You may remember a while back I had been talking to Ben Aitken author of Narrowing the Field:Using The Dosage Method to Win at National Hunt Racing? Well, he has been kind enough to offer up two horses that are worth keeping an eye on. Also if you have not done so already then it is well worth picking up a copy of his book and paying his blog a visit.

NTF Two to Follow

ICON DREAM (Sadlers Wells – Silver Skates (Slip Anchor))
Dosage Figures – 9-2-22-11-2 (46) / 0.92 / 0.11

The manner in which the David Wachman horse swept round the field in the Chester Vase was nothing short of breathtaking. Very few horses over the 3 days of the Chester May meeting came from out the back and certainly none of them made such a visually striking impression as the gelded son of Sadler’s Wells. Unfortunately Jamie Spencer could not quite galvanise the gelding enough to get past the eventual winner TED SPREAD but this was possible due to the fact the horse lost 5-6 lengths at the start when positively falling out of the stalls; the effort made tagging back onto the rear of the pack possibly leaving him short of a finishing kick. This is not the first time the 3yo has left the stalls in an ungainly manner – on each of his 3 career starts he has earned the comments ‘Dwelt’(x2) & ‘Sluggish start’ and this is one area of his game that needs major improvement. From a betting perspective it may be an idea to wait until the stalls have opened and then backing the gelding in-running before laying back your stake at a shorter price, he is a smooth travelling type so it’s not hard to imagine his odds contracting significantly in running.

Looking at his breeding, and more specifically his Dosage figures, suggests that 1m4f looks ideal but I would also suggest that he could easily be just as effective from 1m2f right up to 2m.

Unfortunately being gelded means he is not eligible for any of the classics but there are still numerous options open to this exciting prospect and he is a horse we should follow with interest throughout the remainder of the season.

HARBINGER (Dansili – Penang Pearl (Bering))
Dosage Figures – 2-2-8-2-0 (14) / 1.33 / 0.29

This looks like the typical Sir Michael Stoute 4yo improver. Having already bagged the Group 3 John Porter Stakes and Group 3 Ormonde Stakes this season his next targets look like being races such as the Coronation Cup at Epsom, the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot and the King George VI at Ascot in July. The manner of his 2 victories this season suggest that the step up to Grade1 & 2 company should pose little obstacle and he looks a fast improving horse.

His breeding suggests that 1m4f would be his upper limit at the higher grades (1&2) as he has very little stamina influences in his pedigree. I wouldn’t discount the Dansili colt from calculations if he were to be entered in any of the top 1m2f races although connections do look to be aiming him at the longer trips. A pop at the Newmarket Champion Stakes at the end of the season over the straight 1m2f would interest me greatly.

For more on the Dosage method please visit my Blog – ‘Narrowing the Field – The Blog’ at http://www.narrowing-the-field.com/