Tag Archive for: Sedgefield

Reach For The Moon found to be lame after hurdling bow

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Jamie Snowden will give The Queen’s Reach For The Moon a thorough overhaul after the one-time Derby favourite returned lame having finished fourth on his hurdling debut at Sedgefield.

Owned by the late Queen Elizabeth II in his days on the Flat, he won the Group Three Solario Stakes at Sandown for John and Thady Gosden and was twice the runner-up at Royal Ascot.

Having lost his way in that sphere, he was sent to Jamie Snowden and prepared for a hurdling campaign and he reappeared in the colours of the Queen in a partnership with Sir Chips Keswick, the former Arsenal chairman.

Reach For The Moon seemed to enjoy his jumping
Reach For The Moon seemed to enjoy his jumping (Owen Humphreys/PA)

Everything seemed to be going well in the first half of the race as Gavin Sheehan tracked the hot favourite Schmilsson (11-10) but a slight mistake three out stopped him in his tracks and he was immediately on the back foot.

As Schmilsson powered clear in the second division of the Betting.Bet New Betting Sites Maiden Hurdle, Reach For The Moon eventually lost two places on the run-in, although a reason quickly appeared for his lacklustre finish.

“He’s lame behind, unfortunately, but nothing obvious has come to light as to why,” said Snowden.

“We’ll reassess him when we get back home and hope it’s nothing serious.”

He went on: “One thing he did enjoy was the jumping, which I was almost certain he would, as he had done in all his schooling at home.

“As an ex-Flat horse maybe that ground was just too taxing for him so one thing we will look for next time out is better ground.

“Without knowing where he went lame… (but) obviously the ground won’t have helped his cause on that front today.

“So, we’ll hope it’s nothing serious, look for better ground and take it from there.”

The Queen, whose husband the King was diagnosed with cancer on Monday, and Keswick had another Snowden-trained runner at Ludlow, but Schematic also finished unplaced.

Moon fails to reach Sedgefield heights

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The Queen’s Reach For The Moon was reported to have finished lame after coming home unplaced on his jumping bow at Sedgefield.

Owned by the Queen in partnership with Sir Chips Keswick, Reach For The Moon was a Group Three winner and one-time Classic hope for Queen Elizabeth II before he lost his way on the Flat.

Switched to the care of Jamie Snowden, Reach For The Moon embarked on a National Hunt career in the second division of the Betting.Bet New Betting Sites Maiden Hurdle, but after racing in second through the early exchanges, he was beaten at the turn for home.

Reach For The Moon was fourth at Sedgefield
Reach For The Moon was fourth at Sedgefield (Owen Humphreys/PA)

Schmilsson was was sent off the 11-10 favourite and successfully made all the running as Reach For The Moon dropped away, with Snowden eager to check on the gelding straight after the race.

He said: “He showed he’s got the aptitude for jumping but he’s returned lame, so we need to check that he’s OK.”

The Queen, whose husband the King was diagnosed with cancer on Monday, and Keswick had another Snowden-trained runner at Ludlow, but Schematic also finished unplaced for connections.

Reach For The Moon under the spotlight at Sedgefield

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All eyes will be on Reach For The Moon, who is jointly-owned by the Queen, when he makes his hurdling debut at Sedgefield on Wednesday.

A Group Three winner and runner-up in the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot as a juvenile on the Flat for John and Thady Gosden when owned by Queen Elizabeth II, he was also second in the Hampton Court Stakes at the Royal meeting as a three-year-old, having had to miss the Classics following a setback.

He lost his way somewhat in three runs after that and was sent to Jamie Snowden for a jumping career following his unplaced effort in the Royal Hunt Cup. After taking his time with his new recruit, Snowden feels now is the time to test the water, before a potential Cheltenham Festival outing.

The King and Queen cheer on their Royal Ascot winner Desert Hero
The King and Queen cheer on their Royal Ascot winner Desert Hero (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The King and Queen clearly enjoyed their runners last year, winning at Royal Ascot for the first time with Desert Hero and travelling to Doncaster to see the same horse finish third in the St Leger, although Reach For The Moon now runs for the Queen in her colours and is jointly-owned by former Arsenal chairman, Sir Chips Keswick.

“He’s taken well to jumping. He came to us last summer and we did a fair bit with him and then he went back to Sandringham for a holiday. He came back to us November-time and he’s done very well,” said Snowden.

“He enjoys his jumping, he jumps very neatly and accurately and his work has obviously been very good, as you would expect from a talented Flat horse, and we thought it was time to start and tip away gently.

Queen Elizabeth II with Frankie Dettori and Reach For The Moon at Royal Ascot
Queen Elizabeth II with Frankie Dettori and Reach For The Moon at Royal Ascot (Andrew Matthews/PA)

“I don’t see why he wouldn’t stay the trip, there’s stamina in his pedigree, obviously the ground will be a little bit softer than he has been used to in the past and he’s got to get used to jumping eight flights of hurdles. But if he can translate what he has done at home to the track then hopefully he should go well.

“As far as the horse is concerned we’ve got to start somewhere and see where he takes us.”

Snowden also saddles a second runner on the day owned by the Queen and Sir Chips Keswick in Schematic, who makes his third career start in the Racing Welfare EBF “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle at Ludlow.

Bred by Queen Elizabeth II, the six-year-old was well beaten on his hurdling debut at Chepstow in October, but there was more promise in his fourth-placed finish at Taunton last month.

Quinlan gains little consolation after Sedgefield favourite woe

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Sean Quinlan suffered mixed fortunes at Sedgefield on Thursday, with the rider registering a winner after being dramatically unseated in the opening event.

While Blue Hawaii made no mistakes in the JTC Pizzalicious Handicap Chase, it was a different story with Telhimlisten in the Follows Us @vickers.Bet Novices’ Handicap Chase.

The Jennie Candlish-trained runner was sent off the 2-9 favourite for the two-runner event and victory looked a formality as Quinlan’s mount was well clear approaching the final obstacle in the two-mile-one-furlong affair.

However, despite jumping the final fence with no issue, the horse edged left running away from the fence, with Quinlan caught off balance and being unseated out of the side door.

That left Grey Skies to come home alone as a 100-30 winner, much to Quinlan’s dismay.

He told Sky Sports Racing: “I’ve had a winner but that won’t make up for what happened in the first.

“He’s gone to pop it and for some reason two strides after he’s jinked left. He got in tight and I was quite happy with the way he jumped it, but I was just going forward to get him away from the fence and as I’ve gone forward, he’s gone left and my balance has gone.”