Lancashire Oaks - Antepost Selection

On Saturday some of the better equipped fillies and mares in training take on the challenge posed by the bet365 Lancashire Oaks (Group 2) at Haydock. A middle distance contest run over 1m 3f 200yds has an impressive role of honour with the now retired Barshiba proving the only horse good enough to win the feature Group 2 contest more than once by following up with a rampant win in 2010 after providing a mildly shock success the previous season in 2009. Not a bad claim to fame considering the event has been in existence since 1939!

Another Weekend Gone

This coming weekend sees some enthralling big racing take place at both Sandown and Haydock as the flat season tries to gain some momentum for myself after a sloppy start since May. Whilst indeed we have benefitted from one or two big priced winners there have been plenty of lacklustre efforts and some notable bad performers co-existing with the one or two miracle bets that have done well. Last Sunday was a near miss as while I was gleaming in satisfaction after avoiding the overhyped royal horse Carlton House in the Irish Derby it was a lesser known handicap later on in the afternoon that had me all at sea with miserable discontent.

Irish Derby Day Selections

Mediocre best describes the betting results yesterday afternoon and but for it being a Classic Day I would rather have just not bet and stewed over my own incapabilities this forthcoming week. As it happens it is Irish Derby day and there are some interesting bets to be had over the course of this afternoon.

Saturday Racing Preview (Interesting?)

One of the more interesting Saturdays on the racing calendar and quite a high calibre of racehorse on show throughout the UK this afternoon. The stayers take centre stage at Newcastle in the Northumberland Plate which is supported by some solid handicaps both before and after the main event. Newmarket also hosts a mouth watering renewal of the Fred Archer Stakes which whilst only entitled Listed class is clearly a race of Group 2 quality with the runners that have been assembled this year. Hopefully there are some winners to be had on what I hope will be a profitable day in the rain softened ground.

Sleep

Stayed in bed far too long this morning so totally out of sync with my usual form reading and write up times. If I am to do my form reading properly as I always should be doing then an update will not be online until at LEAST 1PM.

Apologies.

At least I woke up beautiful though.

Friday Evening Bets

Having had a break from the trauma of having a miserable end to the Royal Ascot meeting last weekend I have freshened myself up this week by steering clear of the form guide and fixture list. Hoping to try and spring back into life this evening I am ready and willing to declare my two interests for the fixture at Newcastle which takes place this evening.

Ascot Day Five - God Help Us

A pretty dismal day on the betting front yesterday. It all seemed logical beforehand and I felt quietly confident I could pull off one or two results but two 2nds and several flops was all I could muster. Shame. What type of mood am I in coming into the final day I think you should be asking and the answer I would give you is exactly the same as always. I am interested in a few, I think several horses have been overbet and that leaves plenty of value waiting to be discovered. The going is admittedly soft which is not a preference of mine but it means the number one priority today is to make sure that all my selections can STAY!

Ascot Day Four - Overseas Raiders Can Shock (Part 2)

Having already analysed the bulk of todays racing at Ascot I am left with two extremely competitive affairs both at Group 1 and handicap level. I am quite taken by the selections in both races from a value perspective as I feel they have plenty to offer and will not mind conditions that are present at the course today.

Ascot Day Four - Let The Profit Commence (Part 1)

After having a rough start to the morning and oversleeping I do not feel as well prepared for todays racing at this point in time as I should be. However I have studied three of the days six races in detail since yesterday evening and feel relatively confident that my selections should put up decent showings and challenge the hard to beat favourites. Yesterday was very disappointing but today I feel strangely more confident and hope to make it three profit days out of the four so far.

Overslept

A proper update for Day Four of Royal Ascot will not be online until much later in the day (Estimate 1PM). In the meantime I can only declare one current bet which is in the 3.05 King Edward VII Stakes (Group 2). In it I have chosen Glen's Diamond as my main pick but also included him in a Forecast with Nathaniel. I Think they are both quite exceptional and hopefully the only two capable of winning a 3yo Group 2. I will explain in detail my thoughts on this race in the next update later today. I will try to reveal all my selections in one posting but if there are any massive handicaps today I may have to study those in excessive detail to try and catch the winner once again!

Hacked

Getting a little bit tetchy this evening after discovering both my Facebook and Hotmail were hacked into this afternoon whilst I was busy betting. Very tedious indeed. I am busy scanning my PC for viruses and midway through changing passwords but obviously I am abit concerned about the vulnerability of my blog having worked hard to make it a good place to come for absurd (and winning) bets.

I've also been given the task of dog-sitting a very old and poorly sick dog owned by my Mother whilst she is away on holiday. There could be nothing more stressful and this is even more of a concern as my betting thrives on my mind feeling healthy, at ease, confident and clear. At this very moment it is far from it and with the added interference of pretty terrible weather at Ascot I am arguably not the best person to be listening to regarding betting tips on either Friday or Saturday.

