Category: News

Time To Get Started Again! Another month has flown by and September is creeping around quickly. The majority of the horses are back in work now with the last handful still out to grass enjoying the final few weeks of summer. It has definitely not been the greatest of summers weather wise, but all the horses look in great shape considering. Some have grown upwards and quite a few have grown outwards!!   All the staff are back at Blackmore Farm after their holidays. We have a few new members who have joined the team. Oli Watson has joined us from Sarah Humphrey’s. He rode out the quirky Nickle Back every day, so he will be a brilliant asset to the team. Purdy Peaster and Tilly Garton both have joined us from Joe Tizzard’s. Purdy has ridden successfully Pointing on her own horses while Tilly’s family have purchased the lovely Tip Top Mountain to teach her the ropes. Oli’s mum, Michelle, also joins us on the yard. She is another great character to have around and will very much be the “Mummy” of the yard.    We also have several new faces on the yard in horse form. Most were purchased throughout the summer, whether it be 3yo stores, horses in training from the sales or a few from other trainers. It is always an exciting time of year as we learn about their characters and abilities. It will be our biggest number of horses in training to date so fingers crossed we have another successful year! The 2023/24 season was incredible and it will be extremely hard to top, but we will give it our best shot.   We are launching the second season of Blackmore Racing Club with new recruit, Ted The Thief, joining the club. He is a very exciting maiden horse who ran 3 times in Ireland in 5 weeks. He is still only 4 years old and has benefitted from a holiday. Please get in touch if you would like to join. Last season, we had 5 winners and 3 placings from 12 runners. Every horse that ran for the club was cheered into the winners enclosure at decent tracks such as Larkhill and Cothelstone. The club joining fee is £395 (no extra or hidden fees). There is no price increase from last season when we had plenty of fun.    Lalor had a very successful trip to Aintree for the ROR Dressage Championship with Steph, where they won the Intro Restricted Championship Class. Enormouse also won the ROR National Dressage Horse Novice Restricted Championship Class with Sophie Hawke. It was brilliant to bring home two winners to Blackmore Farm, be it in a different discipline.   We have been embracing the Olympic spirit and had our own Blackmore Farm Olympics with new scull hats that we had kindly been given by Charles Owen. It was a 15 meter sprint, unbox your hat, get your hat on and put your hat silk on! It was a tie break between Josh and Lauren. The whole team  are very grateful to Charles Owen for keeping us safe!   As most of you are aware, Josh and Kayley went to Guernsey during the summer, where they got married. Their day didn’t go without its problems with the weather challenging them, but the photos look beautiful and sounds like it was a lovely day.

Summer Holidays! The Point to Point season drew to a close and one by one, the horses started going out on their holidays. We had a handful of National Hunt summer runners that have stayed in work and 5 Stores that were purchased across the Store Sales that have been broken in and continued their education for a few weeks before enjoying a break. After the excitement of the National Championship, we still had Holiday Fund to run at Bratton Down the following weekend. He stormed home from the back of the last and galloped on strongly up the long Bratton Down run-in to win by ½ length. It was a shame that the Championship had finished the week before but it was also nice to finish our season with a win for the Blackmore Racing Club, who have had a perfect first season with five winners. We all as a team headed to Umberleigh to enjoy a rare opportunity to go Pointing with no horses. We all had a lovely picnic and had a lovely afternoon in the sun catching up with friends and plenty of our lovely owners. Everyone headed to Hatherley Manor for the National Point to Point Awards at the end of June which was thoroughly enjoyable. The National Hunt horses have been running well. Moon Lady ran a fab race at Bangor, just getting touched off by ½ length. Unfortunately she did not enjoy the hustle and bustle in Handicap company on her next run and ran disappointingly. We will look to campaign her back in a Novice or Maiden next time out. Ghost Jury, a new recruit for us, has run well on both her starts for us. Albeit being keen and needing to learn to settle, there is ability there and she has now joined the 4racing Owners Club to run alongside Our Dylan who has enjoyed a small mid summer break before an autumn campaign.  Kayley and Lauren have been busy with the Sales over the summer. They came home with two Stores from Tattersalls May Store Sale, a gelding by Jet Away and a filly by Dragon Dancer. This sale has been very successful for Blackmore Farm with the likes of Tigga Time, Big Bert and Mount Mason being purchased there. A trip to the Goffs IRE Arkle Sale saw a lovely son of Idaho come home and looks to be a nice forward sort. We purchased two Horses In Training at  Doncaster Goffs UK Summer Sale. Nelson Criq and Lemoine who are both off the National Hunt track having ran some decent races. They both will make the switch to Point to Points and look ideal Maiden prospects. They had a less successful trip back to Tattersalls for their July Sale coming home empty handed.  Steph and Lalor have been taking the dressage scene by storm. He has taken to it like a duck to water and he is a true credit to Steph. They have won the majority of their outings and nothing seems to phase him. He looks a picture in his tests and they have qualified to go to the ROR National Championships at Aintree on the 22nd August. Lalor will go with ex inmate Enormouse, who has also qualified with Sophie Hawke. The staff have all been enjoying some time off and the yard has been pressure washed, creosoted and painted ready for the horses to start coming in, which the first bunch have already. The next few months will consist of plenty of road work and getting everything prepared for our Owners Day in September. 

