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Far better to cancel racing for a couple of days as a one-off and the extreme heat not materialise, than race and lose a couple of horses due to heat exhaustion plus a couple of octogenarian annual members in the stands!
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I don’t think the meetings should have gone ahead, but it would have been interesting to see which trainers and jockeys felt it was still acceptable to race had they done so.
For anyone who did, I think it would raise some concerns about their suitability to be entrusted with the care of racehorses.
“I don’t think the meetings should have gone ahead, but it would have been interesting to see which trainers and jockeys felt it was still acceptable to race had they done so.
For anyone who did, I think it would raise some concerns about their suitability to be entrusted with the care of racehorses.”
Exactly my thoughts, Marlingford. I was just speculating who would declare…..
Ffos Las, Worcester, Kempton and Salisbury all abandoned on Wednesday.
Only Carlisle in the UK set to race.
Must be question marks for Newmarket, Nottingham and Leicester on Thursday too.
....and you've got to look a long way back for anything else.
The BHA said its policy indicates fixtures falling in a red warning zone must be cancelled, seems clear cut. So presumably that would apply to Royal Ascot. But as we know the BHA aren’t averse to twisting or interpreting their own rules to suit their own ends, as in the case of Benvenuto Cellini and Bacio.
I find it difficult to believe they would want to reimburse all the racegoers.
I suppose if it was only one day, they could run some of the races on the other days. But it wouldn’t have been ideal.
It remains a hypothetical situation for now but it could happen in future. Outside of Cheltenham and Aintree, Royal Ascot must generate the most betting turnover.
On Thursday, the meeting at Nottingham is starting at 10.30am and Newmarket will get underway 15 minutes later.
The horses still have to travel back in their boxes in the hottest part of the day which isn’t allowed unless they leave them in the course stables until evening.
I agree it is a sensible precaution to abandon jumps meetings in very hot weather. In fact, I would scrap summer jumping altogether and go back to having a two month break. I realise some jumps stables would not be pleased but summer jumping is by and large poor and unappealing.
Should Flat racing be abandoned in hot weather? Is there any evidence to show running over short distances in hot weather is dangerous for horses? After all, the Thoroughbred’s origins are in the Middle East, where it does get quite warm.
I realise there is the issue of transporting horses in hot weather – but Nottingham and Newmarket have shown that starting times can be flexible, so travelling does not have to be in the heat of the afternoon.
It seems a shame to abandon meetings when the weather is “good” and there are no issues with the tracks.
There’ll be clerks of the course cloud-seeding as soon as they see “good” in the weather forecast.
I think most would welcome a 2 month break for jumping although that will lead to more flat racing to fill the gaps in the off course bookmakers fixture list
Greyhound racing meetings have been abandoned as well.
https://www.racingpost.com/greyhounds/meetings-off-as-tracks-follow-hot-weather-policy-aEqyC7U8kvwu/
In the long hot summer of 1976 the jump season started on the 31 July 1976 at Market Rasen on ground officially described as ‘firm’. It was probably bordering on tarmac.
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