Donald McCain Blog

[Wandering Eyes]

It was a nearly weekend for Bankhouse team last week, with the runs of Dear Sire who was travelling well when coming down at the last in the novice chase at Cheltenham and Cloudy Dream running a fine race to finish third in the Old Roan Chase at Aintree.

I am looking forward to this weekend with nine runners in total over the two days, we will have runners at Wetherby, Ayr and Ascot on Saturday and then onto Carlisle on Sunday, where there will be big competitive fields and the chase track there is great.

Saturday

Beach Break
Track: Wetherby – 12:55
Jockey: Henry Brooke

I wasn’t planning on running him but I entered him because he’s only got a ten-pound penalty for winning three novices and it’s cut up into an average looking race. I think that’s because the ground is fast, which he likes so we will take our chance.

Katachenko
Track: Ayr – 1:40
Jockey: Brian Hughes

We were slightly frustrated with him at Wetherby last week, we spent a long time switching him off because he used to be very keen. He travels to Ayr and we are hoping they don’t get too much rain before his race but there is rain coming and the addition of cheekpieces may just sharpen him up a bit.

Ink Master
Track: Ascot – 2:25
Jockey: Wayne Hutchinson

I bought him last year with a view to him being a low-grade summer horse and the summer has gone well, winning three races and the ground is still quick, we are in the handicap in a small field that is worth £60,000, so we will take a punt. He ran a blinder up at Kelso behind Cubomania and although it didn’t quite happen for him at Wetherby, he deserves to take his chance.

Raise A Spark
Track: Ayr – 2:50
Jockey: Brian Hughes

I had both he and Ink Master in the race but I am running him with a view that there is going to be rain coming, through the day. He hasn’t been doing much wrong of late, he was a little flat at Perth but I think coming back to two miles in a small field, where there might be a bit of pace will really suit him.

Chti Balko
Track: Ayr – 3:25
Jockey: Will Kennedy

He’s a good little horse but unfortunately, he’s badly handicapped at present, this is his first run of the season and I would think that he will be camping out in Haydock for most of the winter because he loves it! He runs at Ayr because we just need to get him started and he loves heavy ground, so I’m hoping they get enough rain through the day to run him.

Sunday

Knockrobin
Track: Carlisle – 1:30 
Jockey: Brian Hughes

Knockrobin will win plenty of novice chases but it might not be on Sunday because it looks very warm, but it is a good place to start him out and I’m looking forward to the season ahead with him.

Spin The Coin
Track: Carlisle – 2:05
Jockey: Brian Hughes

This looks like the right type of race and right grade for Spin The Coin but there are 20 runners to contend with so it will be very competitive but he looked winning last year when falling at the last at Carlisle and obvious he will come on from his first run. That being said it’s the right race to start him in.

Lough Derg Jewel
Track: Carlisle – 2:40
Jockey: Brian Hughes

He was a little bit unlucky up at Perth where it was his first run against proper handicappers but he ran well. He just made a mistake down the back but still travelled back into the race to finish his race off nicely. We have waited a bit with him and I’m not convinced that he wants 3 miles 2 furlongs around Carlisle but I’d sooner run him against handicappers than drop him down in trip and run him off his feet.

Rebel Rock
Track: Carlisle – 4:15
Jockey: Abbie McCain

He’s not shown much in his one career start at Huntingdon where the ground was much too fast for him but it looked like a good race and I actually purchased the winner of the in the interim. Rebel Rock will be more suited to the 1 mile 6 furlong trip around here on the slower ground and I’d like to see him show a bit more than he did on his debut.

Best Chance: Raise A Spark

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