held up in touch, headway to join leaders when hit 10th, driven and outpaced when hampered 4 out, soon weakened
tracked leaders, driven and outpaced after 12th, soon ridden, stayed on to challenge 4 out, led after next, 5 lengths clear last, ridden out flat
with leader, blundered 10th, led and reminders after 12th, headed when jumped left 4 out, weakened next
led, headed after 12th, soon outpaced, stayed on under pressure to chase leading pair 3 out, soon no impression, lost 3rd between last 2
tracked leaders, led 4 out, blundered next, soon headed, ridden 2 out, kept on under pressure flat, no impression
held up in touch, outpaced approaching 4 out, soon ridden, stayed on to go 3rd between last 2, no chance with leading pair
raced wide, held up when fell 8th
held up in rear, blundered and unseated rider 2nd
Nonrunner
GAORA LANE gets the narrow vote in this handicap chase over The Shy Man and Dawn Ride. Charlie Mann has already been amongst the winners this week and Gaora Lane ran a solid race to chase home Mister Apple's at Cheltenham last month. That form looks solid enough in the context of this race and the ground will suit so a second win over chase fences looks imminent. Shy Man is not always the most fluent jumper but if he gets round effectively then he could be capable of troubling the judge and he did win well at Kelso a couple of runs ago. Dawn Ride won over this course and distance last time but he had to be hard driven to score that day and this looks marginally more competitive. Don McCain Jnr won this race last year so Rightway Star could be worth a second look at a big each-way price, but a much stronger case can be made for Gaora Lane and he looks poised to run a big race.
Himalayan Trail 33-1 (10-8) Chased leaders, 6th halfway, weakened approaching 5 out, 10th of 18, 27l behind Northern Alliance (11-2) at Listowel 3m Ext hcp chs in Sep.
Zitenka (IRE) 14-1 (11-5) Tracked leaders, lost place 7th, pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by Silver By Nature (11-0) at Carlisle 3m 2f hcp chs 0-135 (3) sft, 14 ran.
Rightway Star (IRE) 33-1 (11-4) Tracked winner, fell 2nd, in a race won by Frankie Figg (11-3) at Aintree 2m 4f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gs in Oct, 11 ran.
Gaora Lane (IRE) 7-1 (11-6) Led to 3rd, with leader, led 3 out, ridden and headed soon after 2 out, stayed challenging, stayed on flat, no impression final 100 yards, 2nd of 17, 3l behind Mister Apple's (11-3) at Cheltenham 3m am hcp chs 0-125 (3) gf in Oct.
Belon Gale (IRE) 4-1 (11-4) Mistakes, close up on outside, outpaced 12th, soon lost touch, tailed off, last of 4, well behind Le Beau Bai (11-5) at Carlisle 3m nov stks (3) hvy in Mar.
Flake 8-1 (10-12) Led, headed 2 out, ridden and no extra flat, 5th of 12, 10l behind Glingerbank (11-0) at Kelso 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gs.
The Shy Man (IRE) 9-4fav (11-0) Tracked winner, fell 4 out, in a race won by More Likely (11-4) at Kelso 3m 1f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd in Oct, 5 ran.
Dawn Ride (IRE) 11-2 (11-8) Patiently ridden, mistakes 2nd and 3rd, mistake 12th, steady headway from 5 out, chased leaders 3out, challenged and left chasing leader last, stayed on under pressure to lead towards finish, won at Wetherby 3m 1f hcp chs 0-110 (4) gd in Oct beating Sycho Fred (10-5) by 1 3/4l, 8 ran.
Quws Law (IRE) 11-2 (11-0) Held up mid-division, mistake 2nd, lost place approaching 5th, pushed along and reminders after 9th, tailed off when pulled up before 10th, in a race won by Never So Blue (10-11) at Haydock 3m hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy, 9 ran.
