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Britain:
Ascot<br>Brighton<br>Cheltenham<br>Epsom<br>Exeter<br>Fakenham (cheers zoz)<br>Folkestone<br>Fontwell<br>Goodwood<br>Huntingdon<br>Kempton<br>Leicester<br>Lingfield<br>Musselburgh<br>Newbury<br>Newmarket<br>Newmarket (July)<br>Perth<br>Salisbury<br>Sandown<br>Towcester<br>Warwick<br>Wincanton<br>Windsor<br>Wolverhampton<br>Balcormo Mains PTP<br>Tweseldown PTP
Ireland:
Leopardstown<br>Punchestown<br>Galway
France:
Longchamp
USA:
Belmont Park
Adrian  —  A few questions from me if you happen to read this……what was the course in Brazil like? Was it turf or dirt and were there any on course bookmakers there? How large was the crowd and were they enthusiastic as they are in soccer games?  <br>
LL, I’ve got friends over in the States, (my current gf is from Oklahoma) and I visit the US three, four times a year.
Next stop? Lone Star Park/Oaklawn Park in February, and the Flamingo Trio in May, (Gulfstream, Calder and Tampa Bay). Touch wood.;)
Jeremy,
thanks for info re Budapest – I’ll give it a miss.:biggrin:
Upper Sapey sounds like a bundle of fun…lol!!…for such an avid supporter I’m surprised you’ve not been to the south east – much better organised down here you know….where you off to next ?  Pity the ptp is no longer on the t.v., they used to show it on the old Racing Channel – much missed.:)
hey Max,
well, enjoy your next trip! – some of those U.S tracks all look the same on the telly, anyhow  I hope your g/f enjoys it as much as you do ;)
Rory,<br>what’s your favourite out of that lot ? you must have one:)
(Edited by Lovely Lady at 12:31 pm on Oct. 25, 2006)
Swallow Cottage,
I went over for the Gran Premio di Brazil a few years ago – when John Hammond ran Scribe, ridden by John Reid.
Gavea is set in a nice part of Rio – near to the Botanical Gardens.  It has a huge turf course with an inner dirt course and floodlights.
I went evening racing in the Week (I think it was dirt racing) and then turf racing on Saturday and Sunday.
It rained a lot and the turf was pretty waterlogged whilst I was there (remember that August is in their Spring). ÂÂÂ
The quality of their horses was pretty high but a few things amused me:
1. In the mornings the grooms ride out only using a towel on the horses backs.  No saddles and they wear flip flops – leaning back on the horses quarters to pull up.
2.  Only the jockeys own saddles and when they ride track work the horses know they are going to do some serious exercise.
3.  When John needed extra lead they didn’t have any and we had to raid some out of the racing museum for him to use.
It was tote only with plenty of screens and explanations in the racecard to help you fill out little cards.
The grandstand is enormous but, certainly when I was there, it was badly in need of repair.  There were restaurants etc that you could go to however and I got the feeling that it is a sport for either the most aristocratic people or the absolute poorest with no middle ground.
I recommend the nightclub within the racecourse during the evening. It is more like a restaurant/bar that also has a dancefloor and good fun. There are self service beer pumps on the tables so you never have to wait for service!
I think there is even better racing down in Sao Paulo.
I’d recommend that whilst you are there you go up Corcavado Mountain to see the statue of Christ the Redeemer – hard work at the end (after parking your car) and probably a cliche but well worth it.  Also go to the Maracana stadium – awesome – either for a game or just to look around.
Just remembered another course I want to visit – Galway – amazing that I’ve not been yet.
Off to Kentucky on Friday for Breeders’ Cup – my 21st – and looking forward to going to Monmouth for the first time to see it in 2007.
