THE National Hunt season began in earnest with this, the first day of Chepstow’s Jumps Festival, which boasts a number of valuable races. It got under way on a dry overcast day with the going good, good to soft in places. The first event on the track was a charity race on the flat for retired jump jockeys. Graham Bradley, who won it last year, was riding the favourite Danandy, but in an exciting finish he just lost out to Conor O’Dwyer, who had come over from Ireland to ride My Lad Percy, trained by Martin Keighley.

The first race under National Hunt Rules was a 2m novices hurdle, in which three promising bumper winners were running over jumps for the first time. Nicky Henderson’s Altior (5/6 fav) had taken the lead and looked set for victory when the race was handed to him on a plate at the third last. There his two closest pursuers came down and Nico de Boinville let him stroll to a 34 length win over Murray Mount.

For most of the 2m4f mares novices hurdle the grey Brise Vendeene led from Peter Bowen’s triple bumper winner Hollies Pearl (8/11 fav), who was ridden by his son Sean. Despite often jumping clumsily and to the left, the latter came to the front between the last two flights and asserted on the run-in to score by two lengths.

Many good horses have won the 2m4f novice chase at this meeting in the past and this year’s renewal went to the most experienced over fences, Cocktails At Dawn (6/1). He led all the way and jumped superbly, giving eight pounds and a three length beating to his rivals.

The next was a 2m hurdle, in which Tea In Transvaal (14/1) made most of the running. Karezak and Dexcite threw down stern challenges but the leader repelled them gamely for her fourth win in a row. The distances were three quarters of a length and a nose. This was the first half of a quick double for Glamorgan trainer Evan Williams and jockey Paul Moloney, for their Court Minstrel (40/1), the top-weighted winner of nine of his 24 starts, scooped the £50,000 Totepool Silver Trophy Hurdle over 2m4f.

A very competitive-looking 3m chase followed. Charlie Longsdon’s stable has been in good form and his Drop Out Joe was made 5/1 second favourite. Jumping neatly, he took a narrow lead about a mile from home, drew clear after the first fence in the straight and steadily pulled ten lengths clear under Aidan Coleman. He tired in the last furlong but though Buachaill Alainn reduced the deficit to a length and a quarter, he didn’t look like getting caught.

The last was a 3m chase confined to conditional jockeys. The Neil Mulholland-trained Pure Poteen (8/1) took up the running before the second last and kept on stoutly for Martin McIntyre, going on to a three and a half length victory over Smart Exit.