Ascot abandon weekend meeting

Weather prospects look poor

This weekend's card at Ascot has been abandoned because parts of the course are frozen.

After a 7.30am inspection proved inconclusive, Chris Stickles, the clerk of the course, decided to wait until 11am in the hope that conditions might improve sufficiently to allow racing to take place for the Friday card.

The racecourse executive had placed frost sheets across the course for a week prior to their two-day fixture. A team of 90 were drafted in to remove the covers but overnight rain and snow made the covers more difficult to remove and sub-zero temperatures also hampered attempts to allow the meeting to go ahead. But the final straw was some frozen patches around Swinley Bottom.

“There was a lot of rain last night, before it froze, so the covers are very wet, very heavy but there are some frozen lumps as you get down to Swinley Bottom,” Stickels said. “The home straight is actually in good shape – there is very little ground there that would concern anyone. A lot of work has gone in – the covers went down last Saturday – but minus four overnight has just proved too difficult for us today.”

It was also too much for the Saturday card, which would have featured the Grade One BGC Hurdle, which has had to be postponed for the second year in succession. The BHA will now look for an alternative venue for the race during the Christmas period.

It was a similar story for the fixture at Uttoxeter, which has been abandoned due to snow and that appears to be the start of another spate of abandonments as the latest cold-weather front exerts its grip on both Britain and Ireland.

Officials at the track had taken the precautions of laying frost covers, which did their job in terms of protecting the turf, but then could not be removed because they became frozen after overnight snow.

Friday's meeting at Downpatrick has been postponed, Newcastle lost Saturday's card after a midday inspection and Haydock's meeting will have an 8am precautionary inspection with the forecast not offering much in the way of improved conditions, while Navan will be inspecting at 7.30am. Lingfield Park’s Flat meeting on the Polytrack is also a worry, due to a predicted heavy snowfall, with a 6.30am inspection called.

Sunday's meeting at Carlisle has already gone while Navan have opted for an all-hurdles card and the chase course at Thurles is untraceable. Hereford and Ludlow will in inspect on Sunday for Wednesday while Musselburgh are pessimistic about the chances of racing on the same day. The track is frozen and officials will be inspecting on Monday.

Paul Wheeler

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