(Edited by Adrian at 12:43 pm on Oct. 25, 2006)<br>
(Edited by Adrian at 12:46 pm on Oct. 25, 2006)
Quote: from Lovely Lady on 12:30 pm on Oct. 25, 2006[br]<br>Upper Sapey sounds like a bundle of fun…lol!!…for such an avid supporter I’m surprised you’ve not been to the south east – much better organised down here you know….where you off to next ?  <br>
<br>The main problem re: the South Eastern PtP and NH Rules tracks for me was always that they were quite some way away from me when I was living in Oldham and Scarborough – I was able to chalk off Lingfield and Kempton from the latter base, but only having attended gigs in the Capital the night before in either case.
I’ve managed to get rained or snowed off every time I’ve had a spot free in my diary for a South Eastern PtP since moving further south, otherwise I’d definitely have taken in the likes of Detling and Catsfield by now. Hoping for far better luck this season!
Jeremy<br>(graysonscolumn)<br>
(Edited by graysonscolumn at 1:42 pm on Oct. 25, 2006)
LL,
tricky one ~ on limited evidence, I would go for Wincanton. Cracking track, beautifully maintained and pretty friendly. Ran into Mounty in the car park too!
Dunno if it still is, but for years Wincanton was the only racecourse endorsed by CAMRA – I know I was able to get a pint of real ale there in May.
gc<br>
OK here goes…
GB (starting from the top!)<br>Perth, Hamilton, Musselburgh, Kelso, Newcastle, Hexham, Carlisle, Sedgefield, Redcar, Cartmel, Catterick, Thirsk, Ripon, Beverly, Wetherby, York, Pontefract, Aintree, Doncaster, Market Rasen, uttoxeter, Southwell, Fakenham, Nottingham, Warwick, Huntingdon, Newmarket (july), Cheltenham, Chepstow, Newbury, Ascot, Sandown, Epsom, Lingfield, Goodwood.
Ireland: Punchestown
France: Auteuil, Longchamp, Saint CLoud, Maisons-Laffitte, Enghien, Deauville, Clairefontaine, Compiègne, Toulouse, Pau, Chantilly, Cagnes sur mer, Craon, Castera Verduzan (I think, it’s in the SW), Vincennes (trotting)
USA: Arlington, Santa Anita, Lone Star Park, Belmont Park
Others: Tokyo, Nad Al Sheba, Baden baden, Frauenfeld (Switzerland), Copenhagen, Pardubice, San Sebastien, Waregem
I think I’ve just passed 30 British and Irish, plus Belmont. <br>For our collective spotters catalogue I can add two more:
Sandown – Melbourne
<br>and Bangkok (no idea what the track’s called – everything was in funny writing!) We just happened to stumble past when raicng was on and I dragged the wife in for a couple of races. I even managed a winner, once some kind person had managed to steer me to the right queue and translated for me!
Strangely it was the only place in the whole of the city that I didn’t feel like I was walking around like I had dollar signs tattoed on my forehead.
I’d also add Barcelona dog-track as one to go and see – it’s in a kind of bowl surrounded by residential housing blocks and is quite bizarre.
<br>lovely lady,
Sometime around 1978, when I was about 16, I was walking the South Downs Way with friends, and we stayed the night on the defunct Lewes racecourse. We camped right by the old runners and riders board, which was decaying but still had some names up on it, and we had a great view down what I guess must have been the home straight.
I didn’t have any interest in racing then so sadly can’t remember any of the names, but I do remember having a real sense of past history (see At Grass – Philip Larkin!).
I’ve never been to Lewes since. Is the board still there? Or indeed any of the course?
<br>
Rory,<br>I shall make a point of going to Wincanton :cool:
Hi Karly,
Much travelled I see, like so many on here.  Everyone seems to have been to Belmont!!… bar me…lol…What would be your favourite on the French scene Karly?? you sound like a regular over there…
<br>Hey Tooting !!
