Ripsnorter

The most encouraging sign is how Ripsnorter has run over the past few weeks. In its last six races, the horse has finished first, eighth, seventh (in a race it apparently missed or didn't compete), tenth, and first again. Strip away the poor runs and you see a horse capable of beating others on its day but not yet reliably consistent. Having raced just yesterday and won this week at Downpatrick, Ripsnorter is clearly an active part of its trainer's plans right now. The horse has also picked up four place finishes—third or fourth money—from its career, showing it can run respectably without winning. For a five-year-old still finding its feet, there is plenty of promise here, though whether Ripsnorter will ever develop into a genuinely reliable winner remains to be seen.