FLOSSY, still the star in Chris Thornton's much reduced string since his move from Spigot Lodge last winter, has ended a long losing streak for the respected Middleham trainer in the finest possible way.

The Efisio mare landed the Bet Direct on Channel 4 Teletext Page 613 Rated Stakes at Chester on Saturday under a powerful ride by Robert Winston.

The success gave Thornton and owner Guy Reed a Listed success to add to her eight handicap wins in 36 runs - and earned her a total of more than £100,000 in prize money.

This £30,000 race will also have added value to Flossy as a potential brood mare and Thornton said she will go either to the sales at the end of the year or to stud.

At the other end of the scale, in the apprentice selling race at Ripon, another Middleham filly gave Countdown star Richard Whiteley his first win.

Mare Of Wetwang, trained by James Bethell and bred by him and his wife Sally, came good at the 16th time of asking under young David Allen. Whiteley, whose home is in nearby East Witton, shares the winner in a syndicate of five including fellow TV star Carol Vorderman.

At Chester, Sheriff Hutton handler Mick Easterby landed two for the Bodfari Stud, Manzoni taking the longest on the card at two miles and Bodfari Komaite the shortest over five furlongs.

He rounded off the week with the only locally trained York winner on Wednesday, Trouble Mountain giving owners Jean and Harry Turpin a first winner on the flat.

York's Sunday meeting had been a different story as Alan Swinbank and Tony Mulholland both had first wins on the Knavesmire, while the opener went to Tim Easterby's useful looking two-year-old Travelling Times. Karl Burke took the 6f maiden auction event with Sophies Symphony.

Swinbank's winner, What-A-Dancer, gave Richard Quinn his 100th of the season and Mulholland's victory with Typhoon Ginger was a follow-up to last week's Redcar win.

Karl Burke also won at Ayr last Friday with Legal Set, under Fergal Lynch, who also won for fellow Middleham man Jedd O'Keeffe on Snow Bunting. The double left the jockey one short of 50 for the season, which he duly reached on Sunday at Hamilton on Kevin Ryan's Kuwait Rose.

Mark Johnston was on the mark on Saturday at Epsom with Bouncing Bowdler and James Hetherton had a first at the track with Encounter.

THE WEEK'S WINNERS

Key: All racing is on turf & on the flat, except AW=all-weather flat racing; NH=jumps (National Hunt); *=evening meeting; f=furlong (8f=1 mile); chs=steeplechase; hdl=hurdle; Hb=homebred by owner (or one of the owners).

Thursday last week. - No D&S Times area winners.

Friday. - Ayr: (6f) Snow Bunting (trained by Jedd O'Keeffe, at Middleham; owned by Andrew Clark), ridden by Fergal Lynch; (6f) Legal Set (Karl Burke, Coverham; Platinum Racing Club Ltd), F Lynch.

Chester: (8f) Green Bopper (Les Eyre, Hambleton; Wetherby Racing Bureau 39), Mr John F Levins.

Epsom: (7f) Bouncing Bowdler (Mark Johnston, Middleham; Paul Dean), Richard Hills; (7f) Encounter (James Hetherton, Malton; Qualitair Holdings Ltd), Liam Keniry.

Saturday. - Chester: (13f) Flossy (Chris Thornton, Coverham; Hb, Guy Reed), Robert Winston; (16f) Manzoni (Mick Easterby, Sheriff Hutton; Bodfari Stud Ltd), Sam Hitchcott; (5f) Bodfari Komaite (M Easterby; Bodfari Stud Ltd), Terry Lucas.

Ripon: (10f) Mare Of Wetwang (James Bethell, Coverham; Richard Whiteley), David Allan; Captain Rio (Richard Whitaker, Scarcroft; David Samuel), Dean McKeown; (9f) Hormuz (David Nicholls, Sessay; The Knavesmire Alliance), Adrian Nicholls; (8f) Raphael (Tim Easterby, Great Habton; Mrs K Arton), Tyrone Williams.

Sunday. - York: (6f) Travelling Times (T Easterby; Ian Morgan), Joe Fanning; (7f) What-A-Dancer (Alan Swinbank, Melsonby; Tom Chambers), Richard Quinn; (8f) Typhoon Ginger (Tony Mulholland, Hambleton; Andrew Lloyd), Fergus Sweeney; (6f) Sophies Symphony (K Burke; Michael J Wilson), T Williams.

Hamilton: (9f) Kuwait Rose (Kevin Ryan, Hambleton; Mrs N L Spence), F Lynch; (6f) Pipadash (T Easterby; T H Bennett), Ted Durcan.

Monday. - Hamilton: (5f) Tancred Times (David Barker, Scorton; trainer), Keith Dalgleish; (12f) Chemicalattraction (Richard Fahey, Butterwick; George Murray), Kevin Darley.

Tuesday. - Musselburgh: (5f) In The Green (R Fahey; Hb, Giles Pritchard-Gordon), Paul Fessey; (8f) Clever Girl (T Easterby; Peter C Bourke), K Darley; (8f) Swynford Elegance (J Hetherton; Qualitair Holdings Ltd), Keith Dalgleish.

Wednesday. - York: (10f) Trouble Mountain (M Easterby; Mrs Jean Turpin), S Hitchcott