Cheltenham Festival
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FAR better than Cheltenham .....
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New rod for Xmas ?
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Not like the OP to start an ireland is better than england thread
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Especially as he had it on his toes to Greece as soon as Covid hit Ireland
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Thought you wanted to talk horses...
Cheltenham beginning to lose its appeal |
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If the best of the English were coming over to Leopardstown I might agree. But all we are seeing is the Mullins/Elliott roadshow. Still think Cheltenham very much more exciting.
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Very poor……
Leopardstown operations manager Jane Hedley has acknowledged the track could have provided a better experience for racegoers on the Saturday of the Dublin Racing Festival. A lack of staff meant long queues were commonplace and, in some cases, bars and restaurants ran out of supplies causing frustration for the 12,957 in attendance. Leopardstown uses the same catering service as the Aviva Stadium and, with Ireland facing Wales on Saturday in the Six Nations, Hedley said the agency responsible for staffing prioritised the rugby over the racing. The issue was raised in a meeting between management at Leopardstown after racing on Saturday and, according to Hedley, the service provided to racegoers on Sunday was much better for the 11,972 who came through the gates. She said: "There is no doubt that Saturday was a very, very difficult day for us. Anyone who has ever run a racecourse will know that, on your first day of the season, there are always teething problems. For us to have our first day with crowds in over two years and go straight into a near capacity crowd was difficult. |
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I have to say I was very disappointed with the racecourse this year ,the problems on Saturday have been acknowledged to a degree,however there was no excuse for not giving those like myself who had also bought seats no badge to wear so staff could know who was entitled on the upper levels ,a very basic thing to do and when I asked well before racing they seemed surprised I thought badges would be needed,Sunday badges were given out,both days there were no racing posts available at the racecourse again when asking at the information kiosk they seemed surprised that somebody would want a racing post,
That all said two terrific days racing’s from the best viewing track anywhere roll on next year. |
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Incidentally I have only missed one Dublin festival which was when the fixture was ran behind closed doors and the previous years have been excellent.
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I think the quality of the horses is much better , just looking at them in the paddock they appear well ahead of their overseas rivals. There was a few at Fontwell a couple of weeks ago were well in their winter coats. So was that posh bird who trained Paisley Park....lol
Also because the big steeplechases over there seen to have so few runners lately and remain uncompetitive |
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Sounds like a shambles of a meeting. Will take many years till they get the punters confidence back.
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oh be jasus...u do talk some ****
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I personally don’t like to wait for 45 mins to an hour to get served at the bar as there is only 1 bar staff serving. If the reports are correct.
Jimnast can confirm if correct as he was there. |
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I think quite a few of those you saw placed at the weekend will come good at Cheltenham.
Shishkin is the biggest English banker imvho |
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6 runners in the next hcap chase at taunton
7 runners in the next hcap chase at market rasen Just lacking competition over there |
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I can't think of another sport where patriotism matters less, personally I couldn't give a rats ar53 if the Irish win 28-0 just as long as I've backed a few of them, which is hard enough in itself
 and I bet that 99.99999999999 of all other punters think exactly the same way. |
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Spot on Duffy.
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Yes Duffy I would also agree with that
Hibore Not sure it was an hour but from what I was told in the evening it wasn’t good,I had no intention of having a drink on Saturday until after race 5 as I am sure you will agree race 6 was totally out of place on the card,we were on the premium level where in theory it should be less of a problem it took my wife around 20 minutes to get served, Earlier in the afternoon we found the coffee bar where no alcohol is allowed it’s a nice place to spend between races they had both the rugby and racing on with no sound ,sold nice snacks at a fair price all in all just a pleasant 1/2 hour ,so when returning on Sunday I was astonished it was closed for the day,I will soon give leopardstown my feedback and to be fair they are a very helpful racecourse to deal with,they got it wrong this weekend customer experience wise on the whole ,but even so they still did a few nice touches free bus from and back to the tram station and plenty of golf buggies to get those who needed a bit of help to get up the climb to the entrance gates. As stated on an earlier post I will be back next year and god willing I will be there until the day I can’t. One another note you would be very surprised which horse statue over looks the winners enclosure. |
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Nothing to do with english irish patriotism
Its pretty well recognised irish national.hunt is better than u k national hunt So it follows that the dublin festival in terms of quality is better than cheltenham |
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We were in the premium level both days, Saturday getting a drink was a nightmare.