thanks for replying.  I’ve been to Sandown in Melbourne too, back in 1981 when the then great Australian horse Manikato won a big 7f race there, nearly had his head bitten off by a rival in a photo finish as I recall.  You may not have heard of him. ÂÂÂ
About Lewes, I’ve walked around there a few times over the years.  It’s now training gallops although they  have an all weather strip above it I think they use more, but there are some fences up too in what was the home straight as you rightly said. Not sure who trains there at the moment but they don’t seem to like people walking around too much, notices up etc.  as they recently won a case against it being used as open land, they wanted to keep it private, which is a bit of a shame speaking as a rambler. ÂÂÂ
Some years back I remember seeing the old stand still up, that made me laugh about the runners and riders board..lol!!… but now it’s all been converted, stable blocks and housing.  The old course though is in really good condition, there are posts still in the ground I’m wondering if they were from the old days as they seem to be markers for 12, 10 and 8f.  Also about 6f out for about a furlong or so you can see the old wooden rail and rusting metal posts rotting away in the underbrush.  The course has a little camber all the way from left to right and what seems a tight turn into the straight where I think the 5f start was.  Masses of blackberries in the hedgerows and wild apples growing  down the lanes nearby  should you visit in August and your wife fancies making a nice pie, as I did!!
"One Night in Bangkok" – Murray Head, a favourite of mine – your little tale kinda brought that back  :biggrin:
LL :)  <br>
Just looked through a racing book and found a few trainers who seem to train out of Lewes – never knew it was such a hotbed of racing!
Suzy Smith<br>Jim Best <br>M Hoad
<br>I’ll have to get down there and have a wander.
<br>
I’ve done
Flat – Ascot, Bath, Beverley, Brighton, Epsom, Goodwood, Haydock, Kempton (Turf + AW), Lingfield(AW), Musselburgh, Newbury, Newmarket(July), Redcar, Salisbury, Sandown, Windsor, Wolverhampton(AW)
Jumps –  Ascot, Cheltenham(Old, New + Park!), Fontwell, Hereford, Huntingdon, Kelso, Kempton, Leicester, Ludlow, Perth, Plumpton, Sandown, Stratford, Taunton, Towcester, Uttoxeter, Warwick, Windsor, Wincanton, Worcester
Ireland – Bellewstown, Curragh
USA – Laurel Park
I did a tour and took photos of the sites of ex-courses at Moreton-in-Marsh (no sign of course), Banbury (no sign), Rugby Hunt (now the Ptp course at Clifton-on-Dunsmore) and Northampton(with the help of Chris Holt’s book line of the couse can be worked out). In passing I saw the site of the old Isle Of Wight course, you can just make out the racing line in a place or two.
When I Jersey my trip didn’t coincide with a meeting, but I did trot round about 3 furlongs at the bottom end of the course!
With our recent move north my racing emphasis has changed a bit. One of my favourites, Perth, is now within easy reach, and Kelso was my last new ‘tick’ a couple of weeks back. Musselburgh jumps is lined up for November. Hope to visit Ayr and Hamilton next year. My wife has suggested an overnight stay for Hexham some time….she’s getting the idea!
I’ve managed to fit this around visiting 1200 football grounds, 30 odd Rugby League grounds, playing on 300 cricket grounds and 50 golf courses……oooh and Oxford dogs and half a dozen speedway tracks! Now I’ll just put my anorak on!
Rob
(Edited by robnorth at 8:16 pm on Oct. 27, 2006)<br>
(Edited by robnorth at 8:21 pm on Oct. 27, 2006)
Quote: from tooting on 3:44 pm on Oct. 27, 2006[br]Just looked through a racing book and found a few trainers who seem to train out of Lewes – never knew it was such a hotbed of racing!
Suzy Smith<br>Jim Best <br>M Hoad
<br>I’ll have to get down there and have a wander.
<br>Think Gerry Enright was also based there for quite some time, but probably no longer.
gc<br>
Quote: from Lovely Lady on 3:01 pm on Oct. 27, 2006[br]<br>"One Night in Bangkok" – Murray Head, a favourite of mine -<br>
<br> I don’t see you guys rating <br>the kind of mate I’m contemplating <br>I’d let you watch, I would invite you<br>but the queens we use would not excite you<br>so you’d better go back to your bars,<br>your temples,<br>your massage parlours
etc.
<br>Ah, twas a question on our pub quiz in Hitchin but three days ago….
gc<br>
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