National Champion Point To Point Yard! Well, I think Bank Holiday Monday deserves a whole blog to itself. The official Point to Point season drew to a close on Bank Holiday Monday and Josh and the team at Blackmore Farm finished in front of the Championship for Leading Yard with 27 winners, 2 clear of Alan Hill. The race for the Championship went right down to the wire and it was great to finish in front.  We took 4 runners to Upcott Cross and started the day with Whitsand Bay in the Conditions for Grassroot Riders. Ella Herbison gave him a very patient ride to get the better of Premier d’Troice in a driving finish to win by 1/2L. Buzz was new to us this season and has been nothing but a superstar since we had him. He leaves everything on the track and really grinds out his races. He has won 3 of his 5 starts for us and was 2nd on the other two occasions. He is another fun horse for owners John & Sonia Gardener. Important Notice was unfortunately having an off day and Josh very sensibly pulled him up. Hearts Corner finished on a good note to come 2nd to the progressive Jet Smart also under Josh. The day ended with Bruce Gobbler winning the Maiden under Darren Andrews. We knew before this race that we had won the Championship, so the pressure was off but it was most certainly the cherry on top of the cake to cheer Bruce home. Bruce ran a very promising race at Cothelstone so we were quietly hopeful of another good run and it was the perfect way to finish the day. It was amazing to give Richard & Bridget House another winner for the season and lovely for their daughter Sarah to also be there to enjoy it.  As the sun began to set at Upcott, the team were joined by lots of our owners and supporters to celebrate with several bottles of bubbles and another wonderful picnic put on by Josh. It has been the most amazing season for us all and we are so grateful for everyone’s support and help along the way, no matter how big or small it may be. Tuesday morning soon came around and we all enjoyed a breakfast of champions with Prosecco, Breakfast Rolls and Doughnuts.Even though the official season has finished, the Devon and Cornwall area keeps rolling for another three meetings. We will have a couple of runners at both Trebudannon and Bratton Down and Sixteen Letters heads to Stratford Racecourse this evening to try and retain his crown in the Handicap Hunter Chase. Photos by Sophie Davies

