Category Archives: News

You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t have a love for horse racing, the sport of kings. Perhaps your focus on racing is on the flat or jumps, or a particular horse, jockey or trainer.  That’s the beauty of racing really in that it’s such a spectacle with so many aspects to it and such a rich history that there are points of interest, left, right and centre for fans. Of course it’s been a bit of a rocky time for racing of late, and sport in general, with the real down point being the cancellation of the 2020 Grand National (though thankfully that’s unlikely to happen this year). Of course covid-19 hit many areas of life though, which is one reason why I opted to play on the best online casino site rather in a bricks and mortar equivalent.

So you’ve guessed it, when horse racing is on the back burner for me I can often be found having a gamble on one of my favourite casino games (either online or offline). Prior to life being put on lockdown (and hopefully once again in the near future!) I could often be found in our local casino which rather conveniently is at a seaside so is a pleasing combination of sun, sea and … casinos.  I tend to, along with my brothers who I go there with, gravitate to the roulette wheel. It’s just always been that way really, and I can think of far worse options than such an iconic casino game. When I’m not playing ‘offline’ – if that’s what we’re calling the real world now –  I’m checking out new casinos online. It’s a very competitive environment where sign up bonuses, free spins and the like are available to all, along with of course your favourite casino games, such as poker, slots and more.

So now you’ve heard which gambling related activity aside from horse racing piques my interest. How about you? When you’re not having a flutter on the nags what is your alternative? Watching and betting on your favourite football team? Day trading (not ‘betting as much, but essentially not dissimilar)? Or like me, time at the casino?  Do let us know!

I always feel like having a ‘cheeky bet’ as we might say is frowned upon a little more than it used to be. More and more often it seems like whatever anyone is doing there is the wag of a finger from someone or other in close vicinity. It’s a shame really as many of my fondest memories involve having a flutter on the races or heading to a local casino with my brothers and cousins;  real family affair. Even playing the best online slots can bring with it memories of big wins and edge of your seat moments.

Growing up it was – and still is outside of this current hiatus we’re all experiencing – something of a family tradition to ‘do the double’ of heading to our local(ish) racecourse (Great Yarmouth) and to then make a beeline for the casino there afterwards. It’s situated in a listed building that’s dripping with history and royal connections and has a nice restaurant there too – so as a combo it works like a charm. I have many a happy memory there of having a healthy win on the roulette wheel or slots or of a family member doing the same. I’m sure it’s the same worldwide really, whether online at www.newzealandcasinos.io or in a brick and mortar establishment, there is always somebody who is ‘quids in’ and having a run of luck you wouldn’t believe. As long as people know their limit and are there with friends, there’s nothing better than seeing what lady luck brings your way.

So the next time you’re faced with someone who likes to shake their head at people ‘chancing their arm’ at their favourite casino game or cheering on an outsider at the races, be sure to remind them that there isn’t much fun to be had in life by always operating with a safety first attitude. In fact, so much in life contains some element of risk, and if you always operate with caution,  many if not most of the best memories and opportunities that life can bring will simply pass you by.

Nowadays, Clive Cox is best known as a Group One-winning trainer based at Beechwood Stables in Lambourn, Berkshire, to which he moved in May, 2000. However, his career in racing began, as a scrawny teenager, when he became apprentice jockey to Peter Cundell, based in the village of Compton on the Berkshire Downs, in the early Eighties. That said, his career as a Flat jockey did not last long and yielded just two winners, one in 1981 and another in 1982, before his burgeoning weight forced him to review his options.

The enforced switch to National Hunt racing did his riding career no harm. After a brief, but successful, spell as conditional jockey to Somerset trainer Stuart Pattermore, Cox returned to Lambourn and joined then-fledgling handler Oliver Sherwood in a similar capacity. He won on his first ride for his new employer, Sacred Path, at Warwick in November, 1984.

Just over three years later, in April, 1988, Sacred Path would also provide Cox with his one and only ride in the Grand National. A confirmed mudlark, Sacred Path had returned from over a year off the course, due to injury, to win the Crudwell Challenge Cup at Warwick in March. Saddled with the minimum weight of ten stone at Aintree and with conditions turning in his favour, after a torrential downpour, Sacred Path was the subject of a public gamble, which forced his price down from 14/1 to 17/2 favourite at the ‘off’. Sadly, while the eight-year-old jumped the first fence well enough, he crumpled on landing and fell.

All told, Cox rode just shy of a hundred winners and recorded his highest seasonal tally, 33, in the 1985/86 season. Indeed, in 1985 he won the Frogmore Chase at Ascot on Admiral’s Cup, trained by Fred Winter and, in 1986, the Mares Hurdle at Newbury on Atrabates, trained by Oliver Sherwood. Nevertheless, by 1988, his riding career was already in sharp decline and by the time he rode his last winner, at Newton Abbott in March, 1990, he had already taken out a public training licence.