DIARY – AINTREE
FRIDAY 13 APRIL 2012
FESTIVAL DAY 2 – LADIES’ DAY – PART I
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Finian’s Rainbow, winner of the Grade 1 Melling
Chase, is unsaddled in the rain This was to be my
fourth consecutive year of attending the Aintree Festival; for the second
year running I’d booked two days off work, on the second of which (Friday)
I’d be heading to Merseyside in time to attend Day 2 in addition to Day 3 of
the meeting. To complicate
matters this year, fuel tanker drivers had initially been threatening strike
action over the Easter period; this year the holiday being Friday 06 April to
Monday 09 April inclusive. Typically,
members of the Government had issued a statement that no-one should panic but
perhaps should store a limited emergency supply of fuel at home ... so, of
course, everyone panicked! This led to
queues at petrol stations, some of which ran out of fuel. Problems were beginning to surface on 28
March. On 29 March I
attended an Osmonds concert in Birmingham, travelling with my friend Lesley
from Milton Keynes railway station.
But I still needed to drive to her home on the
Bedfordshire/Buckinghamshire border; leaving me with just half a tank of
petrol in reserve. Luckily I don’t
need petrol to drive to work, as my employer’s office is just a mile from my
home but, by the end of that week, I was beginning to feel uneasy that I’d
not yet had the opportunity to purchase petrol to top up my tank ahead of
Aintree, two weeks hence. It was therefore
with relief that I drove down to my local Sainsburys petrol station at 06:45
on Saturday 31 March to discover that I was able to fill up my car’s tank
with ease; although there were more drivers at the fuel station than would
normally be expected at that hour on a Saturday morning and despite a number
of the pumps being designated as ‘Sorry
Out of Use’. Phew, I had a full
tank ahead of Aintree. Not that I was
out of the woods yet ... as Aintree is around 200 miles from my home and I
also needed enough petrol to drive to and from my choosen Travelodge, which
was 17 miles from the racecourse. My
car, allegedly, travels 400 miles on one tank of fuel. I suppose ‘choosen’ wasn’t quite the correct
word to describe it, as I would have preferred to stay at the Premier Inn in
Golborne as I’d done in 2010 and 2011.
However, upon attempting to book with Premier Inn shortly after last
year’s Festival, I’d discovered that all their rooms were designated as not
available. So I’d searched for a
Travelodge instead and initially found the Haydock location, only to read a
number of reviews stating how unpleasant that particular one was! I’d quickly cancelled and re-booked at the
Warrington Lowton Travelodge located just two miles further east on the A580
than the Golborne Premier Inn. And I don’t think I
should panic for 2013, as it later transpired that a limited number of rooms
were still available in Golborne if booked quite close to the date of the
Festival. Although Premier Inn had put
up their prices from around £50 to £75 for a ‘flexible’ booking.
Flexible referring to the fact that the room can be cancelled up to
13:00 on the day of your planned arrival and, I believe, payment is made at
that time. Their non-flexible bookings
are cheaper but need to be paid for in advance. My Travelodge booking was flexible but also
paid for in advance; however, if I cancelled prior to the deadline, I’d get
my money back, all bar a very small cancellation fee. My Travelodge room cost only £51 for one
night. This year I had
again planned to go to the Lambourn Open Day which takes place on Good
Friday, inviting my friend Denise to accompany me. However, as the day approached and in light
of the possible threat of strike action by the fuel tanker drivers, I cancelled
my trip. The weather on Good Friday
turned out to be quite nice, unlike the remainder of the Easter break. And the fuel tanker drivers had entered
talks with the hope of resolving their differences with their employers so,
in hindsight, I could have gone to Lambourn after all. And I missed the camel racing ... that’s
the second time I’ve missed camel racing, the other time being when it took
place at Stratford races last year because I didn’t enter the turnstiles early
enough. Easter became a very
quiet weekend for me, with no race fixtures to attend as Choc was suspended
from riding on Saturday 07, Sunday 08, Monday 09 together with Sunday 15
April due to a final furlong incident which took place at Newbury on Saturday
24 March when he won the Mares’ Listed Hurdle aboard Tante Sissi. In fact the only time I left the house throughout
Easter was to drive to my local Marks and Spencer superstore to purchase a
pair of navy blue shoes to wear with my Aintree outfit; the weather forecast
for the following weekend also being unpromising. Okay, I confess it was two pairs because I
couldn’t decide which pair I preferred! But, on the bright
side, I was able to complete my diary for Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival
and almost complete that for Day 4 too.
