The Wessex season opened under grey skies at Badbury Rings when the Portman held their annual meeting. The skies cleared as the day progressed and a good crowd were able to enjoy some very competitive racing on going described by riders as being good. It was a day of drama including a particular poignant victory, another win for a course specialist and a first training victory.

The very good-looking Go Sacre Go ridden by Paddy Barlow was an impressive winner of the Restricted race having jumped from fence to fence without being headed. The reception he received on returning to the winner’s enclosure was heart warming and full of emotion as very sadly one of his owners Annie Tory had passed away only one week ago. Annie and her husband Percy have been long-standing members of the Portman Hunt and have been supporters of Badbury Rings for a very long time. The colours of Annie well known to racegoers, most recently by the prolific Tom Barton who is now retired, were worn by Paddy who is her great nephew and was partnering the nine-year-old for the first time. Trained by Sally Alner as now her only horse she was thrilled and emotional in equal proportions and said ‘it shows I can still train horses despite my age and this was for Annie’. Describing Paddy’s ride as ‘fantastic’ the gelding has not been easy to train having won a Maiden at Milborne St Andrew in January 2023 and then not seen again until two years later when runner up at Wincanton.

There was drama at the start of the Savills Mixed Open race when Norton Hill was withdrawn having found to be lame and after two false starts the mare Southfield Lily ridden by Lily Bradstock decided that she was not going to be involved and planted herself. This will be the final time she will be seen as she has now been retired. The remaining four runners finally set off and after Hold Onto The Line had made most of the running Another Furlough ridden for the first time by Will Biddick took up the running at the third last and had a comfortable three lengths in hand over Somptueux ridden by Marina Bealby. This was Another Furlough’s fifth career win at Badbury and he continues to be his trainer Harry Ryall’s flagbearer for his stable. Commenting on his victory Harry said ‘ he knows this course so well and this is his fourth win on his seasonal debut and he jumped well for his new pilot’

Somptueux had previously been declared for the Novice Riders race but when it transpired his rider could not claim an allowance, he was withdrawn leaving A Jet of Our Own as the remaining entry. His rider Fred Philipson-Stow had already ridden nine winners and decided not to increase this as a result of a walk over so the race was made void.
Fred had only to wait thirty-five minutes to record that tenth career when partnering Finisher to win the Conditions race. The outsider of the four runners he dropped to the rear at the twelfth fence but stayed on well to lead at the fifteenth and soon drew clear to give her owner/trainer Lilian ‘Bubble’ Bartlett her first winner . Bubble explained that ‘ I shared a house with Fred when we both worked for Will Biddick and as I am not able to ride at present I offered him the ride’ Currently now working full time in a show jumping yard Bubble added that she does her work with her only horse very early in the morning or late at night. Previously the winner of a Hurdle when trained by Mark Gillard this was his first point to point victory.

The opening race for four- and five-year-olds was won in commanding fashion by J’Envoievalserenki trained by Luca Morgan and ridden by James King. Held up by James he moved into the lead at the second last and had too much speed for his rivals. Luca celebrating his second winner of the season advised that ‘ he was sourced by bloodstock agent Dan Astbury after running in five novice hurdles in Ireland when trained by Paul Nolan’ Describing his four year old as a fun horse for his owners the Gambie Gang who are a group of friends of his parents he added cryptically that he is ‘ complicated straightforward’ and paid credit to James for the work he has done with the gelding including a gallop around Ffos Las. James indicated that ‘he should stay further as he ran through the finish positively and he settled well behind the leaders’
The concluding race the Open Maiden was won by Samba Mambo ridden by Ed Doggrell after Papa Barns ridden by Alfie Shalliker had fallen when in the lead at the fourth last. Trained by Chris Barber the ex-Irish filly has been on Chris’s radar since seeing her as a two year at Arqana and then missing her when she was sold at Doncaster to Rob James. Bought from him Chris said that ‘ she was very weak and needed plenty of work to strengthen her up’ Describing her as ‘ very straightforward ‘she is likely to be next seen at the sales.