Up Periscope

Well, another exhausting day putting logs into my stove, thanks to the latest addition to my office I no longer have to venture outside to monitor my horses in training.
I had oftened wondered what was becoming of the periscopes from the Royal Navy Submarines that were being decommisioned on the Clyde and after a few discreet enquiries I was able to secure one for the price of a modest family car, about 10% of its original cost, a suitable 50th birthday present to myself I thought.  Its installation has not been without problems but finally it is up and running, it extends to 40 feet above the office roof and has a tremendous 50 times magnification meaning that I can watch all the gallops and schooling grounds in close detail from the comfort of my office.  Combined with the short wave radio system that all the work riders are now using in their helmets I have much better control than when I used to stand outside freezing trying to bellow instructions in a howling gale, all rather wonderful and it makes my mornings so much more productive.  

It's so much warmer in here....

The next step will be to link the periscope to my office network which will mean that I can link into this from any 3G or WiFi connection, I will be able to sit in an Alpine cafe supervising first lot on my iPad!  Of course, I always maintain that about the most important aspect to training is being able to feel my horses legs each night, remote training therefore may be not that practical, however, delving around the internet I have discovered digital leg wraps - the big American trainers operating with barns in various States swear by them; they are wrapped round the horses legs by the grooms in the evening and transmit a digital heat picture to a PC via bluetooth enabling a trainer to monitor heat in the horses legs from anywhere he can get an internet connection, utterly brilliant if they work and my first set are being "DHL'd" as I write - I can't wait to test them because it might then be pssoible to become a completely remote trainer, sitting in the Carribean or the Alps with all those fancy flat trainers from Newmarket, won't they be impressed!

But of course, I'll miss the horses, won't I?????