Sunday they seemed to have got things sorted Badges etc. Will we be back next year !! without doubt we will be going again. Best two days racing and value for money !!! Wish i could say same about hotels, flights etc. |
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Clayton was a farce go lightly we were there 3 nights no servicing the rooms,no entertainment,no papers all due to COVID,in hotel cafe only open Monday to Friday.
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I was at cheltenham before xmas for the showboat meeting
For a snowflake society I was a bit shocked to find every server in the restaurant I was in was black Bit racist aint it ? |
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Not to mention the exhorbitant prices for a bit of lunch
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Despite GB having less horses in big races, on any ground, I think we will win every handicap chase! The handicapper is dropping horses marks so quickly and will stitch up the Irish imo.
The hurdlers are harder to do due to being so unexposed. |
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I think it’s bizarre for someone who hates everything British that he bothers to go to Cheltenham multiple times in a year. Especially when he says it’s crap horses, ground and Nicky Henderson is there
 He didn’t go to the DRF which is the best NH racing in the world ? Strange that. |
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Barnes
Hope you are right mate Hate watching hollow victories If they have to stitch the Irish to win so be it The bha have been trying to do that for yearsyears Way things are going over there This great sport is on a downer |
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JJ agree with that
We dont do certain meets now Cheltenham gold cup day Galway ladies day Aintree ladies day Ascot ladies day Nightmares........all off the agenda because of overcrowded bars, pushing and pulling, stress and rude people |
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Goodwood is my nearest course that has a big meeting, hated the last couple of years gangs of coked up boys and girls, like couple of beers in between races but getting to the stage where i'm not bothering the queues are that bad and leaving before the last race to avoid the inevitable punch ups.
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JJ
I've been many times to Dublin and to Leopardstown - it is a fantastic experience and the Feb meeting used to offer excellent value as you could book a table for lunch for a fifth of the price Cheltenham charge. Not quite the same now as prices have increased but well worth it. I've taken my misses their half a dozen times and she loves the experience. We now always stay at the Arlington Hotel, on the Liffey, which used to be a hive of activity every night but seems less so now. You get a good breakfast and easy commuting distance to Leopardstown by taxi, Dart or Tram. Also lodged at Wynnes hotel which is just around the corner - a typical old fashioned Irish hotel with plenty of character(s). Did the Punchestown festival from Wynnes one year and as I recall they arranged to take us to the course each day. Like all capital cities Dublin is no longer cheap - cheapest pint of Guinness was actually at the racecourse!!!! |
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never understand why people take drugs at the races always bemused walking past sniffer dogs at newmarket
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Thanks for reply sawyer, i'm expecting it to be an expensive weekend to be honest, just cant do the festival anymore, i know everywhere has the crowd their just for the craic, but it seems on the tv at least more people are actually there for the racing at Leopardstown, i honestly think those sniffer dogs are just there as a tick box to see if anyone draws attention to themselves by walking away from the queues or they are specialist in other areas i.e explosives or something because the amount of people that just walk straight past them that i see in toilets in ridiculous.
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One thing i like about australian and american tracks is that you feel very safe.
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I’ve attended Cheltenham all 4 days for the last 5 years. Totally agree with the comments that Gold Cup day is painful and not much fun if you are in Club or Tatts.
However, we have paid for the Cheltenham lounge near the shopping tents and Guinness village on a couple of occasions for £40 per day and £60 on Gold Cup day. This was fantastic as you easily got a table even at 2pm and had access to a bar and food throughout the day without any queues of any note. It’s a short walk to the viewing areas as well. Next time you are at the festival it’s well worth having a look. It may change your mind about attending the best day of the festival. Tickets sell out quick so book by December or you may miss out. |
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On another note I may have 6 x reserved seats opposite the winning line in the members area for sale. We are just awaiting confirmation of alternative hospitality so would be a shame if these tickets/seats were unused. PM me if you are interested.
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Seats are all together for all 4 days.
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One of worst saturday cards in memory tomorrow....where have all the mules gone?
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5 in the denman
5 in the game spirit ? Come greyhound racing at your nearest horse race teack in the u k |
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Only 4 in the game spirit now irish
If there had been five it would have been an above average number of runners compared to the last ten years!!!! |
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Hibore, do you really think the Friday is the best day of the festival?
It only really has the Gold cup, and the second best race- the Grand annual has been moved. I’ve always loved the Tuesday. Thursdays used to always be a great spectacle with two handicap chases, but it depends what appeals to you I suppose. |