Newmarket Open Day: A blow-by-blow account

Saeed bin Suroor was one of the trainers on the gallops.

A blow-by-blow account of the Newmarket Open Day or a day in the life of Timeform's Matt Gardner, this is what took place on Sunday at Racing's HQ...

07:00 - Woke up and immediately cracked my head on a low ceiling beam. A poor start to the day.

07:01 - Remembered that I had done my money at Newmarket the previous day, even worse start to proceedings.

07:05 - Took a shower in an attempt to clear my head of both gambling and ridiculously designed ceiling-induced pain. It didn't work.

07:20 - Resorted to paracetomol, a bacon sandwich and some strong coffee, which proved to be a much more effective remedy. Having checked the weather (cold and grey, with the distinct possibility of a soaking) I opted for jeans, a polo, my thickest jumper, thickest coat and a pair of boots which make my feet look like aircraft carriers.

07:50 - Checked the time, which is how I can confirm with unswerving accuracy that it was 07:50, and decided that additional caffeine was required.

08:10 - Having downed my second brew I headed out to brave the elements which, with the benefit hindsight, were nowhere near as horrendous as they would get later in the day. First on my list of things to do was to head to the gallops, where a number of trainers would be providing commentary as their horses worked, so I jumped in the car and drove the 20 minutes or so to Newmarket.

08:32 - Parked up and paid a visit to some temporary toilets, which were the poshest port-a-loos I have ever been in; they looked more like the inside of a first-class compartment on a Victorian steam engine than hastily-erected conveniences.

08:35 - I disembarked from the Flying Scotsman and made my way up to the gallops, briefly spotting Sir Henry Cecil on the climb to the top of the hill. I also spotted a couple who could not have looked any more out of place; they had clearly thought "We're going into the countryside for the day, let's get kitted out" and were sporting designer wellies (which I wasn't aware existed), flashy coats and preposterously large sunglasses. They proceeded to watch the first lot of horses work before seemingly getting bored and making their exit. Money well spent daahling, I'm sure.

09:10 - That first lot to work were all trained by Sir Mark Prescott, who galloped four horses in total including Cesarewitch contenders Repeater and Motivado, who would make an excellent little-and-large double act. Prescott was on the microphone, alongside presenters Jason Weaver and Gina Bryce and, when Weaver asked which stables he recommended visiting, Prescott responded with a resounding "Not mine". Subsequent inspection discovered shards of glass embedded on top of the walls at Heath House, so it is doubtful that anyone attempted to disobey him.

09:20 - Next on the gallop were the boys in blue, with Saeed bin Suroor taking over as compere. A number of horses, including Colour Vision and Cavalryman, took to the all-weather but that was not enough for Weaver, who wanted a sure-fire winning tip from the Godolphin trainer. Had bin Suroor back-peddled any faster he would have most likely fallen over, but he eventually consented to suggest that Cavalryman had an excellent chance at Newmarket on Thursday (this afternoon).

09:40 - David Simcock was up next and he exercised several horses, with No Heretic (Timeform rating 99) impressing my untrained gallop-watchers eye the most, prior to John Gosden's appearance.

09:55 - Gosden's yard was not open but Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe contender Nathaniel, Nassau winner The Fugue and Pretty Polly Stakes winner Izzi Top made for an all-star line-up on the gallops. I gained very little with regards Nathaniel's Arc chances, but an interesting snippet is that Izzi Top is likely to contest one more race before being retired.

10:15 - Our sojourn on the gallops ended, and it was time to make our way back down to the town and head to Michael Bell's yard. There was no sign of the man himself on arrival, so I had plenty of time to wander around the yard. First to catch my attention was Wigmore Hall, winner of a Grade 1 at Woodbine earlier this month, and Sovereign Debt, who will run at Newmarket on Friday.

10:25 - The next thing to take my interest was not an equine but a human, a bloke to be precise. He was loudly telling anyone who'd listen that he owned "a very small share in a horse up north", but I managed to evade him as he approached me to no doubt elaborate on just who that horse was. I later spotted him hugging various horses as they peered out from their boxes, which struck me as odd, but maybe he fancied himself as the next Monty Roberts.

10:45 - Having thoroughly inspected/taken an amateurish look at the Timeform Betfair Racing Club-owned Ruby Night and witnessed Hayley Turner walk into the yard, which was something of a treat, it was time to chat to Michael Bell about a number of horses in his yard. You can find out what he had to say here.

11:10 - Feeling rather pleased with myself for having mastered the use of a Dictaphone, I took a brief trip into the yard of David Simcock before heading to Kremlin House, home of Roger Varian, where I took great delight in watching Ektihaam attempt to decapitate anyone that went within five feet of his box. His best trick was to duck down and pretend he wasn't interested, luring in the unsuspecting punter, before pouncing with the ferocity of Mike Tyson in his heyday, a stunt which led to a stable staff member describing him as a "horrible horse".

12:15 - A flying visit to John Ryan's, where all of the horses are called Ocean something or other, concluded the first part of the day. Lunch comprised a meal deal at M&S (excellent value for 3.50) and a stroll around the National Racing Museum, where some of the more memorable displays included the gun with which Fred Archer took his own life and the preserved head of 1896 Derby winner Persimmon, and then I was off to the Racecourse for the afternoon's festivities.

13:30 - The weather well and truly turned on my way to the course so, on arrival, I took the brave man's route and opted to remain in the car hopeful that the tide of water falling from the sky would subside. Regrettably it didn't, so I was forced to break the land speed record as I dashed from the car park into the stands.

14:00 - A quick glance at the programme informed me that there was go-kart racing throughout the afternoon, with jockeys, trainers and TV presenters competing against each other. In truth it was difficult to make much out through the spray thrown up by the wheels, but it quickly became obvious that Frankie Dettori was the fastest driver and, if he wasn't, he thought he was as he celebrated with characteristic vigour after every race.

14:45 - From my perch in the stands I spied a show arena at the far end of the course, where all manner of things such as polo demonstrations, coach driving and seemingly random races of which I had no comprehension were taking place. A closer inspection required me to leave the stands and enter the downpour, which quite frankly I wasn't prepared to do, so I took a pew with a brew and enjoyed the action on TV instead.

16:00 - Much time, coffee and flapjack- courtesy of a rather nice home-baked goods stall- came and went, and it was clear that events were winding down. Faced with a lengthy drive I decided to take my leave, my clothes and hair dampened but my spirits intact having savoured what was an excellent event.

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