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Here’s the planned program for their first meeting on Thursday evening, June 18th. The final race must be one of the earliest juvenile hurdles of the season.
No attempt to start with a big feature race, which probably makes good sense, given it’s going to be competing with Royal Ascot for space in the media.
6:50 The Britain’s Newest Racecourse Handicap Steeple Chase (0-125) 2m 6f £10000 5-y-o +
7:20 The Ffos Las First Class For Hospitality Novices’ Steeple Chase 2m £10000 5-y-o +
7:50 The Advertise Your Company At Ffos Las Handicap Hurdle Race (0-115) 3m £7900 4-y-o +
8:20 The Ffos Las History In The Making Handicap Steeple Chase (0-100) 3m £6000 5-y-o +
8:50 The Ffos Las Racecourse Your Perfect Venue Novices’ Hurdle Race 2m £5000 4-y-o +
9:20 The Come Racing At Ffos Las Juvenile Maiden Hurdle Race 2m £5000 3-y-o
They seem like pretty decent races for summer jumping and not bad prize money. What is the weather like in South Wales during the summer and what kind of ground will they have? Bet the likes of Bowen, Tim Vaughan and Evan Williams can’t wait, they will be able to set off for racing after sunrise for afternoon meetings, which can’t be bad.
Looks pretty decent and should get some of the big stables involved if the money is good.
A decent card, looking forward to it. A 0-125 Chase to open proceedings is a big enough feature race for me
Apologies if this has been discussed before, but does one track share both Flat and NH necessitating portable obstacles a la Southwell and Haydock?
Really looking forward to this!!!!
Think the jumping side of this will be a big success there is healthy following of NH people in Wales.
Looks like they are doing everything properly
Who have tv rights ATR or RUK??
Definitely a separate hurdles and chase course, for the precise reason Colin gives.
Safety limit yet to be carved in stone, but I think the intention was to have it somewhere in the region of 18-20 for each course.
Walesonline.co.uk inferred a fortnight ago that single tickets for this meeting were already available, but they are not – March 1st is the date they go on sale. You can already buy your Annual Badge online, though.
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
The final race must be one of the earliest juvenile hurdles of the season.
Among the very earliest, certainly, without quite being the earliest. This season’s first juvenile was at Hexham on June 7th, Derby day, and was won by Simarian. Long season that one’s having!
Even then that shouldn’t have been the first – that would have been at Stratford six days earlier, but the meeting was rained off.
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
Given the involvement of Northern Racing, I guess it will be ATR for the TV coverage.
The track looks superb and the facilities are coming together very nicely. The course is in a superb setting, although I saw it on possibly the most miserable day Wales has ever seen!
The track itself is very wide with huge sweeping bends. Driving round the service road you barely feel as if you are going round a bend. The drainage looks to be well planned as well.
I wish them the very best of luck because it definitely deserves to succeed. The layout has been thoughtfully planned to suit all racegoers and connections. I certainly hope to be at their first meeting…
At least its got a grandstand, I went too Bangor and standing on that will in driving ran in leather souled shoes wasnt pleasant…
Good luck, it looks a nice track.
Most things that Dai Walters organises are sweet. He is a lucky guy if a bit unpredictable. He has a huge amount of pride in this and it should work. We will have some runners there first meeting thats for sure. My wife is not happy in missing ladies day at Royal Ascot but for me I`d rather be at a jump meeting anyday. I understand Peter O`Sullevan is going to do the opening.
A positive update on progress from Alan Lee in the Times today:
Ffos Las remains on schedule for its launch meeting on June 18. Indeed, it could probably open a month early, with Mark Kershaw, the racing director, reporting that the track is now fully operational and the grandstand complete. Another batch of leading trainers was shown around last week and the feedback is positive.
Dai Walters, the course owner, has been with Kershaw at Punchestown this week, promoting Ffos Las to Irish trainers who will be able to travel there – via ferry – as fast as most of their British rivals. Some may target the first jumps meeting, an evening card at which the crowd will be encouraged to arrive early and picnic to a big-screen backdrop of Ladies’ Day at Royal Ascot.
Also, the program for the third quarter of the year is now available and jumps enthusiasts in the area should pencil in Friday August 28th for a valuable afternoon meeting. The features are a £50K 3M handicap chase and a £30k 2M handicap hurdle.
That card shows that the safety limits are 18 for experienced horses, 16 for novice races, and those numbers seem to apply at all distances.
The first flat meeting on Tuesday afternoon, July 21st, has races over 5F, 6F, 10F, 12F and 2M, with the feature a £12k handicap over 10F.
Can’t really agree with the idea that Ffos Las is convenient for the Irish yards.
True, as the crow flies it isn’t that far but the ferry trip from Rosslare to Fishguard takes in the region of 31/2 – 4 hours. You can add on the trip from the yards to Rosslare and the trip from Fishguard to Trimsaran and it isn’t that convenient.
Colin
Also, the program for the third quarter of the year is now available and jumps enthusiasts in the area should pencil in Friday August 28th for a valuable afternoon meeting. The features are a £50K 3M handicap chase
Oops! Right race, but possibly the wrong date. That’s only six days after the Lord Mildmay at Newton Abbot, isn’t it?
It would have served a lot of people’s interests better to have that fixture maybe in the second week of September, evenly spaced between the Lord Mildmay and Market Rasen’s "Prelude" Chase, three races likely to attract broadly speaking the same pool of runners (i.e. 125- to 150-rated handicappers).
It’s not as if September is especially well-endowed with jumps meetings as it is – as mentioned on here ad nauseam, it’s got the fewest such fixtures of any month – so one more then rather than a few weeks earlier would make sense.
Jeremy
(graysonscolumn)Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
Can’t really agree with the idea that Ffos Las is convenient for the Irish yards.
True, as the crow flies it isn’t that far but the ferry trip from Rosslare to Fishguard takes in the region of 31/2 – 4 hours. You can add on the trip from the yards to Rosslare and the trip from Fishguard to Trimsaran and it isn’t that convenient.
Oh, I’m sure they’ll make the effort, Colin, especially those connections of animals who favour a proper galloping course – there are as few of those in operation in Ireland over the summer jumping programme as there are here.
My ticket hasn’t arrived as yet, sir – has yours?
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
Ticket update: they arrived today. Looks like it’s really going to open on schedule at this rate!
The opening fixture now appears to comprise seven races, according to the accompanying handouts, with races at half-hourly intervals from 6.20pm to 9.20pm.
Gates open at 1pm to allow visitors to have a look around the place, to take in the Royal Ascot action on a big screen, and to enjoy the barbecues being laid on.
Five weeks and counting!
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
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