Cheltenham team in bullish mood
The going on all three courses at the home of National Hunt racing is heavy, soft in places but conditions are set to improve during the big week.
“Weatherman John Kettley gave us a forecast from Sunday through until today and he said we’d get between 18 and 23 millimetres and we’ve had 23,” said clerk of the course Simon Claisse.
“The interesting thing is the forecast he gave me this morning from now until next Tuesday is only for another 12 millimetres or so, which would be the same as we had last night.
“I pointed out the other day that we were heavy and soft in places and I expected to be somewhere between the two for the start of the Festival,” he told Racing UK.
Claisse then allayed any fears of abandonment, saying: “On the basis of the forecasts we have now, we can dispel that.
“We could have raced yesterday and we schooled a few horses over the cross country fences.
“I think the Old Course is probably marginally less slow than the New because we have been racing on the New Course on heavy ground (December and January).
“But ground has been reserved for the Festival on both tracks and that’s better than the ground we have raced on earlier in the season.
“High pressure is supposed to strengthen through Festival week and there should be some sunshine and some nice dry warming weather.”
In the more immediate future, racing is set for a brief respite at last from the current wet spell with both today’s jumps meetings at Catterick and Fontwell likely to go ahead.
However, further disruption through waterlogging will continue with Lingfield having abandoned Thursday’s card, Carlisle (track heavy and waterlogged in places) in serious doubt the same day and Stratford next Monday already lost.
Lingfield surrendered following an inspection yesterday afternoon after 20 millimetres of rain overnight.
