“I thought, ‘We’re going to stop here soon’, but coming down the hill the second time, I thought, ‘Geez, he’s only got to get over them and that’s all we need to do’.
“What a great ride, a confident ride. The horse, every jockey tells me that he might be looking like he’s doing too much, but he’s just cruising, he’s doing it so well. Perfect ride.”
Bobbin was in no rush to commit to a Grand Annual start with Duke Of Bedford.
Instead, he waited until Wednesday before confirming the in-form steeplechaser would back up and take his place in one of jumps racing’s showpiece events.
In a sport that demands long hours, a lot of travel and can often have more downs than ups, Bobbin said Duke Of Bedford’s success had already brought a lot of joy to his stable.
“The buzz we got on Wednesday morning when we all got in the barn together after the Brierly win, that’s why we’re in the game, for situations like this and things to look forward to and work towards,” he said.
“This was a bonus today, the Brierly was the goal, but the way he did that today, I might have just undersold his ability.”
Based out at Lake Fyans near Stawell, Bobbin noted that his training property was designed for thoroughbreds with great endurance, like Duke Of Bedford.
“Our record with jumpers is immaculate,” Bobbin said.
“Our property’s built for stayers. Now, the only stayers we’ve got are jumpers, the ones I buy are no good.
“When the time’s right and we get the right staying horses, we know we can keep them sound, we can keep them improving all the time. This horse is just a testament to the whole operation.”
– Racing.com
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