We are very pleased with ourselves as we didn't miss a day on the gallop over the freeze, the Pointers appear to be in great shape and I'm really looking forward to Barbury Castle. The only thing that will stop us running is bottomless ground. The Old Vic horse will go over to the grass gallop on Wednesday for a good bit of work. At the end of the week he'll pop over a few fences.

The difficult Flemenfirth filly is due to leave tomorrow and she has improved no end. If she gets into the wrong hands she'll be ruined for life, she is quirky and takes some knowing. I found through my methods of positive reinforcement she lacked complete trust. I was interested to read an article published in the Racing Post a few weeks ago about getting horses to submit. This is not a theory I personally agree with and prefer to gain a horses complete trust. Some horses are simply easier than others. I think that bullying a horse into submissison is lazy and not the correct foooting to start them off on. Getting their mindsets right from the start is key to any horse becoming a successful racehorse. Any idiot can back a horse in 30 minutes or less!