We set off early for the long trip from Bristol to Newmarket and after only(!?) four hours of sampling the delights of the M4 (including the culinary palace which is Reading Service Station), the M25 and the M11 (accident and delays provided) we arrived at our destination.

It was immediately obvious that Owners are well looked after at Newmarket Racecourse. We were provided with a separate lane to enter the course and speed our way to the owners carpark. Whilst doing this I felt obliged to wave cheerily at the frustrated racegoers in the other lane queueing to get to the car parks for the other enclosures. Inexplicably this often did not meet with a friendly response.

We met Stuart Judy and Tim at the entrance. They said that Muffin was well and that they had had a good, but long journey up.

After entering the racecourse we went to the first (yes first!) owners bar. Inside this spacious room was yet more evidence of how well owners are treated as we were offered a complimentary hot meal followed by desert. If the drinks had also been free I would have thought I had died and gone to racing heaven.

After this we went to the second (yes second!) owners bar to watch some of the early races from the viewing area at the front. For those of you who aren\'t aware Newmarket is different to many racecourses in that it isn't a circuit (Brighton and Epsom are other examples which spring to mind). So before a race horses trot off (and in the case of longer races disappear) into the distance. They then reappear as small dots (or in the case of my selections very small dots) on the horizon running back towards you during the race. Fortunately, there is a large screen opposite the stand to give a more accurate picture of exactly how far your selection is behind the others.

The only downside of having such spacious and numerous facilities was that we were unable to find the other Guild members. I reluctantly embarked on a trip round all the bars in an attempt to find them, pausing at each one for a while and even returning to some of the better ones (I mean the ones where I thought they were more likely to be) but with no success.

We eventually met up in the parade ring before Muffins race. By this time we were in an optimistic mood having had the winner of the two previous races. Muffin entered the parade ring backwards, well on his toes. It was like he was showing off to the large crowd . He looked really well and "up for it". Fergus then entered and said he'd had problems finding us as he'd expected a much larger group to be there. He said that although the ground was firm it had a good covering of grass to help cushion any jar. He was also hopeful that the uphill finish may suit Muffin. The usual tactics were to be employed and he expected all the horses to race on the far side as this had proved beneficial in earlier races. Then he got on Muffin and after a few parting nods to the crowd Muffin disappeared off to the start.

The race went as planned. Muffin broke well and took up a handy position on the outside in about third or fourth place. He travelled extremely well for the first half of the race but as the tempo increased he was unable to go with the leaders. However he kept on well and although he finished in mid-field he was still in touch with the leading group. Afterwards Fergus said he thought it had been another good run and he was happy with it. He said at one point towards the end Muffin had raised his head but thought this was simply because didn't enjoy being overtaken by other horses.

Stuart thought that Muffin should have one more run this season. This may be on the turf (He mentioned there may be another race at Newmarket) or if nothing suitable is found he will run on the all weather.

Personally I think we are in a win-win situation with Muffin. It is a little unfortunate that his last two runs have not been on ideal ground. However as a result his handicap mark will be at a more competitive level when he next encounters the softer ground he relishes (whether that be this season or next). In the meantime we are lucky enough to see him run against good class horses at some of the major racecourses.

Finally I'd like to thank Stuart Judy Tim and the team for making the very long journey to Newmarket and for providing me with the information to help write this report. Also want to say how nice it was to see Malcolm and Beryl (for the first time) and Martin and Melanie (again). Shame it was only for such a brief time.

If a Guild horse runs at Newmarket again I would recommend going!

Cheers Anthony