bobs worth

Yes he will next years Gold Cup

Loves the course, will enjoy the extra distance and if he improves his jumping which his entitled to do then he has a lot going for him.

At the moment I would say it's between him and Sir Des Champs, unless the new Hunt Ball turns up.

^ If only it were that easy. At this stage last year who would have said the Gold Cup was between Synchronized and The Giant Bolster

Oddly, RSA winners also have a very poor record - I think Denman is the only one in the last few years to win any race in the next season.

I think he has a cracking chance. May not have teh gears of some, but stays and stays, love sthe track, jumping seems good enough going leftm big player.

yes stront very few seem to progress after winning this race ! seems you have to be an execeptional ,ie denman class !

He certainly looks a player for the Gold cup,but given his current price and the record of RSA horses in the Gold Cup,i would not be punting him till ive seen him run next season.
Their are others at the odds,at this stage,that interest me though.

BW has a lot going for him - he's tough, loves the track and stays. Maybe I'm being harsh but he seems to lack a little bit of class (a grinder not a star) - whereas some of the other novice look really classy horses. I think, however, if you fancy BW you might get a decent price next season as he looks about a stone better at Cheltenham than the tracks where he'll run his prep races.

he is in the mix and if he can shake the hoodoo of most rsa winners then he should be in the firing line ,he is a battler and loves the course  and with the right connections ! i would be wanting better than the 10s on here  at present  tho .

Foyles,when you say right connections,i am going to be a tad controversial on that one mate.

Had a discussion on Henderson and 3m plus chasers with a mate,and he pointed out to me that he dont seem to have the same success with them as he does with 2m chasers and hurdlers.
We could not think of too many Gold Cup types hes done well with over his long career.Obviously Long Run come along but since his GC and KG hes won one race out of 4.
Going back their dont seem to be many,not that i can think of anyway.
Just thoughts and it maybe nothing,but his sucess with 2m chasers and 2m hurdlers at the top level seems in a different league.
Be interesting to see what others think on this.

budd i was thinking along the lines of" with the right connections " hendo getting his horses spot on for cheltenham ,but now you mention it he doesnt  seem to have had a lot of success with 3 m+ staying chasers i need to look into it more but off the top of my head can remember his hennesey winner /injured after never the same horse again /baccalaureat didnt set the world alight /fiddling the facts / decent but not a world beater. he dont  seem to get a lot of staying chasers sent to him for some reason . long run and bobs worth show that when he gets the tools he can do a good job with them , just so many of the rsa winners dont seem to come on the next season . bostons angel ,micheal de haguenet ,cooldine never seemed the same again after . bobs worth is tough and could buck the trend but at that price not for me at this stage .

Budd - I agree. Hendo's training method seems to be all about speed which works like a charm with the hurdlers and short/middle chasers, but not so well with the stayers. Incidentally, I think Riverside Theatre might be Hendo's best chance for the 2013 Gold Cup. Has a great profile for the race and seemed to need every yard of the Ryanair. If Kauto does retire RT might be the best chaser in training.

Indeed Foyles,he certainly got them right for Cheltenham this year.But maybe not Long Run?? or maybe last years form aint quiet as good as we thought??
Think you might mean Bacchanal above,who won the stayers hurdle and did have a few good runs over fences but never really figured at Gold Cup level.

Stront,see what you say RE Riverside,but i have this feeling that he rather got away with running him in the Ryanair,horse did not seem to enjoy himself and i think he won the race despite that,which is great credit to the horse,but i think running him in the Gold Cup could well backfire seriously,and could ruin him.
Again its just thoughts and i could well be wrong,just how it seemed to me.

I agree RT won in spite of not travelling well and not really liking the course - which makes it all the more impressive he won given it was a good race. He really looked to me like he wanted more than 2 m 5f - he was oing his best work at the end (and he has come 2nd in the King George). Something may well beat him in a Gold Cup because it does handle the course much better. But in the mean time, RT looks to be a very classy animal and a strong candidate for races like the Aintree Bowl, Betfair Chase, King George and Denman Chase.

