Daryl Jacob rode a winner at Cheltenham on Saturday and now looks ahead to Sunday at Aintree, where he's on Ballybolley in the feature.
Sunday's rides...
Up to Merseyside on Sunday and it's always special riding around Aintree.
Linenhall was quite promising in bumpers without winning and touch wood he's jumped well when I've been up schooling him. Fingers crossed he can go well first time out over timber in the Bet £10 Get £20 At 188Bet Maiden Hurdle.
Click on the image below to place your bets on the Old Roan Chase...
Ballybolley has quite a tough task in the 188Bet Monet's Garden Old Roan Limited Handicap Chase.
I've built a good association with him over the years and he won by a wide margin at Market Rasen last time out but he can look good when they go really quickly and he picks up the pieces.
I would hate to play it down but he's gone up 6lb for that summer victory and now needs a career best to be competitive in a race like the Old Roan. He's fit and well, will like the ground and the course, but I wonder if he's a bit better suited to carrying bigger weights in lesser company.
Nobuttaboy makes his fencing debut in the Read Noel Fehily At 188Bet.co.uk Interactive Novices' Handicap Chase.
He had some mixed form over hurdles last year but jumps quite well and did win a point-to-point. He could improve for a fence, definitely, though a mark of 125 doesn't look an absolute gift at this stage.
In the 188Bet EBF British Stallion Studs Mares' Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race I ride Cangodemayo and she's got to be of interest having won her only point earlier in the year.
It's a very competitive race and this is probably something of a fact-finding mission with her, to determine whether we stick down the bumper route or go straight hurdling, so I'm hoping for a positive showing. It will give us a line for future plans, either way.
Saturday and the week gone...
I’ve had another decent week in the saddle and it was obviously great to get up and running with Ben Pauling after two bumper winners.
They both did it well and it’s quite encouraging to see Skidoosh winning a bumper over two miles as he’s by Midnight Legend and has plenty of size about him for the future.
Hidden Glen would be a smaller, flashier type in nature and he did it well first time out too, when winning at Southwell.
I'd had a couple of placed horses for Ben so it was nice to get our head in front and Hidden Glen is one we need to mind a bit as he’s a good mover and could be capable of mixing with some decent horses in the spring.
This weekend I'm riding at Cheltenham and Aintree so it's clearly one I've been looking forward to and Calett Mad looks to follow up his Perth win in the Junior Jumpers Novices' Hurdle.
He won by 22 lengths on heavy ground at Perth but he'll be fine back on better ground. It was a good performance the last day and although this race will be more competitive there's still a chance he could have more improvement in him over hurdles.
He got up to a mark of 147 over fences last season so has a touch of class and being a second-season novice he has experience over some of these rivals.
Kerry's Boy is from quite a nice jumping family and he does things very nicely at home, though we've clearly not been putting the gun to his head.
Ben's bumper form is quite encouraging and I'd anticipate this horse will handle the track perfectly well, without expecting any fireworks.
