WHAT A WEEK – ROYAL ASCOT WINNER!

Wow! I don’t even know where to begin to start on this update, but I could not be prouder to be writing it. I’ll start from the beginning of the week as that seems the most logical, I suggest you get a cup of tea/ glass of something stronger, sit down and enjoy hearing all about what an incredible week the team and all connections have had.

Regional was in the Group 1 King Charles III on Tuesday at Royal Ascot, the atmosphere was electric at Ascot, from being in the pre-parade ring where Reggie was saddled, there were so many people with other owners watching their horses beign saddled. Reggie is normally a very chilled out character and takes the occasion all in his stride, he knew that this was a different occasion, he was very on his toes to say the least while he was being saddled, his blood was pumping through his veins with purpose and the adrenalin was oozing out of him, he meant business today. Once he was saddled we made our way to the parade ring with his owners, the parade ring was so busy and the atmosphere was exhilarating. Callum entered the parade ring wearing the famous colours of Reggie’s which they both won the Group 1 in last year. Once Callum and Reggie went down to post we all watched with anticipation while wishing, hoping and praying for a good result. Reggie broke out of the stalls like lightening and made the running like he normally does, the race broke up into two fields, he was the first off the bridle and in true Reggie style he kept coming and dug so deep to come back at the field and was gaining on the horses in front of him, he finished a very worthy second place by a neck to the winner. The winner ran a fantastic race and is a horse from Australia. We are all so proud of Reggie finishing second and beating all of the northern hemisphere horses. He really did run his heart out and tried so hard and that is all we can ask for, we are all imensily proud of him finishing second in a Group 1 at Royal Ascot. Although Ed was a little gutted not to win as he knows the horse is capable of it but now he has had time to digest it he knows what a huge achievement it was and he will come back again this year to win a big one; for now he is enjoying some very well deserved down time in the paddock with the sunshine on his back.

On Tuesday afternoon just in case our day was action packed enough as it was Ed had two other runners at different race tracks, Sea The Dream ran at Catterick where he ran a superb race to WIN. He had a lot of ground to make up as he was sitting last during the race and he showed his class and genuineness to come through the horses to win. Coppull Hall Lane was having her second start  and ran a brilliant race at Beverly to WIN her race too! She is a big raw filly who has so much more to come and has a very exciting career ahead of her. A huge well done to the owners and all connections for a brilliant day all round and to finish the day on a high!

On Wednesday Ed had Elim running at Royal Ascot in the Kensington Palace Stakes. She took it all in her stride and was such a professional from start to finish as the atmosphere was like how it was on Tuesday (I suppose we are at Royal Ascot so the atmosphere is going to be unbelievable and a feeling that is contagious to have the butterflies in your tummy!). She can get a little on her toes and we were so proud how she dealt with the big stage, some might have said she was a little too relaxed but she ran her race very professionally and showed her class and her ability that she still is yet to show. We knew the ground was going to be on the quick side for how she would have ideally wanted it but she was in fantastic form in the lead up to the race and Ed thinks a huge amount of her and this is just the beginning for her very exciting career. She finished a very commendable 6th place with in touch of the winner. A huge well done to her owners who are so supportive of Ed and we cant wait to continue the journey with them and Elim’s exciting future!

On Thursday we had Mickley running in the Britannia Stakes, he has been in rip roaring form this season with back to back wins for his two starts this season. He has been looking so well and in usual mickley form he has been so laid back, he has such a chilled character and never gets fussed by anything. He normally is very chilled out at the races but like the previous two days the atmosphere was electric, we had never seen him on his toes so much but even though he was on his toes he still kept a level head as he always does and stayed very professional throughout. He headed down to post with 29 other horses all fighting for a Royal Ascot winner. Mickley had a perfect run throughout the race, although the race divived into three separate fields, he manged to sit in behind and then two furlongs out Callum could ask him to go and Mickley was up for the challenge, he kept lengthening and gained on the horses and then galloped away from them all to WIN by several lengths. He hadn’t done this in his other starts and I think it showed how well he coped with the situation and showed his character how he dealt with the occasion. We couldn’t believe it, a Royal Ascot winner for team Bethell! It was a bittersweet day as Mickley used to be owned by our in-house syndicate Clarendon. He was sold prior to the race to his new owner to run at Royal Ascot and then to travel to Hong Kong to race out there. It has been absolutely fantastic to have been on the journey with clarendon and all of the shareholders involved on this horses exciting journey and we are so lucky to have played a small part in his success. As we know with races at Royal Ascot, the luck really is in the lap of the God’s and you need everything to go your way, our draw helped and if you were drawn elsewhere whose to say what could have happened. We want to thank our shareholders within Clarendon for their huge support as always and we look forward to sourcing the next superstar and aiming for the sky again.

This is a huge win for the whole team and everyone is absolutely buzzing from it, our whole team as you can imagine are so proud of what has been achieved and we cant wait to see what the rest of the season has in store for us. A huge well done to our whole team for all that they do for us to achieve results like this, not only on the big stage but also to keep the show on the road and to keep the winners rolling in all on the same day/week. Thank you to each and every member, from our yard staff to our riders (especially Barry who rides Mickley everyday at home). Not only did Mickley win but Barry who rides him and looks after him was awarded the world pool of the day away. This award is awarded to the biggest achievement of the day and as it was Ed & Callum’s first Royal Ascot winner the groom/rider wins this award, there is one of these awards awarded each day.

Kardia finished Thursday off in fine style by winning her race very comfortably under Callum, it was absolutely brilliant to see her win so well and she has come so close this season. She looks tremendous and has really come into herself this season, she looks so strong and mature in her physical and she has also mental come on so much this year too.

A successful week like this really is a testament to the team we have of horses, staff and of course our loyal and supportive owners without them none of this would be possible. Every member of our team plays a huge roll in days and weeks like this, from our yard staff to the riders who all take such pride in the yard and horses. To Keith, Ed’s assistant who keeps the show running smoothly when Ed is away at meetings to when they are both there together bouncing ideas around; they are a fantastic duo. To our amazing secretary who organises pretty much everything and all of the logistics of staff and horses racing which at time can be challenging. To our physio and farrier which the horses love their regular treatments and pedicures, our vet who is a vital part in the team for having the horses at peak performance. There are a million thank yous and well done’s to mention and it does take a village to run an operation like this. A huge well done to Ed for achieving a childhood dream by winning at Royal Ascot and I know this will only make him even more hungry for success at that level, he is stubborn, a perfectionist and is extremely focused of where he wants to take the yard and the goals and aims he has.