I finished and uploaded the latter on Tuesday 10 April. As the Aintree
fixture approached, it became apparent that Choc would almost certainly not
have a ride in the Grand National again this year; 2010 was the only previous
year he’d missed since his first ride in 1997. West End Rocker, who he’d ridden last year
when he was brought down at Bechers Brook, was now to be ridden by Alan King’s
second jockey Wayne Hutchinson. Having
won Aintree’s Becher Chase aboard the horse in December, the owners had
promised the ride to Wayne for the remainder of the season. Choc’s best hope of a Grand National ride
had been Hold On Julio who had held an entry until running disappointingly at
the Cheltenham Festival. At the start of the
week, I suppose I thought Choc may have rides in other races on the
Saturday. However, as the declarations
began to appear, it became apparent that Alan’s only runners on Saturday
would be West End Rocker in the National and Arabian Heights in the Charity
race at the beginning of the card.
Then, to add insult to injury, on the day before the Festival began,
it was confirmed that Choc would have 4 rides on Thursday; which would be his
busiest day of the Festival. I would
still be at home on that day, preparing for departure early Friday. Damn.
Mind you, I have to say, Thursday often turns out to be his busiest
and most profitable day so I shouldn’t have been surprised. Wednesday was not a good
day for me ... I was in two minds. Do
I try to find a hotel room for overnight Thursday and drive up early on
Thursday to watch the day’s racing? If
so, where would I park my car? I know,
the park and ride ... but, upon further investigation, it became apparent
there was to be no park and ride this year.
An alternative would be to park at my chosen hotel and travel to the
racecourse by public transport. It was
possible, but my chosen hotel would need to be near to a railway station and
it might take a long time to get to the racecourse ... but I’d been
concentrating so much on getting my Cheltenham Day 4 diary completed before I
set off for Aintree that I’d neglected my packing and my pre-race beauty regime
too. There was just not enough time to
get everything, including myself, ready for a 05:30 departure time on
Thursday. I would have to forego the
pleasure of seeing Choc on Thursday; perhaps next year. Thursday at home
permitted me to get everything ready in plenty of time, and to watch the
racing on TV too. For the record, Choc
was unseated from Smad Place 4 flights from home in the Liverpool Hurdle,
although there was no way he could have survived the blunder, it being so
severe. The race was won by Big
Buck’s; setting a new record of 17 consecutive wins. Choc had then won the Grade 1 Anniversary
4-year-old Juvenile Hurdle aboard Grumeti; who was driven out to beat the
Triumph Hurdle winner Countrywide Flame, both horses drawing well clear of
the remaining runners. Medermit
finished a very close 4th in the Grade 1 Bowl Chase, trying the 3 miles 1
furlong trip for the first time.
Finally, Kumbeshwar had finished 4th in the Grade 3 Red Rum Handicap
Chase. I’d missed one
important winner, Grumeti, but was hopeful Choc might make it to the Winners’
Enclosure again on Friday when he had 2 riding engagements; Lovcen in the
Grade 1 Sefton Novices’ Hurdle and Call Me A Star in the Mares’ Listed
Standard Open NH Flat Race. The latter
was considered his best chance of a winner on Friday. Having set my alarm
for 03:30, giving me two hours to prepare for departure, I went to bed before
21:00. However, foolishly, I scanned
the channels on my bedroom TV and got hooked on Long Lost Family, so didn’t
actually go to sleep until after 22:00.