The Countdown Is On! A long overdue blog and lots to catch up on! Roll back to the 19th of April where Hearts Corner won the Intermediate Hunter Chase at Exeter in good form under Josh for owner Becky Roach. Hearts Corner has his own way of jumping but it was nice to see him put in a solid performance like this.   We headed to Axe Vale, Stafford Cross, with 4 solid chances and had a good day albeit a small mishap. Josh mistook the last fence for the ditch (which you bypass on the final circuit) on Important Notice and was subsequently disqualified after winning the Hunt Race. Donny’s Fortune ran a good race in the Intermediate to finish 3rd. Sixteen Letters was seeking his 16th win but Ninth Wave got the better of him in a driving finish and Whitsand Bay did the business in the Restricted under a fabulous ride from Callum Pritchard. On to Vauterhill where we landed a double from two mares who deserved to get their heads in front. Bang On Target dead heated in the Grassroots Conditions race under Robbie David and Did Ja Ever won easily in the Mares and Fillies Maiden under Josh. All the horses ran very well at Upcott Cross albeit a slightly frustrating day with three 2nds. See You Kauto, Whitsand Bay and Hearts Corner all walked away the runner up but Important Notice looked extremely impressive when winning the Restricted comfortably. He is a seriously exciting prospect for his owners Tom and Sally Dalley who will campaign him under rules next season. New recruit, Moonbow, made an impressive start to his career when winning the Maiden at Cothelstone on debut. He has since gone on to Goffs UK Horses In Training sale where he made £20,000. We enjoyed an across the card double on Saturday with Sixteen Letters getting his 16th win at Peper Harow with Izzie Marshall aboard in the Ladies Open. What an incredible servant he has been throughout his career! Varinia won the Bumper at Trecoed under Josh and looks to be another with a good career under rules ahead of her and is now entered in the Thoroughbid sale next week.  Our Dylan backed up his Hereford win with another brilliant win at Stratford on the 9th May. He has been a brilliant horse for 4racing Owners Club and we are so glad he is now able to repay their patience with two wins on the bounce. It was heartbreaking for the team to lose Nickelsonthedime at Warwick on the 11th May. He has been a huge part of the team for several seasons and was most certainly part of the furniture and will be missed by everyone.  We have just returned from a busy week at Doncaster Goffs UK Horses In Training sale. We bought a beautiful 3yo Store by Shirroco (pictured below) and also brought two from the Horses In Training section both out of the Irish Point to Point field. Moonbow sold well and made £20,000 and has gone to Patrick Neville. We head to Ireland next week for the Tattersalls May Store Sale. Looking forward to this weekend, it is the last weekend of the National Point to Point season and we currently sit three wins ahead of Alan Hill in the National Trainers Championship. We have had an incredible season and will be trying our hardest to walk away with the title come Monday but win, lose or draw it has been an amazing season!

15th win for Sixteen Letters! Our good form has continued and we are now into our career best season both National Hunt and Point to Pointing. This is a huge credit to our team who have worked endlessly this winter and with the constant rain, it most certainly has not been an easy few months.  The 7th April saw no Point to Pointing being held in our area, but instead, Exeter Racecourse held a Point to Point Bumper. Mount Mason and Go Johnny Go both took their chances under Darren and Josh. Mason ran a brilliant race to finish second giving weight away to a very smart progressive horse. Johnny unfortunately did not enjoy the heavy going but ran on well to finish 5th. We headed to Cotley on the 14th April with 5 runners which saw the ever so consistent Sixteen Letters storm home to victory. This was Letter’s 15th career win which includes 13 Point to Points and 2 Hunter Chases. He is an owner’s dream horse and has been nothing but a pleasure for John and Floss Symes. Irlandais backed up his Maiden win from two weeks ago at Cothelstone and was given a patient ride by Josh to creep into the race when it mattered to win easily at the line for David and Steph Stevens. Bruce Gobbler made his Pointing debut and was running a solid race before unfortunately falling 3 fences from home. He looks to be another exciting Maiden prospect who should give his owner, Richard House, plenty of fun.  Our Dylan headed to Hereford on the 9th April in search of his first career win and that he did! Given a lovely ride by Ben Godfrey, he won well for 4racing Owners Club who are longstanding supporters of the yard! They are a charity based Owners Group with all profits at the end of the season being donated to various charities which are close to their syndicate members hearts. Longshanks ran another creditable race on the 16th April at Ffos Las. The winner drew clear and Gary, as he’s known at home, was just denied in a photo finish to end up finishing 3rd. Stellar Stream headed to Cheltenham on Wednesday 17th April for the 3m4f but with the increasing drying ground, he found the pace too fast and pulled up.  On the Thursday evening of the Grand National Meeting at Aintree, Big Bert came under the hammer at the Goffs UK Sale after his win on debut at Garthorpe. He was sold and has gone to Rouge’s Gallery Racing under the care of Newmarket based trainer, James Owen. We wish Bertie and new connections the best of luck and we look forward to watching him progress.