![\"100116](\"https:\/\/www.betangel.com\/blog_wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/100116-PL-Copy1.png\" "\\"100116")
<\/p>\nAt last, a decent day to get stuck into. Saturday saw the return of jumps racing after a mind numbing break of 13 days and Kempton provided the highlight with the Lanzarote hurdle. I had a fairly consistent day and performed better overall than the equivalent races of last year.<\/p>\n
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I’m looking forward to a full week next week, but a lot of the quality thins out now as we head into, traditionally, the coldest month of the year, February. I am hoping to have a clear run at the remaining two weeks of January so I can get back on track. With the Cheltenham trials just around the corner, I am hoping that they will provide the required boost to the month.<\/p>\n
It’s also been a year since my father passed away, so it will be a very sombre end to the month for me. I’ll be taking some time out to remember the events leading up to that day last year, which are still very fresh in my mind. On reflection, I think it was another pivotal point in my life. It made me work harder last year to reach some short term goals, which allowed me to free up some time. I did this as it reminded me of something, the need to pursue more ethereal goals in life, that search for distinctly non material happiness and a desire to leave the world in a better place than you found it. So, I am more relaxed this year about what I aim to achieve on a material basis. After all, I will complete a decade on Betfair this year, so my focus is now on the ‘what next’ aspect of things. I suspect my horizons are about to broaden again.<\/p>\n