the dream for people like me is to own a horse just like him.  A horse that can take you to the highest level and win everything there is to win, over and over.  The chances of that ever happening are slim to none, but the fact that he did it keeps the embers of that dream burning.  Ayr Paparazzi now, for me at least, represents a more realistic dream.  A dream which blazes.  A dream so tangible that it could become reality for any one of us, if only we set our minds to it.  For that, as much as everything else, I thank those four delightful human beings and, of course, their horse.

Maybe I didn't get to write the story I wanted to, but I did get to write this story.  And the best part is, it isn't finished yet.

"Find the good. It's all around you. Find it, showcase it, and you'll start believing in it."

Sarah