Monday, October 4, 2004
THE LAST CHANCE TO ENJOY YORK THIS SEASON
Another superb season at York comes to a rousing conclusion with the two-day October meeting on Friday and Saturday (October 8 & 9).
The action on both Friday and Saturday starts at 2.05 p.m., with Saturday's seven-race programme concluding at 5.20 p.m., followed by the traditional rendition of ‘Auld Lang Syne', this time by the Band of The Coldstream Guards.
Friday's card features two races sponsored by Betfair, the world's leading betting exchange, namely a £20,000 handicap contest over one mile and a race for juveniles over six furlongs. The programme on Friday also welcomes for the fourth year, chartered accountants Garbutt & Elliott Ltd. of Monkgate, who support a handicap race over the extended mile and a quarter, while the Nursery Handicap is also sponsored for the fourth time by West Yorkshire-based specialist printers, Acorn Web Offset. Handicap sprinters are catered for in The Parsonage Country House Hotel Handicap Stakes (five furlongs), while The Green Howards Cup, a Handicap contest for apprentice riders over one mile and a half concludes the strong card.
The principal race on Saturday is the £30,000 Coral Sprint Trophy, one of the U.K.'s top sprint contests of the autumn. This prestigious Handicap over six furlongs has been sponsored since 1979 by the Coral Group.
Precocious two-year-olds line up for Saturday's opening race, The Newton Investment Management Rockingham Stakes – a valuable Listed race – while first-time sponsors at York, Davis Langdon, a multi-disciplinary international construction and property company, who were part of the Design team for the award winning Ebor Stand, support a handicap contest over nine furlongs. Stayers take part in The Coldstream Guards Handicap Stakes. The first of the two-year-old contests that are so keenly followed by form students ahead of the winter break is over the round mile distance and is sponsored by the Symphony Group national suppliers of high quality bathrooms. While The Shirley Heights Syndicate and The European Breeders Fund once again combine to sponsor a race for maiden two-year-olds in honour of the dual English and Irish Derby winner of 1978, Shirley Heights, who also won the Dante Stakes at York prior to his Derby successes at Epsom and The Curragh, in the colours of racecourse chairman, Lord Halifax.
Three large screens will show even more of the action during the meeting, while the popular and informative ‘Punters' Panel' will look at all aspects of racing from the winners' enclosure prior to the action starting.
Racegoers will be able to follow the fortunes of their International Football teams ‘live' in dedicated football zones and using the large screens.
Going into York's final meeting of 2004, Britain's champion trainer-elect, Saeed bin Suroor, leads the way in the race for The Minster Jaguar Trophy presented to the top trainer at York during the season. Saeed bin Suroor has registered six winners on the Knavesmire this term – one more than fellow Newmarket trainer, Sir Michael Stoute.
The champion jockey, Kieren Fallon, is in pole position for the seasonal rider's prize at York, his nine winners going into the last meeting have him two ahead of his closest pursuer Kevin Darley for this award supported by Budget Car Rental.
There are a few places left in the popular Voltigeur Restaurant and tickets and badges can be booked in advance using this website.
The scene is set for a memorable finish to York's 2004 campaign.
WETHERBY'S NEW SEASON BEGINS IN STYLE
Wetherby's new season over Jumps begins on Wednesday (October 13) the first of 18 days' racing during the course's 2004/05 Jumping campaign.
Wednesday's quality programme, which starts at 2.25 p.m., is the backdrop to the 14th annual charity meeting in aid of Spinal Research, with over £200,000 raised during the previous thirteen charity racedays at Wetherby for the national charity which funds research into finding a cure for paralysis caused by injury to the spinal cord.
The feature race on Wednesday is The Sky Bet Supporting Spinal Research Bobby Renton Handicap Chase, sponsored by Sky Bet, one of the leading horseracing and sports betting companies in the U.K. This contest over the extended two and a half miles and with prize money of £17,000 added to stakes, remembers the late Bobby Renton, who trained Freebooter to win the 1950 Grand National from his base at Ripon. It is also one of three races sponsored in aid of Spinal Research, the other two being The Collins Seafood Novices' Handicap Hurdle (a contest for stayers over three miles and one furlong supported by Collins Seafoods Ltd. – wholesalers of seafoods), while the northern jump jockeys support a contest for juvenile novice hurdlers.
Another highlight on Wednesday is The £15,000-added ‘Wishing Mary Reveley A Happy Retirement' Handicap Hurdle over two miles named in honour of Mary Reveley, leading trainer at Wetherby over the years, who recently handed her training licence over to her son Keith Reveley.
Wednesday's card also includes The Mercatum Novices' Hurdle (two and a half miles) sponsored by Mercatum Ltd., a leading supplier of products and services to the IT and AV industries, while The Rocom Novices' Handicap Chase (extended two miles, seven furlongs) enjoys the support of regular Wetherby sponsors The Rocom Group - one of the U.K.'s leading specialist companies in I.T. and telecoms products.
Spinal Research is once again hosting a fund-raising luncheon prior to racing in a marquee adjacent to the Parade Ring (noon for 12.30 p.m.). Reservations for the luncheon which costs £19 per person can be made by contacting Rachel Wright (Tel. 01759 371645 during the day or 371584 evenings). A special auction will take place in the marquee for several high-profile prizes, including badges for racing at Cheltenham on Saturday, 11 December with a £200 free bet courtesy of Sky Bet, a day's pheasant shooting as a guest of Lord Swinton, a bottle of Martel Cognac signed by this year's Grand National winning rider Graham Lee and a private box for 20 guests at a future Wetherby meeting.
Trainer Sue Smith and rider Tony Dobbin took the honours in last season's top trainer and jockey awards at Wetherby, sponsored by The Nag's Head at Pickhill, near Thirsk.
For old articles (from 1st March 2000) go to the Newslink
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