I thought I should post this warning up for people as I am still going to try and evaluate the form over both days but do not expect miracles or a succession of winners. Luckily on Thursday I managed to scrape home okay and only finish moderately worse off than how I started thanks to a winner in the Brittania Stakes. Tomorrow is sure to prove tough but I hope to come up with at least one or two unique and well identified winners!

Please keep the faith!

Ascot Day Three - Britannia & Tercentenary Thoughts (Part 2)

Having just witnessed the draw bias totally swing in favour of those drawn low in the opening 2yo Norfolk Stakes (Group 2) I feel vindicated at not confirming my selections until late in the day. There is no point making early decisions when there is a high chance they could backfire as so many are now realising now on Betfair as the high stalled runners begin to drift quite markedly for the Britannia Stakes handicap later this afternoon.

Ascot Day Three (Gold Cup Day) - Part 1

Ascot will pass the halfway stage of its glorified race meeting this afternoon and hopefully our funds will stay intact and if anything enhance by 5.40pm this evening. The weather is the only variable that could go either way at this point in time but the wisest call appears to be to go with those runners that do not require quick ground to show their best form. This will be easier said that done in a couple of todays races but I love the challenge and expect some bold showings from my value bets this afternoon.

Update

With the ground conditions not confirmed yet I am not by any means rushing to make my selections this morning. I envisage the ground will end up being on the soft side of good early afternoon which will develop into proper good to soft ground for the later races. That however is only my hope and not reality so undoubtedly today's bets may prove risky propositions.

I do not have deadlines like the media have and am fortunate enough to be able to consider every variable before making my selections. I do not want to ultimately make the mistake of making my selections early only to feel I have made inadequate choices and regret them later on.

I have made one bet so far which was as follows:

5.35 - Communicator (2.5pts WIN @ 17-1 Betfair)

I did gamble and place the bet last night myself before bed at 20-1 on Betfair hoping to wake up to the murmurings of rain at Ascot. Luckily it has rained and more is scheduled to come throughout the day. This selection will be in a more detailed write up later on this morning.

Day Two Betting Review

Royal Ascot on Day Two was a betting journey of misery and heartache as is often the case when betting in the style of a manic value seeker. On a day that should have ultimately been very rewarding considering the fact that all the race favourites were being turned over it was one of only satisfaction as the day ended in mild celebration.

We had a fantastic winner and two other selections just touched off at value prices. There is surely better to come as I envisage hitting my stride in full before Saturday.

Ascot Day Two - The Handicaps (Part 2)

With my write up on the Group races on Day Two now completed the focus now lies with trying to prove my skill and judgement with astute analysis of the feature Royal Hunt Cup and Sandringham handicaps. Finding a winner in a handicap is often more fulfilling than succeeding in a Group race due to the increase in difficulty that the handicap represents. At least when all horses are level weighted you can be more positive in your betting approach but when you find the winner at a value price in a handicap there is no better feeling as you have proven that you are a better judge than the officials.

Ascot Day Two - Value Bets (Part 1)

Day Two of the Royal Ascot meeting awaits us and whilst the quality of racing is not as exceptional as it was yesterday, admittedly there are still some great spectacles worth waiting to see. The ferociously talented So You Think scheduled to run in the Prince Of Wales' Stakes (Group 1) is the feature highlight with the visual spectacle of the second day coming in the form of a daunting looking renewal of the Royal Hunt Cup mile handicap. This showpiece race features 28 scheduled runners on the Ascot straight mile course and promises to be a hectic and quite fascinating race where the draw would prove crucial. Lets go and find some winners!

Update

Day Two selections for Ascot will be online shortly. Had a minor problem with nuisance viruses on my home PC but I am off work all this week now so I will be more tuned in . Yesterday was not too bad despite the disappointment of a flop bet in the King Stand Stakes. We still managed a small coup when early 20-1 shot Ermyn Lodge kept in touch to be a gallant second in the marathon 2m 4f handicap late on in the day. Luckily I had topped up on the place on Betfair during my lunchtime to gain a decent return. Today the bets are going to be BIGGER and I hope we get our first backed winner of the meeting this afternoon.

(Canford Cliffs and Frankel do not count as winners as it did not bet on them and at the same time it did not take a genius to know which horses would win those two Group 1 races)

Saturday Racing Preview

I am agonisingly tired but at least I do not feel ill which is a bonus coming off the back of a long night of drinking. Whilst I may not feel ill the alcohol intake has definitely carried out a maneuvre on my brain as I do not seem to be able to study the form cards in my usual precise manner. This could affect todays results but I am betting anyway but in limited fashion and only risking a small amount for my hopeful reward.

Sir Oddspundit.... Not This Year

Once more the Queen has failed to recognise the contributions that I have made to outsider value bets which I quite frankly think is pretty rude of her.

