WE TRAVELLED across the country in search of winners on Boxing Day and thankfully our endeavours paid off with an across the card double. The day did not quite start as well as I would have hoped with Walkadina and Vision De Main running below expectations.

American Sniper ran well enough carrying top weight at Wetherby to finish a close third while the day ended very well for us by winning the bumpers at Sedgefield and Fontwell.

Kingston Queen got a deserved first success under rules after showing a lot of promise in her first two starts. Gearoid Harney gave her a nice ride from the front and she kept galloping strongly..

Gentleman Toboot is a horse I have loved from day one and it was brilliant for him to get his first win on the board at Fontwell with Jack Tudor riding. He is definitely very much one for the future and next season but he has more than enough ability to win another penalty with a penalty on soft going.

It has been a little frustrating on the racing front since Boxing Day, the tale of two possible winners that got away! Phantomofthepoints did everything right bar the final 50 yards at Chepstow where he hung to the paddock and gave the race away. He led the field a merry dance in the thick fog throughout, jumped well and appeared to have all his rivals covered before veering quite dramatically to the right approaching the winning post and presenting the race to his rivals and losing three places in doing so.

There was not a lot Jack Tudor could do about it as it all happened so fast; there were extra rails keeping the runners off the main running rail as well, and he would have crashed into them if he had not taken evasive action. We have had Phantomofthepoints thoroughly checked over since the race and all is well so I am sure he can get back on track next time in hopefully not such foggy conditions.

Belfrina is the second winner that unfortunately got away. She came to win her race at Doncaster just before the last but then met that hurdle on a long stride, jumped it well but unfortunately did not get her landing gear out in time. It was simply, lack of experience that caused her to fall but thankfully and most importantly, she is fine on Monday.

We are quiet on the runner’s front in the coming days having given the majority of our horses flu jabs in recent days. Horses now have to be flu jabbed every six months, having been every 12 months until more recent times but we have actually always done it twice a year since I can remember.

I do have four runners at Exeter on New Year’s Day, weather permitting!

The end of the week looks quieter, with probably no runners on Thursday and Friday and just a few over the weekend. Remastered and First Lord Du Cuet hold entries in the Veterans Chase final at Sandown on Saturday while Shot Boii could head to Chepstow on Sunday. Keep checking the Daily News on the website for all the latest information on the stable runners.

Finally I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for your support of Pond House throughout the last year. We have had a good year on the winner’s front and end 2024 on 38 winners for the season so far with some nice big race successes along the way. I would like to wish everyone a happy, healthy and winner filled 2025.

David Pipe Column