The time is now

By Alan Conway

At long last. The wait is almost over and the 2011 Cheltenham festival is almost upon us. All the months, indeed years, of planning will either come together or be undone over four glorious days of racing. The festival is the place where heroes are made and legends become immortals.

To everyone in National Hunt racing this is the apex of their season. The pressure must be colossal. Everyone is like a coiled spring, just desperate to have a winner at the festival. For the horses it is their moment to shine. Their chance to show the full depth of their talent at the showcase meeting of the season.

For me there is nothing like Cheltenham. When I was growing up Cheltenham talk dominated conversation in my house. It still does. My earliest memory of Cheltenham was Imperial Call winning the Gold Cup in 1996. In the run up to the race I was told that Ireland don’t win the Gold Cup anymore. It had been ten years since the mighty Dawn Run had last captured the Gold Cup for Ireland. When he did win my house erupted. I was hooked from then.

The one horse that I link so closely was Istabraq. Year after year he turned up with Charlie Swan and each time he would send the Irish into raptures. When he pulled up in the Champion Hurdle of 2002 I shed a few tears. For he gave me memories that will never fade.

That is what Cheltenham does to people. It means so much to everyone involved. To have a runner at the festival is a huge achievement; to have a winner is heaven.

Looking at this year’s festival, there seems to be a lot of big races that are very wide opening. Apart from Quevega there doesn’t seem to be many banker material horses. All eyes on day one will be on Binocular to see if he can fend off Menorah, Peddlers Cross and Hurricane Fly in a corking Champion Hurdle. Can Cue Card do what Dunguib failed to do last year and give the punters a flying start in the Supreme Novice? Throw in a competitive Arkle and the Mares Hurdle and day one is shaping up to be some start.

Day 2 will see Master Minded trying to become a three time winner of the Champion Chase. He will have to be right on his game if he is to defeat Big Zeb and the rest. Wednesday will also see the horse who Irish Handicapper Noel O Brien described as the “best handicapped horse in Ireland” in Call The Police line up in the Coral Cup.

St Patricks Day will be about one horse. Big Bucks. Can this hugely talented horse land the World Hurdle for the third time on the spin? He is a short price to do it but it won’t be easy with Grand Crus and the Willie Mullins pair of Fiveforthree and Mourad in the field.

On the last day we have the race that everyone wants to win. The Gold Cup. However you build it up the Gold Cup is wide open. It will be a race that will not let us down. In my head I don’t think he will win, but wouldn’t it melt the heart if Denman stormed up the hill in front?

As I’m writing this I am looking at my tickets for the opening two days. My bags are packed. The nerves are building. Win lose or draw embrace Cheltenham for what it is, the greatest show on turf. Live it.

By Alan Conway