This post really is just a note to say that as I did INDEED end up out on the town last night and not in bed until 5.00am then todays blogging update will be two things.

1. Late
and
2. A mess

If health permits I am going to spend a long period of time seeing if there is anything worth my while (I am though in abit of a state). An update on my thoughts should be online before 1pm (need to allot some of my time to standing over the toilet) which will still give people enough time to sort out their bets and perhaps have a crack at http://www.fancy5.com/.

York Sprint - Quick Analysis

It is looking good for this weekend as I have changed my plans and will no longer be out this evening. This means I can awake on Saturday without the dreaded aftermath of the mass consumption of alcohol in my system filtering at a fast rate of knots back towards its entry point situed over my gold plated toilet. Ok so it's not gold plated but it makes the image seem almost bearable by stating that it is.

Quiet Spell Before Royal Ascot

With Ascot not far away and five outrageous days of manic betting awaiting me I am leaning towards having a very quiet spell this coming weekend. Having made plans to go out on the Friday evening I am unsure as to whether I will plan my bets in advance or hope that I am not too hungover the following morning. Previous form would suggest that there is no hope I'll even be able to move on Saturday morning so apologies in advance for that. This means that there will be no self rewards in the form of 50-1 winners but I am aiming for a 20pt profit meeting next week and hope you will all be back and ready to read my thoughts on Tuesday.

I am off work and betting full time from Wednesday onwards so I am hopeful of having a good meeting despite the very strange weather that is currently ongoing. As long as the ground is not worse than good everything should be straightforward on the betting front and I look forward to some value winners.

Spare A Thought For Ian Bartlett

All racing media outlets vouch for each other so nowhere on the internet apart from in forums and hobbyist blogs will you see any comment made regarding the absurd and erroneous mistake that left many punters infuriated on Sunday afternoon. Ian Bartlett who has been a racing commentator for many years was assigned the simple task of covering the showpiece event on Sunday at Chantilly. As runners set about challenging at the business end of the Prix Du Jockey Club (Group 1) the commentator went into mass meltdown and proceeded to go into a "grey" area. In fact two grey horses were in the field and he had unfortunately got mixed up as to which one was which. You would have thought that the silks of the jockeys were similar but they could not have been more different if they tried. It was an unfortunate lapse in concentration that proved costly for many punters who had lost out by way of this unfortunate error.

Chantilly Group Race Focus

Besides the Prix Du Jockey Club (Group 1) today there are some fine looking supporting races on the card that could prove rewarding for obsessive form readers like myself. The highlight of these include the Grand Prix De Chantilly and Prix Du Gros-Chene which are in turn both Group 2 contests. The latter event is a 5f sprint and after the success of 50-1 outsider Burning Thread and unlucky 12-1 second place Confessional in two sprints yesterday can you afford to ignore my opinion today?

French Derby Day - Prix Du Jockey Club

After a scintillating Derby at Epsom on Saturday racing attention turns across the channel to Chantilly where the Prix Du Jockey Club (Group 1) will take place. Formerly run over the same trip as its Epsom equivalent the French since decided that from 2005 onwards that it would be shortened so that it encouraged a different style of horse. This looking back seems to have backfired as the quality of horse has digressed but this year we are likely to witness a change for what appears on paper to be the best renewal since the race distance was reduced.

Burning Thread Strikes Hot On Anniversary Of The Blogs Former Biggest Winner!

Crazy, simply crazy! Burning Thread was given a favourable mention by myself for the Sprint at Musselburgh which featured nearly all northern trained runners in what was a pulsating contest. I had spent some time reviewing the form over two days and no matter what I just could not see the winner amongst the fancied runners. In the end I kept to my strict rule of hunting down the value and it came in the form of the 50-1 winner who left his most recent form well and truly behind. All the more remarkable was that the Betfair SP was 75-1 and it came a YEAR TO THE DAY in which Oddspundit struck gold with the previous biggest priced success Bertoliver. He had landed the Epsom Dash prize at monstrous 33-1 industry odds and a Betfair SP in excess of 50-1 on June 4th 2010. Insane! Would you have believed that it could happen again on the VERY same day?

Epsom Derby Day - Quick Preview

The iconic flat race of the season awaits us at Epsom today where the colts take centre stage to contest the Investec Derby (Group 1). A relatively strong line up of 13 runners are set to go with Sir Michael Stoute's Carlton House many peoples favourite to land the spoils. I am not convinced myself about his superiority having been totally proven and with that I am set to take him on in todays feature contest with the hopeful addition that I can score big in one of the days supporting races as well.

Epsom Oaks Day - Quick Preview

The flat season really gets going later today with the first of two weekend Classics taking place at Epsom with fillies taking centre stage in the Investec Oaks (Group 1). The race which is run over a distance of 1m 4f 10yds features several of interesting types led by race favourite and 1000 Guineas winner Blue Bunting. Can any of her rivals surpass her already high standard level of form and claim the glory?