While the traditional Easter open events in Middleham and Lambourn took place elsewhere in the country, owners were invited into the stable of Suzzanne France in Malton for an exciting Easter treat. 
Based in the Northern racing hub of Norton, North Yorkshire, the stable shares land with adjacent trainers Ollie Pears, John Quinn and John Wainwright. To give its official name of Cheesecake Hill Yard, the operation currently has six horses in training with the potential to branch out and grow further. The stable is also a regular attendee of the Malton Open Day which takes place every September which shows the stable's willingness to welcome in new faces and warm hospitality.
Suzzanne enjoyed a promising start as an apprentice jockey where she was attached to the Neville Bycroft stable until she endured a horrific and almost life-ending accident during a race at Redcar in 2007 where the horse she was riding, Uace Mac, clipped heels and fell to the ground. France has overcome the odds and reinvented herself as a trainer, showing the tenacity and determinedness used to overcome her life changing injuries. Working the likes of Nigel Tinkler, Andy Turnell and a return to the Neville Bycroft stable, France was in a good place to start out on her own. Setting up the Newstart Racing club in 2011, the stable has enjoyed success in the years since with Ad Vitam and Stand Free winning four times each. Assistant trainer Aaron Jones has played a major supporting role in the success of the stable. Riding the yard's first winner Stand Free when he was a jockey, Jones is a key member of staff alongside Suzzanne. Holding a dual purpose license, there is often plenty of options for the horses to race regularly and current flag bearer for the stable is the six year old Captain St Lucifer.

Members arrived at the meeting point of the famous Langton Wolds gallops, used by the majority of Norton's racing stables, which is located just a stone's throw from the stable. Having access to these gallops proves a vital component to getting horses fit and ready to race. Once the excitement of seeing Big Muddy, ridden by Faye McManoman who had dropped in to help out, and Captain St Lucifer, ridden by assistant trainer Aaron Jones, work on the gallops, the party moved on to the stables for a meet and greet with the remainder of the horses. 

It would be an enjoyable morning and a fun way to start the Easter weekend off. 
For more information on the Suzzanne France stable as well as more information on the NewStart Racing club, visit https://suzzannefranceracing.co.uk/about-us.
Many thanks to Suzzanne and the rest of the team for welcoming owners and hosting an exciting morning.

Meet The Horses:

CAPTAIN ST LUCIFER (Sire: Casamento, Dam: Delaware Dancer) (Age: Six)
The most exciting horse in the yard who has promised a lot this year and carries the flag for his stable. Formerly trained in Southwell by Ivan Furtado, Captain St Lucifer won on just one occasion; at Chelmsford in December 2021. Moving north to Malton in early 2022, he has settled well into life at his new surroundings. An eye-catching third at Beverley was a great performance and hinted at his potential. Often doing his best work at the finish, Captain St Lucifer regularly catches the eye close home and is rarely beaten far. Since the turn of the year, the gelding finished second three times in a row at Wolverhampton, cruelly denied in the final strides on all three occasions. Enjoying a small break before the turf season gets fully underway as a return to Beverley, a course he enjoys, will be on the agenda. It would come as no surprise to the yard if Captain St Lucifer were to return to the winner's enclosure this year. 

BILLY DYLAN (Sire: Excelebration, Dam: It's True) (Age: Eight)

Entering the veteran stage of his career, Billy Dylan still enjoys his racing and has been a regular runner for the France stable since joining in 2020. The gelding was quite well regarded as a juvenile and even raced at Royal Ascot for his initial trainer Richard Hannon. Winning twice as a two-year-old, he joined the David O'Meara stable in Helmsley where again he raced in competitive company. The bay is a half brother the very smart Taxiwala, a Group Three winner in Qatar, and has shown flashes of his former ability in recent times. Placing five times since joining the team at Norton, he is unquestionably well handicapped were things to drop his way on the track. 