(Another thing to add is that next season will probably be RT's peak, so if they are ever going to run him in a Gold Cup it's the time. It could backfire, but then he'd probably be on the downgrade in 2013-14 anyway).

maybe the answer lies in reputation i.e hendo known for 2 mile champion hurdles winners and good record with 2-2-4  mile chasers  such is hendos record with these types owners like j.p if they have a chaser or hurdler speedily bred opt to send it to hendo ,and if they have a stoutly bred horse send it to jonjo  ,such is his record with staying types. possible  the breeding dictates as to what trainers they are sent to.

Yep,thats a fair point re trainers and certain styles of training and the success with types of horses, makes sense to me.

Yes stront,if hes to contest a Gold Cup then next season is the right time,personally hope they resist the urge myself.

yes bud bachanal memory not  to good on names,

Bachannal would have won a gold cup but simply -poor thing, mrs C loved him, as did I- could not jump. He was an absolute class act.

I think Foyles is correct though - his reputation defines to some extent the horses he gets sent. Likewise a trainer who can do well with bleeders, stoutley bred stayers, ex flat etc - it tends to then mean they get sent more and more.

Fwiw, I think he has a couple of players next yr. Long Run if near his old self, Burton with a better prep (IMO he bounced) Bobs without question and possibly Riverside.

Btw, Marlborough was a stayer who he transformed and there have been other stayers, such as Trabolgan, who was a GC player before injury intervened.

It's an interesting theory but I'm not sure. For example Hemmings could have sent Burton Port to McCain, O'Neill or many others with better reputations for handling stayers (and who already train his horses), but he didn't. Robert Waley Cohen picked Hendo for Long Run when he has horses with Twiston Davies and King and LR would have been welcome at any yard in the country.

Thats the thing RC,hes had horses that could maybe have won or run big races in the Gold Cup,but for one reason or another they have all fallen short.
Long Run is the 1st one hes had thats won the Gold Cup as far as i can remember,and now hes not looking like winning another.That could change of course,but i for one would not be parting on any hard earned to find out if he can.

Thats the thing RC,hes had horses that could maybe have won or run big races in the Gold Cup,but for one reason or another they have all fallen short.
Long Run is the 1st one hes had thats won the Gold Cup as far as i can remember,and now hes not looking like winning another.That could change of course,but i for one would not be parting on any hard earned to find out if he can.

Their does seem to be a bit of a list of staying chasers he has had that have not achieved as much as one would have thought they could.Or were they simply not good enough anyway??

Stront has a point re Hemmings horses,both Trabolgan and Burton Port were trained by Hendo,and could have gone elsewhere and both funnily enough have had problems after running well in the Hennessey.
Of course injuries happen,and i could be being unfair,but i do feel its an interesting discussion.

He barely had a runner in the race for more a decade or more. For me, it is a mixture of not having enough types to run in it, no more no less. That may be because he did not get sent suitable types or those suitable types he had developed problems / turned out to be suited better elsewhere. My guess is it is a mixture - his reputation has to some extent defined the 'type' he gets sent a lot of.

Also, since he expanded his operation 4 yrs ago, he had had quite a few more runners. His has had about 50+ extra horses each yr for the last 4 or 5 yrs.

It is only in the last 4 or 5 yrs that things have took off to the extent that they have and i suspect he is now getting all sorts. His operation was always select but much smaller until very recently, this will have impacted on the numbers getting available.

Buddeliea, if you get a chance on Friday, can you find out what has happened to Royal Boy? I am unable to come  this yr due to family committments. I know it gets busy, so I understand if the opportunity does not present itself.

i shall do my best mate,i have a few questions myself as well.
will let you know how i get on,but after the festival he had i suspect he will be a busy man,still his staff are always helpful as well so hopefully i shall get some good info.
shame you cant make it,whether dont look too bad and should be a good day.

Cheers my friend - have a cracking day.