RACING: A last-fence mistake was the only slight hiccup to Moscow Flyer's Cheltenham warm-up at Punchestown yesterday.
Unlike the majority of horses who finished exhausted in the gruelling conditions, Moscow Flyer's problem wasn't fatigue but boredom.
The odds on favourite appeared to be concentrating on everything bar the fence as he approached it and dived at the obstacle in the Byrne Group Tied Cottage Chase.
He got away with it, however, and even had his Champion Chase price cut by some firms to become a general 5 to 2 festival favourite.
"He just put his head up, looked at the stand and said where are my fans!" joked a relieved Jessica Harrington.
"He wasn't concentrating and in a way that was probably teaching him. He won't run again before Cheltenham and the main thing now will be to keep the wheels on the wagon," she added.
It was an eighth success over fences for Moscow Flyer who had Copernicus nine lengths behind with the Gold Cup runner-up Commanche Court a further four lengths back in third.
Ted Walsh expressed himself happy with that and will choose between the Racing Post Trophy and Naas's Newlands Chase for Commanche Court's next start.
As if the prospect of three and a half miles on the heavy ground wasn't daunting enough for the runners in the National Trial, the race was run in a heavy snow shower.
In the circumstances Hedgehunter looked to be facing a mission impossible in trying to make all the running but the Sam Curling-partnered horse thrived in the conditions and wound up a gallant winner from I Can Imagine.
"That's Sam's second winner for me and he got the ride because the weights didn't go up. I had been looking for Jamie Codd to ride and get to know the horse before the four miler at Cheltenham," said Willie Mullins.
"He is in the Irish National, the English National and will be entered in everything over three miles plus. That's his future," Mullins added.
Cashmans didn't alter Hedgehunter's 12 to 1 price for the National Hunt Cup. However, the Cork firm were in slashing form after the Grade Two novice hurdle.
Kicking King put in an eye-catching performance to beat Central House by four lengths and had his Supreme Novices Hurdle price halved to 20 to 1.
"I'm very pleased with that, the way he relentlessly galloped on. He goes up the hill at home every day so we may as well look at a hill in another country now! The two-miler will suit him. The English two-mile pace will be ideal and he can lie off it. When he got beat by Solerina, that convinced me to keep him to stay at the trip but I wouldn't be afraid to take her on over two miles now," said trainer Tom Taaffe.
Kicking King initiated Barry Geraghty's double but it was Timmy Murphy who got the favourite Safe Route home in the opening maiden hurdle after making all the running.
The front-runner Doora Volunteer failed to last out in the two and a half mile chase and was subsequently found to have a respiratory tract infection.
Instead it was left to the topweight Schwartzhalle to lead them to the last but he fell and it was Camden Venture who led home the four survivors.
The market leader Accordion Etoile was edged out in the final strides of the bumper by the Noel Meade-trained Zum See. It was a winning ride for jockey Jamie Codd on his last day as a 7lb claimer.
Market Rasen will hold a further inspection today ahead of their meeting tomorrow. Clerk of the course Ed Gretton said after inspecting yesterday: "We will hold another inspection at 7.30 a.m. tomorrow morning. We remain covered in snow but if it did thaw a lot today we might have a chance but we're still fighting the elements. It's very annoying - 10 miles down the road there's no snow at all."
