Weekend Jottings!

Today there are no fewer than three race meetings, and of course all of them are jump fixtures at Perth, Southwell and Stratford.  There are no flat meetings on at all, so it has all become apparent...it is flat on Saturday's and jumps on Sunday's - why am I so thick?  I should have realised sooner that race planning would have everything under control - afterall, the flat boys must go to church on a Sunday, while the jumps ruffians do not!

*****

Well done to Cartmel racecourse who deserve a huge pat on the back for their efforts.  Despite the Levy Board grant being cut in half, the course (thanks to local sponsorship and initiatives) have actually managed to increase prize money by an impressive 27%.  One of the initiatives is a barbecue afternoon - you can book a barbecue pack for £20 and there will be a prize for the best on-course barbecue or picnic.  Cartmel is a well run track that deserves the support of owners and trainers for pulling out all the stops like this - there are many tracks that could take a leaf out of their book.  Cartmel is in a beautiful part of England and if you have never been, I would urge you to take a look at it - the whole town supports it's racecourse, the only trouble is that you may find all the roads leading to the course get congested on a race day.

*****

Talking of increased prize money, I see that William Hill have added another £50,000 to the Greyhound Derby.  The race is now worth £125,000 to the winner - that sounds like an awful lot of money for a greyhound race to me.  Even so, I have many fond memories of my younger days spent at the 'Stow - my favourite dog was called "Bill The Pig".  Yes, I know that it 's an awful name, but he saved my bacon on a number of occasions!