KITTYBREWSTER (Sire: Brazen Beau, Dam: Ivory Silk) (Age: Four)
Spending her career at Cheesecake Hill Stables, Kittybrewster has always been well regarded and showed talent as a juvenile before an injury setback derailed her progress. A daughter of Brazen Beau, a sire who enjoyed a great start to the season with two winners on the first day of the turf season at Doncaster, Kittybrewster is also a half sister to her stablemate Stand Free. Making her debut at the tail end of the 2021 season, she showed promise through her inexperience at Redcar when finishing fifth before improving into third at Newcastle on her next start. 2022 looked to be a bright year for the filly, but injury setbacks lost her valuable track time and progress has stalled somewhat. With just nine races under her belt, there is still time for things to click and a maiden win to be delivered. Racing in eye shields, she certainly catches the attention on track and her best run so far came at Newcastle in December last year when staying on well after a slow start. 

AD VITAM (Sire: Ad Valorem, Dam: Love Sonnet) (Age: Fifteen - Retired From Racing)
The "boss" of the stable is the much loved Ad Vitam, who is now retired from racing but still plays a key role in training the youngsters. 
The son of Ad Valorem made his racing debut way back in 2011 and moved from yard to yard throughout his career. Joining the Newstart Stable in 2014 from the David Griffiths yard in Doncaster, Ad Vitam really helped in putting the Suzzanne France name in lights with four wins from almost fifty starts and even provided the stable with a notable achievement of a placing at York racecourse when he was beaten just a length into second in 2015. Ad Vitam ran his final race on New Year's Eve of 2020 and time was called on his racing career on his 100th start. Nowadays, "Vitty" enjoys the stress free environment of not racing, but is often the first one on the gallops and giving leads to his younger stable mates. A legend of the yard and much loved part of the fittings.

ARCHIVE (Sire: Sulamani, Dam: Royale Dorothy) (Age: Thirteen) 
The old boy of the group and the most loved at the yard. Once a very smart prospect when breaking onto the scene as a youngster, he carried the colours of leading National Hunt owners Gigginstown House Stud. During his time in Ireland, the son of Sulamani showed high class form including a fifth in a Grade Two Bumper at Aintree and even spent a brief spell at Henry de Bromhead's yard. Moving to North Yorkshire with the nearby Brian Ellison stable where he would win four more times on the flat and over jumps. Relocating down the road to the yard of Suzzanne France, Archive has built his reputation as a much loved stalwart, the veteran has run well in recently in spite of his advancing years. Retirement will soon be calling for Archive, but to have a horse of his calibre who achieved a lot in his early years is a boost for the stable. 

PHOTOGRAPH (Sire: Kodiac, Dam: Supreme Occasion) (Age: Six)
A new arrival to the yard after joining in late January, Photograph is certainly well named for the visit and has the natural ability to make an impact for the France stable. A well bred son of Kodiac, Photograph was originally bought by Sheikh Obaid Mohamed Al Maktoum and trained by leading handler Richard Hannon and looked a promising type at the start of his career. His younger full brother Royal Parade has proven himself to be smart and is currently rated 95 for trainer Mick Appleby. 
Photograph made his debut at Newmarket which suggested how highly he was regarded, before finishing second on his maiden start behind a future Group Two winner. Photograph's form would take some backwards steps however but he gained a first win at Redcar in 2021 for previous trainer Declan Carroll. The gelding has often run with credit and has finished in the top three on six of his twenty lifetime starts. With the potential to go well over a mile and up to a mile and a quarter, it will be fascinating to see how much potential Suzzanne can unlock with her new purchase. 

BIG MUDDY (Sire: Monsieur Bond, Dam: Nine Red) (Age: Six)
Another new arrival, this time from the nearby Seb Spencer stable, Big Muddy has an awful lot of quirks to iron out but he has shown glimpses of promises to show there is something to work on. The six year old is lightly raced and lowly rated, but given a full and uninterupted season, he could find a race or two for his new stable. Big Muddy's best run so far came on his second start when a distant second to Mehmento at Southwell at the start of 2021. It made for impressive reading as the Archie Watson-trained colt went on to finish in the Greenham Stakes a few months later. Big Muddy's form has been nowhere near that level and he has often frustrated connections with an aversion to the starting stalls. A regular slow starter, he has blown his chances in races before they have even begun and has refused to run on two occasions. 
Big Muddy's quirks undoubtedly mean he will be a handful, but the evidence of talent has been hinted at; shown by a staying on fourth at Beverley last year. 

Suzzanne France Stable Visit Photos: