SCOTTISH air seems to suit the dashing sprinter Brigadore (4.30), a leading contender for today's Ladies Night Handicap at Ayr.

Brigadore was very busy during 2003, running 17 times. However, despite going to the well on so many occasions, the only time he managed to get his head in front was in mid-July, when touching off Izmail at Ayr.

It's not hard to deduce that Brigadore is a hard horse to catch "right", but he's now coming nicely to the boil, which, coupled with the advantage of being 5lb lower than when scoring over track and trip last summer, adds up to a solid betting proposition.

In the preceding EBF Maiden Stakes, Leo's Lucky Star (4.00) has the right credentials to make a winning debut.

Nominated by trainer's wife Deirdre Johnston as her horse to follow for the season in the Sky Bet Charity Challenge, Leo's Lucky Star has clearly been pleasing Deirdre, who assiduously rides out four different lots per day on the Middleham gallops.

Much farther south at Bath, Ziet d'Alsace (2.50) should go close in the one-mile Classified Claiming Stakes.

Tony Carroll's filly fought like a tigress at Brighton on Sunday, but hard as she tried, Ziet d'Alsace simply could not repel the late lunge of Jonny Ebeneezer, who represents a pretty good yardstick in these types of events.

Provided the weekend's exertions haven't taken too much out of the selection's energy reserves, she'll be very hard to beat in a race where it is hard to enthuse about the majority of the uninspiring participants.

Pick of the summer jumping action takes place at Wetherby this evening, where Inland Run (6.20) can get punters off to a winning start in the Tony Padgett Novices' Hurdle.

Although trainer Richard Phillips had a wretched 2003/2004 campaign, his horses are now on the mend and Inland Run showed signs of ability when staying on from a long way back to gather in some of the stragglers at Warwick this month.

The lightly-raced eight-year-old is bound to have come on a ton for the outing, and given Phillips is trailing his gelding all the way up from Lambourn in Berkshire, there's a serious possibility he means business in the two-and-a-half-mile curtain-raiser.

* David Elsworth declared his exciting colt Salford City to be on course for the Vodafone Derby on Saturday week after an exercise gallop at Epsom this morning.

Two cases of the highly-infectious equine disease strangles at a livery stable just yards from the racecourse caused the cancellation of the inaugural 'Breakfast With The Stars' gala at the track. But having taken advice from his own vet, Elsworth decided to bring his pair of Derby entries, Salford City and Massif Centrale.

They were joined by Marcus Tregoning's Elshadi and High Accolade, while John Gosden's Percussionist put in an appearance to familiarise himself with the Derby venue.

It was Salford City who impressed the most as he accounted for two companions in a pleasing mile-and-a-quarter workout under Johnny Murtagh, and bookmakers William Hill cut his price for the Derby from 16-1 to 14-1.

The winner of the Lane's End Greenham Stakes was accompanied by Massif Centrale (Dane O'Neill), who was among the Derby acceptors at the latest forfeit stage but is not yet a certain runner, and Bi Polar.

''It was most satisfactory,'' said Elsworth of Salford City's handling of the track. ''We have trained him since the Guineas so we could run in the Derby and it is looking increasingly likely that he will."

Get more on racing at our Racing North site.