In the event I was awake by 03:00, rising at 03:30 to take a shower,
wash and dry my hair. I ate Weetabix
for breakfast and drank a cup of black coffee; the latter having become an
addiction since I was diagnosed with sinus problems the previous summer. Dairy products definitely make catarrgh
issues worse, so I put soya milk on my breakfast cereal and drink far less
tea than I used to. Hopefully I will
drink more tea once my sinus operation had taken place on 19 April, just 6
days’ time. It was then time to
apply my make-up. I had a false start
here! For the Cheltenham Festival I’d worn
Max Factor Miracle Touch Foundation, however this had a tendency to make my
skin dry. The same happened today, as
soon as I’d applied it. Back to the
drawing board; or rather Max Factor Second Skin Foundation in Warm Almond
shade. I removed the Miracle Touch,
reapplied my sun block, then Second Skin.
My skin seemed much better; stick to what you know! I loaded my trolley
suitcase into the boot of my car, plus a bag containing two pairs of shoes
and two pairs of sandals, another bag of odds and ends, and a bag containing
food. Having laid my purple coat and blue Per Una
jacket on the back seat, I was almost ready to go. I needed to put my contact lenses in my
eyes. Another false start there, as I
dropped one lense on the floor and couldn’t find it initially. I inserted another; finally locating the
missing one, which I threw in the bin.
They are disposable ones. It
was 05:40 when I set off for Aintree.
The prevailing
sunshine and showers the previous evening had conspired to create an early
morning mist. Although, fortunately,
not quite as bad as the dense fog I’d encountered on Day 3 of this year’s
Cheltenham Festival. Today my route took
me via Harpenden to join the M1 at Junction 10, Luton. Taking the northbound carriageway I headed
for Liverpool. At this period of time
there was a 50 mph limit all the way from Luton to Milton Keynes. The mist prevailed until I reached the
Northamptonshire border, after which there were just a few misty patches in
low lying areas. As I’d done on all my
previous trips to Merseyside, I continued up the M1 until reaching junction
23A, when I headed westwards along the dual carriageway of the A50 past Derby
and Uttoxeter to reach Stoke On Trent, where it was a lovely sunny morning. Having joined the M6
at this point, I proceeded northwards for around 30 miles before then heading
westwards along the M62 towards Liverpool.
Better to be safe than sorry, I left the motorway at the Burtonwood
Services ... I needed a wee!!! Having
been to the loo, I then drove along the maze of roads to the service station,
filling up my tank, before returning to the car park area once more; I now
had enough petrol to last me until the termination of my return journey home
the following evening. I ate a couple
of cheese rolls; shortly before 09:30 I continued my journey along the M62
and headed northwards up the M57 to Aintree.
At the end of the
motorway I took a sharp left turn, drove down the dual carriageway past Asda;
the store being my petrol topping up point on all previous three visits to
Merseyside. At the traffic lights near
the station I turned left, bearing around to the right and driving along Aintree
Lane until I reached the ‘Steeplechase’
car park entrance at Anchor Bridge.
Once over the bridge and having driven across the racecourse, I was
directed down the left-hand lane between traffic cones; further along being
re-directed into the right-hand lane for my vehicle to be checked by the
security staff. Having turned off
the engine, the bonnet was opened and the engine area checked; the car was examined
inside and underneath, as was the boot and the contents of the bags within
it. Having been cleared, I was
directed to continue along the road and into the car park, pulling up just a
few vehicles away from the Melling Road perimeter fence. I’ve just realised
that I’ve not described by outfit today!
As Choc would not be at Aintree the following day, I’d decided to wear
my first choice outfit today. It
consisted of a navy blue M & S skirt, with rear hem detail; a blue/beige
flowered top purchased from Wallis; a neon blue cardigan also from Wallis; my
blue Per Una jacket; also my purple winter coat; blue Dorothy Perkins scarf;
and, having examined the grass in the car park to ensure it wasn’t damp, I decided
to wear my blue M & S Footglove sandals.
