Cheltenham Festival
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I know it's early with 5 weeks to go till Day 1 but thought i'd start the thread given the mixed forecast for this week ahead and it seems to be roughly the same the week after judging by the BBC monthly forecast.
On saturday the Cheltenham Town manager described his clubs pitch in home game v Northampton as "unbelievably bad"
Maybe use the thread to post updates if anyone hears Claisse's utterings or if any posters live near the course....from memory I think Mr Eboue is one.
I'd imagine it's 'heavy' at the moment
On saturday the Cheltenham Town manager described his clubs pitch in home game v Northampton as "unbelievably bad"
Maybe use the thread to post updates if anyone hears Claisse's utterings or if any posters live near the course....from memory I think Mr Eboue is one.
I'd imagine it's 'heavy' at the moment
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updates from the locals in and around cheltenham would be very much appreciated on this thread.
This weather is really starting to dampen my festival excitement (no pund intended) |
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you said it yourself, 5 weeks to go.
the weather right now is not very relevant. 5 days before it will be. unless a tornado takes down the stands what is the point? |
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its all relevant,the more rain we have now, the more likely rain nearer the time will make an impact.
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And it is four weeks now.
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Time to take stock of conditions will be the beginning of March. Even if it is heavy on the 28th February, all we'll need is a dry/sunny/windy week and Claisse will be reaching for the hosepipes
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The Long Range forcasters are predicting a dry spell for Southern England towards the end of February, hopefully will stay like that until the Festival
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Why 'hopefully'?
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because we don't want a heavy ground festival !!!!!!!!!!!!
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some might for their bets.
personally I will be happy with normal good/soft or decentish ground anyway |
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bonnie Joined: 19 Aug 11 Replies: 15 10 Feb 14 12:12 because we don't want a heavy ground festival !!!!!!!!!!!! 'We' don't? Practically all the form from prep races, and before that, is on heavy ground. Makes it all that more straightforward if you can eliminate horses that don't do a lick on heavy ground. |
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I would always rather see the Festival ran on decent ground, good to soft, or even better if that was still allowed. Irrelevant of my betting position, I just think that better ground races make for a more enjoyable spectacle, with classier horses able to show their true form, rather than those that just handle the ground better.
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it wouldn't be a great viewing spectacle watching horse after horse struggling up the hill at walking pace absolutely b0ll0xed.
good - good/soft would be ideal, what are the chances ?? |
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If it dries out between now and the Festival you can hang your hat on the official going description being 'Good To Soft', because that is whet the Executive there want it to be.
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Sorry, should have explained. If it dries ot to the point of there being the possibility of 'Good' or faster ground, the Clerk will start watering in order to get the desired 'Good To Soft'.
The only thing to kibosh this will be if the prolonged wet spell continues, since the Exec still haven't worked out a way of drying the course out to get their holy grail of 'Good To Soft' ground. (NB The Official descriotion and the actual are two diffwerent things and NNB Don't complain about any of this. Just factor it into your punting) |
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An Article from The Guardian today (Feb 10th)
"Cheltenham's clerk of the course has moved to allay concerns about next month's Festival, raised by the recent extraordinary downpours across the country which continue to cause the abandonment of jump racing elsewhere. Simon Claisse described the famous track as "pretty saturated" but said it had been raceable every day of the year so far, except for a single day when winds exceeding 50mph were the problem. "Our sympathies are with those around us who are having trouble," Claisse said, noting that there is a severe flood warning in place for Tewkesbury, eight miles away. "Prestbury Park has its own unique microclimate and, with the odd exception like Festival Trials Day last month, we quite often miss the worst of the rain. "There are two important things to bear in mind, for anyone who is worried or is making their selections now and trying to predict the going. The first is that the ground we'll be using for the Festival, 90% to 95% of it, has not been raced on for the past 12 months, so it's not like we're trying to recover parts of the course that have been raced on for two days in January. "The second thing is that things do change quickly if the rain stops and the temperature starts to rise. In 2007, we were heavy on the weekend immediately before the Festival and we ended up with good going on the Friday. The track is in very good shape. We've had little of the cold weather that can be a problem for the grass and the ground we've not touched is looking in good condition. "This time last year, we'd had an average of an inch of rain per week since April the previous year. This time we've had a very dry spell through September and October when we were watering the course, so the rainfall over the last 10 months has been significantly less than in the 10 months leading to the last Festival." Nevertheless, Claisse acknowledged that the weather in the build-up to this Festival, which starts four weeks from Tuesday, has been atypical and he would not be drawn into making predictions about conditions next month. "I think we're experiencing a weather phenomenon which is new to almost all of us. If we look a little further east, to the flooding around Windsor and Marlow, those conditions haven't been seen since the 40s, I'm told." |
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So in essence he is saying " it will be alright.....won't it ?" Why no mention of what he would have described the ground as the day he was interviewed. An it will be alright on the night speach if ever I heard one.
