Warwick

Warwick is a town in Warwickshire in the Midlands of England, just south of Coventry and Birmingham.

It has a history which can be traced back to pre roman times. The town was fortified by the Anglo Saxons in the 10th century only for much of it to be destroyed by the Danes when they attacked in 1050. Later in that century, the Castle was constructed by William the Conqueror and Warwick went on to become a walled town. During the English Civil War, the town was occupied by Parliamentarian forces which withstood attacks from Royalists. In 1694, there was a great fire in Warwick and most of the medieval buildings were destroyed.

Warwick is an interesting place to visit http://visitwarwick.co.uk/ There is plenty in and around the town by way of accommodation, eateries and watering holes. Here are a few places worth a look:

Warwick Castle – https://www.warwick-castle.com/

Lord Leycester Hospital – http://www.lordleycester.com/

Guy’s Cliffe – http://www.guyscliffehouse.co.uk/

Charlecote Mill – http://www.charlecotemill.co.uk/

There is much more too. Furthermore, Warwick is situated within easy reach of Birmingham and more particularly, Stratford Upon Avon and all they have to offer.

Warwick is close to the M40 giving easy access north to Birmingham and south to Banbury, Oxford and all the way to London.

Warwick Racecourse

Warwick Racecourse hosts both Flat Racing and National Hunt Racing, and both on turf.

They have raced here since 1707.

Warwick racecourse is a left-handed track of one mile and six furlongs, which is flat, other than a rise just after the winning post which descends again on the turn into the back straight. It has tight bends and those capable of racing prominently tend to do well here.

For flat racing, there is a Shute from where races over 5 furlongs and 5.5 furlongs start. There is a left-hand dog leg turn into the straight proper. As a result, good early speed and a good draw (low) are important. There doesn’t seem to be any draw bias on the round course.

The jumps course is regarded as tricky though in fairness, Warwick has one of the lower casualty rates. There are five fences in the back straight which come close together and need jumping. There is a short run in from the last.

Clerk of the course: Jane Hedley

Course telephone number: 01926 405 560

Full address: Warwick Racecourse Office, Hampton Street, Warwick, CV34 6HN

Getting Here

Warwick is 95 miles from Central London, 34 miles from Birmingham, 97 miles from Bristol, 118 miles from Cardiff, 116 miles from Manchester and 322 miles from Edinburgh.

of town adjacent to the A429 2 miles from Jnc 15 of the M40

The course post code is CV34 6HN.

Course parking is free in the centre of the course.

The nearest railway station is Warwick Station which is about 20 minutes walk from the course. There is also Warwick Parkway which is a bit further away on the edge of town.

There are a few bus services which have stops a short way from the course. Details of these are on the racecourse website.

http://warwick.thejockeyclub.co.uk/plan-your-race-day/visitor-information/directions-parking

Racecourse facilities

Course website: http://warwick.thejockeyclub.co.uk/

Disabled access: http://warwick.thejockeyclub.co.uk/plan-your-race-day/venue-accessibility

There is just the one enclosure at Warwick though there are of course areas set aside exclusively for Annual Members just as you would find at any racecourse. There isn’t a strict dress code though they do discourage sports shirts and shorts. The course management do encourage smarter dress for the bigger meetings.

There is plenty of space both in the stands and in front of them. Everything that is outside the stands is in front of them, including the parade ring and winners enclosure.

The views from the stands is pretty good too, particularly from higher up. The runners do go out of direct sight of the stands as they turn into the back straight.

I was well enough impressed with the food and drink available today and most particularly from the food court on the first floor of the main stand. I tried a pie and chips and it was just fine.

The course advertise two restaurants, namely The 1707 Restaurant and The Kingmaker Restaurant. Both have views overlooking the racecourse.

This course does not allow picnics.

My Day

I’m grateful that I’ve not had so far to travel today, about an hour and a half all told though I have a more substantial drive up to Market Rasen after proceedings at Warwick. I wish I’d come over a but earlier this morning and spent a bit of time around the town and castle as well. I’ve always quite liked Warwick, it’s got a lot of history.

Betting wise, this is how it all went:

The first race on the card is a Class 4 Novices Hurdle over 2 miles. My eye is drawn to the Alan King trained Harambe, ridden by Tom Bellamy. He had run well in his three bumpers last season finishing with a nice 3rd to Portrush Ted at Aintree in April. His introduction to hurdling at Chepstow a couple of weeks ago was inconclusive as he came down at the first. He did go off at 9/4CF that day so was fancied enough. His two main rivals her, the Ben Pauling trained My Mate Mark and Nicky Henderson trained Laughing Luis both ran respectably on recent hurdling introductions without looking like winning. At 11/10 (last night) I think Harambe is worth a wager.

Harambe was replaced as favourite by My Mate Mark who also made the running. Harambe took closer order coming along the back straight though did have a loose horse to contend with. He went a clear 2nd in the straight and tried to challenge at the last and ran on to the line, still hassled by the loose horse. Whether that mattered, I’m not certain but he was only beaten just under a length.

The Neil King trained Marienstar has won his first two Handicap Chases this season quite comfortably and seems likely to me to score the Hat trick here today under Jack Andrews, claiming a useful 7lb. I think he has the Jeremy Scott trained Pulling Power to beat. Pulling Power beat Dawnieriver (won next 2) by a length and a quarter last time and may not be a pushover. But I’m happy to take 5/4 about my selection on the exchanges this morning. Marienstar made all with a near perfect round of jumping, other than a mistake along the back straight, eventually going on to win comfortably enough. Even money the odds of reward.

In the fifth race, a Handicap Hurdle over 2m 3f, Santiago De Cuba from the Jonjo O’Neill yard is of some interest. Started life as an Aiden O’Brien inmate and unraced was then sent to Joseph Patrick O’Brien for whom he won his debut in a bumper at Killarney. He ran in four hurdles in Ireland for the same trainer before being transferred again. I was interested to see how he ran on his UK debut and would have followed any money for him. Alas, he was withdrawn about an hour before the race. Maybe next time! The race itself was won quite comfortably by Erick Le Rouge.

So from a betting perspective, that left the second last race and the selection is Beat That from the Nicky Henderson yard. Only three to post here but also include his old adversary Exitas who had beaten him at Aintree about four weeks ago (a meeting I was also at). On that occasion, Exitas had won comfortably, beating Beat That into 2nd by 11 lengths and in receipt of 9lb. I suspect the margin may have been closer were it not for some indifferent jumping from Beat That. Today, there was a 12lb turnaround at the weights and with better jumping, I was confident about my selection. Beat That made the running today and although joined by Exitas 3 out, he was driven to move away again and score by seven lengths.

So a small profit again and its off to Market Rasen tonight for tomorrows meeting.