Ruby Walsh: Fear of missing out won’t be a problem at Cheltenham this year

The guidelines in place are stricter than many people believed they would be but, in light of an event taking place right on the outskirts of a big town, I imagine they are pretty much required

Mick Winter’s Cheltenham hopefuls Sayce Gold (Mick Winters - near side) and Chatham Street Lad (Abi Fitzgibbon) enjoying a stroll in the Shannon Estuary near Beale Beach Co Kerry. Picture: Healy Racing

By the time you have picked up your copy of this morning’s Irish Examiner, the stable staff heading for Cheltenham with the horses that will represent Willie Mullins on Tuesday next will have been on the go since 3.30am.

The 16 horses scheduled to leave Dublin Port at 8am will have been fed and walked before being loaded for departure at 5.30am to embark on the first leg of their 12-hour journey. That’s roughly what it takes door to door, and this year the added paperwork of Brexit coinciding with all the Covid regulations means it will probably take longer.