ALL roads lead to York this weekend for a two-day meeting, highlighted by Saturday’s Macmillan Charity Day, one of the best-known fixtures in British racing.

Founded in 1971, this special day, thanks to the help of sponsors and the generosity of racegoers and supporters, has raised in excess of £5m for charity, most notably Macmillan Cancer Support.

On Saturday, for the first time, Pocklington owner-breeder Reg Bond, through his global tyre distribution company, Bond International, sponsors the principal race – the £80,000 Bond Tyres Trophy, which has been targeted by a whole host of North Yorkshire trainers.

Tim Easterby, no stranger to success in this race in the past thanks to Dazzling Bay and Artie, has given himself a whole range of options this time around.

The Great Habton handler has three entries, headed by Cocktail Charlie, who has shaped well in both his starts this season and who is a horse Easterby has always held in high regard.

While Mappin Time and Boundaries have also been given the York option, Richard Fahey has a five-strong entry, led by Majestic Myles, who won a major handicap at Newmarket a fortnight ago on his seasonal debut.

What About You, who finished fourth that day to his stablemate, is also in Saturday’s line-up, along with Marine Commando, a Royal Ascot winner last season, Jamesway, a fast-finishing seventh – beaten less than a length – in last Saturday’s Epsom ‘Dash’, and Mr Optimistic, winner of two of his last three races for Fahey.

John Quinn, having thrown his stable-star New Planet into Group 2 company on his seasonal return, may saddle his classy colt under top weight in this richly-endowed handicap.

Unplaced in the Temple Stakes at Haydock last month, New Planet is now poised to step up to six furlongs on a course where, last August, he gained Listed honours in the Roses Stakes before going on to be narrowly beaten in the Group 2 Flying Childers Stakes at Doncaster.

Saturday’s opening contest is the 23rd running of the Queen Mother’s Cup, the richest race for lady amateur riders in Britain, which comes with an added perk as the winning jockey receives her own weight in Pol Roger champagne.

Serena Brotherton, a former winner of this coveted contest, will be extra keen to win it again on Saturday. The Ryedale rider has enjoyed a purple patch recently, riding winners at Haydock, Goodwood and Folkestone – the latter success providing her with a milestone victory; her 50th win on the Flat.

Brotherton, whose mount on Saturday has still to be confirmed, is now on a career tally of 99 winners and, provided she does not score on booked mount Hambleton at Hamilton this week, she will head to York on the threshold of achieving a special victory.

In opposition could well be three riders out of the Fahey stable, which has five Queen Mothers’ Cup entries. Alyson Deniel, a past winner of this race, is set to be joined by stablemates, Toni Syddall and Pip Tutty aboard Musley Bank horses which are set to include Lexington Bay, winner of a valuable handicap at Musselburgh last week.

The three-year-old was given an excellent ride on that occasion by David Nolan, who was riding his first winner for Fahey.

“I was delighted to give David a winner as he’s a very good rider and he worked hard for us throughout the winter,” said the winning trainer.

Racing at York begins at 2.10pm on Friday and 2.05pm on Saturday, with the racecourse open from 11.15am.

A silent auction, which lists prized lots including a visit to the Ballydoyle racing stables in County Tipperary, a week-long skiing holiday in the French Alps, a portrait sitting or the chance to drive around Silverstone, has been arranged to boost Saturday’s fundraising efforts on behalf of Macmillan. The auction is already open to bids and www. yorkracecourse.co.uk holds the details.

• TAKE an ultra-competitive 16-runner handicap, run over the minimum distance on the fastest sprint course in Britain, and which stops the clock at the end of five frenetic furlongs at just under 55 seconds.

The first eight horses home are separated by only one and a half lengths – and yet the first two, divided by a mere neck, are from the same Ryedale stable.

Captain Dunne and Confessional, both trained by Tim Easterby, pulled-off a major strike for the Great Habton yard in the Investec ‘Dash’, one of the principal supporting races to the Derby at Epsom last Saturday.

In the hands of David Allan, Captain Dunne, narrowly denied in a Group 3 race in France on his previous start, picked up a first prize of more than £46,000 for his admirable and heroic display of sprinting.

As for his stablemate Confessional, the mount of Paul Mulrennan, he won just under £14,000 for a luckless effort, given that he finished fast after being stopped in his run in a race notorious for hard luck stories.

• ONE week shy of reaching his first anniversary of saddling his first runner as a trainer, David O’Meara has crowned a phenomenal opening year by chalking up 50 winners.

The milestone victory was achieved at Doncaster last Saturday by Smarty Socks, who came late and fast to narrowly deny the gallant Webbow, trained by Mark Campion, and provide O’Meara with his third winner in 24 hours.

The previous day at Catterick, the Nawton trainer completed a double with Roker Park and Powerful Presence, both ridden by Danny Tudhope, who ended up winning on all four of his Catterick mounts and who made it five rides and five wins on Smarty Socks.

“He’s a horse who loves big, galloping tracks,” said O’Meara of the gelding, who was posting his third Doncaster victory and may now head to York this Saturday for a handicap assignment on another course where he has shone in the past.

Former jump jockey O’Meara has made an excellent impression in his first year. His half-century of winners has been highlighted by his recent Group 2 win in the Henry II Stakes at Sandown with Blue Bajan, who may head to Royal Ascot next week to contest the showpiece Gold Cup.

Norton trainer Tim Etherington got his season up and running on Derby day – not at Epsom, but at Musselburgh, where he posted his first winner of the campaign, writes Tom O’Ryan.

It came via a 50-1 triumph in the major sprint handicap with Burning Thread, who produced a jaw-dropping Tote win dividend of more than 113-1.

The multi-talented gelding, also owned by Etherington, won almost £25,000 when coming out on top in the Scottish Sprint Cup in the hands of Dale Swift, who drove him home a length ahead of Verinco, the mount of Tom Eaves.

A 25-1 winner at Beverley last May, Burning Thread went on to gain Listed-race glory at Sandown but, on his final start of the campaign, he had problems in the starting stalls.

“I sent him down to Gary Witheford, who is a genius with stalls work. Unfortunately, on his first run this season, the blindfold came off late and he injured himself. This wasn’t a big surprise,” said Etherington, who knows better than anyone what a useful horse Burning Thread is, and that even bigger and better wins may still be in the pipeline.

Plans for the four-year-old include a trip to Royal Ascot next week when he is set to contest the prestigious Wokingham Handicap.

Totesport, the bookmakers, make him a 25-1 shot to follow up there, but remember, this is a horse more than capable of defying big odds.

• NIGEL Tinkler has a speedy juvenile on his hands in Belle Chance, who seemingly lived up to expectations on her racecourse debut under Declan Cannon last weekend.

The daughter of Acclamation was backed into 11-4 favourite and prevailed in a blanket finish by half a length from the Linda Stubbs-trained Haafkry and Louis Hull, who dead-heated for second place.

There promises to be more to come from Belle Chance, a comment which also applies to Pravda Street, who made a winning start to his campaign at the same Newcastle meeting.

Previously with Paul Cole and now with Brian Ellison, Pravda Street was a second winner of the day for Dale Swift following his 50-1 success at Musselburgh on Burning Thread.

As for Ellison, he continues in blinding form and was supplementing wins earlier in the week with Travis County and Three White Socks.

• MAKE a note of Sound Amigo, who has yet to taste defeat in three racecourse outings and bids to continue his winning ways for Norton trainer Ollie Pears at Sandown on Saturday.

The totescoop6 Handicap is the target for the Ryedale gelding. “His latest Haydock win came in a race which has turned out really well. He’s a progressive horse, going the right way,” reports Pears.