Rumba Numba (Too Darn Hot x Astonishing) AppleTrees home bred filly gave us a great day at Glorious Goodwood today when over coming a wide draw to win the Bolney English Wine Fillies' Handicap by the tightest of margins. Rumba Numba was draw on the outside in 14 which as we were informed by various racing people throughout the day would be difficult to over come and possibly the kiss of death. However Roger Varian and Jack Mitchel hatched a plan to over come the main issue. Jack went forward on the filly after he suggested there would be little pace in the race and the plan worked a treat. Rumba Numba broke well and was able to get in quickly and sit in 2nd/3rd till pressing for home about 2f out. our filly stuck to the task well despite getting a little lonely in the middle of the track to hold on by the closest of nostrils. We will see what happens to her handicap mark and be Guided Roger and Jack but at some point we will go in the hunt for black type with a view to retiring home to AppleTree. 

Rumba Numba made her seasonal debut this evening winning the Apus Life Sciences Handicap over 1 mile at Doncaster by a neck from Mr Mistofelees. Our filly put up a good performance and i think she was value for more as she most certainly needed the run after 200+ days off. Jack Mitchel gave Rumba Numba a great ride as always settling her well before producing the filly to challenge 1f from home, she looked like she would win as she liked before taking a blow half a furlong from home and holding on by a neck. Rumba Numba should get further on pedigree and we look forward to seeing her progress through the season.

Venetian Gold won this evening at the second time of asking when taking the Unibet More Extra Place Races Restricted Maiden Fillies' Stakes at Kempton, winning by 1 length from Perdy In Paris. Our filly was 4th on debut at Doncaster 11days ago, she built on the debut run although still showing signs of greenness once hitting the front. She is out of listed winning and G1 placed mare keep busy. We purchased the filly at last years Guineas Breeze up sale for 62,ooogns so in the grand scheme these days she wasn't expensive. Venetian Gold now has that precious win on the board but I'm hoping she can progress as she takes her races well, enjoys it with an attitude that just wants to please. We will see what sort of a mark she gets off the back of this as to where to go next.

AppleTree have added another home bred winner to our tally today with DR OMRAN winning the Group 3 Premio Guido E Alessandro Berardelli over 1m 1f at CAPANNELLE (ITY). The result is particularly sweet as he is a stakes winner too. We sold the Palace Pier Colt at Goffs UK Premier yearling sale last summer and this result makes AppleTrees statistics look good as well. We are now 20 AppleTree bred winners from 28 runners with 6 of these horses being black type performers. The winners also give us comfort that the farm is producing nice stock and will help future clients have confidence in the horses we offer at sales. DR OMRAN is out of AppleTrees foundation mare ASTONISHING making her 6 winners from 7 foals of racing age and we have retained 2 half sisters, Heavenly Breath (Dark Angel X Astonishing) a Group and Listed place mare with a cracking Sea The Stars foal on the ground, she is in foal to the excellent Too Darn Hot and RUMBA NUMBA (Too Darn Hot x Astonishing) an 85 rated winning filly in training with Roger Varian she looks likely to gain black type next season. 

Absolute Star won for the second time this season when winning the Byfleet Handicap over a mile at Kempton this evening. She travelled powerfully just behind the leader before picking up well after turning in under Rossa Ryan to go on and win by 1 1/4 lengths from Kitaro Kich. We will see what the handicapper does to her but she looks in good form and fingers crossed she can follow up before the turn of the year. The win was also decent timing as we offer her half sister at Tattersalls Book 2 yearling sales next week. Lot 541 the Oasis Dream x Absolute Blast filly is a good looking, good moving individual sure to make a racehorse and a good broodmare prospect. As well as this winning update the filly is also full sister to duel winner Blast The Dream, she sells on Tuesday and is available for viewing from this Saturday.  

King Al (Al Kazeem x Rhossini) gave AppleTree a welcome winner at Newbury tonight out Battling Sir William to win the Highclere Castle Gin Handicap over a 1m2f. The result did make me smile because of the horses names, King Al trained by Alan King and the 2nd horse Sir William being trained by William Haggas, both horses had cleanly be named after there great trainers and even better men. We have waited a good while for this winner to come on account of the dry weather and the ground being so quick so the timing with the rain coming yesterday was perfect. I'm sure King Al can progress out the back of this race and with the continued ease in the ground. We have 3/4 horses in the exact  same position regarding the fast ground so I'm sure AppleTree will have a good autumn and finish to the season.

Absolute Star (Dark Angel x Absolute Blast filly) opened her account this afternoon at Doncaster by winning the Weekend Winners On At The Races Handicap over 1m. The 4yo filly has been disappointing on the whole as I had high hope each time she has run. Her 3 Novice runs were all decent but since then she had been beset with niggling problems. However this time around she got a clean run into the race with regards training and won well in the end. Always in the right place she had a smooth run through the race before making slightly hard work of it, she won the race well in the end by 1 & 1/2 lengths from Cancan In The Rain. We will see what the handicapper does to her and let her progress through out the rest of the season. Lets hope Absolute Star can build on this as she is a filly I've always held in some regard. 

DAYDREAM EXPRESS became a stakes winner bred by AppleTree Stud yesterday when she won the Siedler & Kowalski Malermeister GmbH Hoppegartener Stuten-Meile (Listed Race) at Hoppegarten in Germany this afternoon. DAYDREAM EXPRESS was sold at Book 2 in Tattersalls October sale 2021 for 300,000gns to Blandford Bloodstock and John Gosden, she did not quite scale the heights for the Gosden team and was offered for resale when sold out to Germany. The whole family have took time and she is realizing her potential having turned 5 this year, she is already a winner of 4 races before this success we hope there is more to come.

Blast The Dream followed up her recent success at Southwell by snatching victory at Newcastle this evening by the shortest of margins. She manage to win the Best Odds Guaranteed At BetMGM Handicap over 1 mile by a short head from West Tyrone. Although she travelled well through out the race she hit a flat spot at about the 2 furlong pole where her opposition got first run on her. Jack Mitchel balanced her well and once she had got her act together she really was motoring at the line to win on the nod. The race will bring out more improvement we hope as she is still learning her job and we look forward to seeing what the handicapper does before making a plan, although there is sure to be a little break on the horizon before a summer campaign.