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It's brick hard in my garden at the moment. But then again, I live in Largs and have monoblock. Hope this helps.
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Evening all. Happy to help. I'll do my best to provide daily weather reports in the 2 weeks or so leading up to the Tuesday.
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Mr Eboue - Many thanks...good man !
johnn - I would have thought your Largs mansion would be paved with gold, paid for by big priced winners on the All Weather !!  |
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One swallow doth not a summer make, Mr Scobster.
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Cheers for your input Eboue
Where in Cheltenham do you live, 'cos the course appears to have a micro-climate all of its own? |
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The going is currently soft, good to soft in places and drying out slowly. Without any rain, the going description will change in five or six days to good to soft, soft in places.
Temperatures are set to rise next week, climbing to be between 9C and 12C, while rainfall is forecast between Thursday, March 7 and the start of The Festival on Tuesday, March 12, with between 15 and 18 millimetres due to fall. He said: “If the rainfall materialises as forecast, then The Festival is likely to start with soft ground. If so, there is a good chance we will get through the four days without having to do any watering. “Because the weather has been so wet this season, tiny amounts of rain have been making a difference. THE ABOVE WAS AN INTERVIEW WITH CLAISSE ON 27 FEB LAST YEAR - Tiny amounts of rain were making a difference to the going due to the wet winter so god knows what he will say nearer the time this year. Also shows how crap his forecasters are as it turned into the coldest festival in living memory. I would trust anyone on here before Mr Claisse. |
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9/4 to be soft on day one 7/1 heave ...prices in post on sat.
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What price was good to soft mate?
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hills 4/6 good to soft 9/4 soft 11/2 good 8/1 heavy 200/1 good to firm or firm. prices are for going at start of supreme
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Well it is definitely windy here today but until the torrential rain stops it won't have any drying effect that's for sure.
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I wouldn't be surprised if parts of the course are waterlogged at the moment. Never experienced a winter as wet as this in the 23 years I have lived in Cheltenham.
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tbh I'm more worried about rain in the training centres meaning horses turn up undercooked.
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Is that 36 hours without rain? When's Claisse starting to water?
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The Racing Post have had a word with Claisse and in todays paper he's reporting the ground, as of yesterday (Monday 17th), is Soft, heavy in places.
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Said in an audio interview there is also a bit of good to soft creeping in down the hill on the old course
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Seriously? Tewkesbury, 10 miles away, is under water, and there's little bits of good to soft on the old course? I was starting to worry that we'd end up with a bad ground festival, but if it's already dried to soft from heavy, I don't think there's much to worry about.
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All depends on whether it rains in March
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on the Chelt Audio def states some good to soft creeping in after a couple of nice days. The forecast they have is for it to be mainly dry in the next 2 weeks with odd showers.....as chelt is well known to dry quicker then nearly every other track and the officals aim to start on good to soft most years id be shocked if in 3 weeks today the description is not good to soft ( soft in places )
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just needs the frost to come in and delay the Cross Country race and we're good to go!
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on the Chelt Audio def states some good to soft creeping in after a couple of nice days. The forecast they have is for it to be mainly dry in the next 2 weeks with odd showers....
.... so the watering starts next week then? |
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I'd love to be able to back them watering before the off - I reckon its nailed on
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just heard on the central news the following...rain tonight and showers across the region tomorrow.....colder at the end of the week but drier and then the jets stream from the Atlantic is coming in lower than expected next week bring more substantial rain!!!. Longer range forecast is drier into March but periods of showers....I don't think it will dry up enough to be good to soft....my reckoning will be Soft all over(and as a saver...soft with good to soft in places).
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Three days of very little rain. The odd shower but nothing serious.
Daffodils and Crocusts peaking through the grass at Pitville park. |