Horse Racing Betting – Aachen To End The Festival On A High

Does the bank manager, in the traditional sense of the term, still exist? I’m asking because, in these days of direct debits and internet banking, I rarely go into my high street branch nowadays. If he does, and I have one, I would just like to apologise in advance for extending my overdraft this week without his permission but ask him to understand that the Cheltenham Festival only comes around once a year and, thank goodness, only lasts four days. After a promising start, I’m afraid my fortunes have nose-dived in the same manner as a cormorant might drop in on a sardine so forgive me if I appear to be chasing my money here. However, there’s nothing fishy over Aachen‘s chances in the Vincent O’Brien County Hurdle, the second race on the card on the final day of The Festival. A prolific winner on the Flat for Andre Fabre in France, the five-year-old has made a successful transition to hurdles, with his six-length defeat of Big Eared Fran at Taunton working out particularly well. The runner-up won a Grade 3 handicap at Sandown on Saturday and is the 5-1 favourite for the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle (William Hill and Victor Chandler) later in the afternoon. That will be off a mark of 133 so the less-exposed Aachen‘s introductory rating of 142 appears by no means harsh and I’ll be attempting to get out of trouble with either totesport or Paddy Power, who are both going 9-1 about the Rainbow Quest gelding whose trainer Venetia Williams landed a big-price handicap double on day three. The Gold Cup is, of course, the feature on the final day and I’m sticking with the sentiments outlined last week that Exotic Dancer (still available at 10-1) could be the value in the race against Paul Nicholls‘ trio of classy chasers. Cape Tribulation (a general 7-2) should also be the one to beat in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle. Let’s hope some of my bank manager’s money is still in my pocket by the time that comes around!