Each morning, as the sun rose this week to produce another silent, eerie, foggy day, it almost felt like the calm before a storm. Fog does that. I think it brings peace, caution, and quietness as you use your ears to see what is happening.
There is something beautiful about it, especially on horseback, as you disappear in the mist with only 50 yards of gallop visible in front of you. You know the way but are unsure it is still there, wondering what could be in the way. You can visualise it all, but you can’t see it, and as the cold air floods into your lungs, the freshness is invigorating.
Then your hands go numb, followed by your toes, ears, and nose, and suddenly I want to be anywhere else and wish it was raining. I hate the cold, always have, and always will, and for once, everybody else related to a National Hunt horse is in my camp. We all wish it were raining, and no one more so than Thurles Racecourse, who lost out again this week when their fixture was cancelled because of a lack of rainfall.
Thurles has no rainfall and a chance of losing its next meeting, and one imagines a shortage of cash flow, but Navan, who has the infrastructure, has watered for their marquee meeting this weekend just like Cheltenham has. Hopefully, it won’t cause a backlash for their future fixtures because Cheltenham will move off this chase course on Sunday and won’t use it again until March, but Navan doesn’t have that luxury when the rain does come. It’s a catch-22 for the Meath v.