LUCKY for some. What is? The number 13. It certainly was last week when I visited the first international race meeting held in Bahrain, as it became the 13th country in the world in which I have been racing.

The inaugural £500,000 Bahrain International Trophy had nine international runners, the first time in history that horses have travelled to the state of Bahrain to compete, and five locally-trained horses were set to defend home honour.