Stone of Folca
Chris Murphy
Monday, June 4, 2012
1:17 PM
Horse trained by Maidstone’s John Best romps to victory at Epsom Derby Day
A Kent racehorse has become the world’s fastest over five furlongs - with the Queen looking on as she kicked off her Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
The incredible performance of Stone of Folca, from the original name of Folkestone, saw him take the world record over that distance in front of the Queen.
He is trained by John Best at Detling near Maidstone, who could not be happier, as the horse’s value has just soared.
Anyone with around £400,000 to spare and fancies owning an animal with more horse power than any other can get in touch.
Stone of Folca is owned by people holding 120 shares, which were originally bought for £555 each.
But then the horse won the Investec Specialist Bank Dash during the Epsom Derby Day meeting on Saturday in front of the monarch.
He was a 50-1 long shot, ridden by Luke Morris, but it left the rest of the 20-strong field in his wake win in a time of 53.69 seconds. That is 0.09 seconds faster than Indigenous did 52 years ago using a handheld stopwatch which was wildly inaccurate, especially when hundredths of seconds count.
The £46,000 prize money is now paid out to the shareholders at around £380 per share, almost paying the owners back in one race.
Mr Best said: “We do sell horses from here when they run well so we make a profit. I would say this horse is now worth something between £300,000 and £400,000. Many go to Hong Kong.”
The Epsom course is slightly downhill, so the record is unlikely to be broken at any other track, and Stone of Folca just happened to be on his best form that day.
Mr Best said: “He is four this year. He was a fine two-year-old, then had last year whichg wasn’t too great, and now this.
“And he did it from stall two. At Epsom no one wins from under stall nine out of the 20 or so. A high stall number is vital to win. So if Stone of Folca had one of the higher stalls, he would have shattered all the records.
“I’ve always known he was quick but sometimes he can be very hard to handle. This time though every thing went like a dream.
“I believe not only was it the first time the race has been won from a stall lower than nine, but also the fastest time recorded electronically for any five furlong race. We will almost certainly take our chances at Royal Ascot, in June although that will be a huge step up.”
Source: www.kentnews.co.uk
Wembley hero goalkeeper Alex Smithies determined to play a full part in further success at Huddersfield Town - Huddersfield Examiner
Smithies found out two days before the final that he would be playing and paid tribute to Bennett for making that decision so early, even though the England Under 21 cap had been preparing for the possibility since the previous Monday.
Because of the injuries, Wembley was only Smithies’ 15th appearance of the season and he made a somewhat shaky start with a couple of missed punches when under pressure as Stephen Quinn and Lee Williamson proved the best of United’s raiders.
He quickly recovered from those mishaps, though, and helped by some outstanding defending from centre-backs Peter Clarke and Sean Morrison, he had only one real save to make, just before half-time in extra time when he denied the jinking Quinn.
That all added to his confidence for the penalty shoot-out which Town - who easily had the better chances during the previous 120 minutes – eventually won 8-7 after missing their first three.
Smithies brilliantly saved two of United’s first three kicks (from Williamson and Matt Lowton) to keep Town in it and, when Andy Taylor hit a post, Town found themselves level.
It was all successful kicks after that, including Smithies himself, until opposite number Steve Simonsen fired over the top to leave the Blades blunted and Town on a high.
“The scenes were unbelievable and it was fantastic, something I’ll never forget,” he said.
“Penalties are a lottery and you just have to do your best. You might know the way a player usually shoots, but they can always change their mind, so you just have to back yourself to go the right way and make a stop when you can.
“I had a list on the bottom of my drinks bottle of who their takers were and where they shoot, but it only went to six or seven and I had to face 11!
“Fortunately it was us who came through and, while it was hard on Steve Simonsen, this club deserves to be in the Championship and now we are.”
Source: www.examiner.co.uk
Diamond Jubilee: Hundreds of Kent beacons to be lit - BBC News
Nearly 200 beacons are due to be lit across Kent as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
More than 4,000 beacons are being lit across the Commonwealth and beacons around the UK will be set off on landmarks and hills at about 22:00 BST.
Kent will see more beacons lit than any other county, with 182 applications made to the event organisers.
The South Foreland Lighthouse on the Kent coast will be lit for first time in over 20 years as part of the event.
'Community spirit'The National Trust, which owns the lighthouse, said it would be the largest and brightest of the beacons, with its beam able to reach almost 40 miles.
In Gravesend, members of the Windmill Hill Residents Association have prepared a beacon which overlooks the Thames Estuary.
Beacons have been lit on Windmill Hill throughout history when they were first used to warn of the approach of invading forces coming up the Thames.
The Jubilee beacon was originally erected in 1988 for celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of the defeat of the Spanish Armada and is lit by residents every New Year's Eve.
David Draper, of Windmill Hill Residents Association said: "We've got a great community spirit on the hill.
"I have had loads of people phoning me up saying 'we want to give you a hand' even though it's raining."
The Queen will light the UK's final beacon on stage after a Jubilee concert outside Buckingham Place.
Lighting times and locations of the beacons in Kent can be found on the official website of the event.
See all the latest Diamond Jubilee news and features at bbc.co.uk/diamondjubilee
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Sign in to leave your comment
0 comments