At 10:10 I headed
for the turnstiles. It transpired
there was a voucher attached to my ticket, so I handed this into the kiosk in
return for a race-card. Bargain. I then headed for the entrance, to have my
ticket scanned. A slight problem; it
would not scan. However, it was a known
problem that the quality of the bar code printed on a number of the tickets was
of a sub-standard nature. Once I’d
also presented my badge, they issued me with a new ticket ... although it was
just a Tattersalls test ticket, not my number 0001 Earl of Derby Stand
Terrace ticket, which they confiscated.
Damn. I like to keep my tickets
and badges for posterity. A
Tattersalls ticket is not quite the same.
My capacious ‘Cheltenham’ handbag was then
searched; it was purchased from M & S, but came into it’s own at
Cheltenham this year, hence the name.
My body was then scanned too.
Having been given clearance, it was time to cross the Melling Road to
catch a bus to take me to the stands-side of the racecourse. Having alighted from the bus I walked along
the green carpet laid across the home straight to protect the turf, and then
proceeded to the area beside the Parade Ring.
Having discovered that the seats surrounding the Paddock were still
damp, I went to sit upon one of the benches situated along the side of the
concourse, facing the back of the Earl of Derby grandstand. You certainly see
some sights at Aintree, especially on Ladies Day! Actually it’s the most unladylike Ladies
Day you’ll find at any racecourse!!!
There was an amusing cartoon published in the Sunday Times, featuring
a Ladies Day Odds board: Laughing Stock 2/1; Frock Horror 3/2; Wardrobe
Malfunction 7/2; Fashion Faux Pas 5/4; Oh Dear! Evens; Lovely Lady 100/1 ... and
that just about sums it up!!! Whilst I was seated
on the bench I saw one magpie; hopefully not a bad omen for the day. I was also pleased that I’d worn both my
jacket and my coat, as I’d be freezing without them. Temperatures were expected to be lower
tomorrow ... perhaps I’d need a thermal vest too; fortunately I’d packed one
of those, and a fleece! Ahead of the first
race I went to stand beside the Parade Ring; Choc would be competing in the
fifth and seventh races of the day.
Once the horses had departed along the walkway, I headed under the
stands to take up a position behind the soon to be closed walkway gate; my
badge having been checked by one of the security officers at the entrance to
the enclosure. Once their charges
have been released, stable lads and lasses headed for a temporary stand which
had been constructed to the far side of the Lord Sefton stand. A shame really, as they used to stand
behind the gate and shout their charges home.
Also this year, a ‘pavilion’
has been constructed to serve as an unsaddling enclosure for the runners,
providing the best of facilities for very tired horses; the also-rans used to
be unsaddled on course in front of the Derby and Sefton stands, but no
longer. The starting gate
for the first race was at the far corner of the track, the horses initially
heading along a short stretch of the course before turning into the home
straight with that and one full circuit to travel.
Then
they were off; first time. The crowd
cheered as the runners set off. The
field was led away by Absolutlyfantastic, from
Agent Archie, North Cape, Captain Conan, the keen Prospect Wells, Darlan, Oscara Dara, Theatre Guide,
Toughness Danon also keen, Right Step, Vulcanite and, in rear, Seventh Sky. Agent
Archie, under Jason Maguire, took over the lead as the runners cleared the
second flight. In rear over the third
were Seventh Sky, Vulcanite and Right Step.
Heading around the home bend and out into the country once more, Agent
Archie continued to lead as the runners cleared the fourth flight, from Absolutlyfantastic, North Cape, Captain Conan, Prospect
Wells and Darlan. Absolutlyfantastic
took a narrow advantage before the 5th, from Agent Archie, Prospect Wells,
Captain Conan, Darlan to the inside, North Cape,
Vulcanite, Oscara Dara,
Theatre Guide, Right Step, Toughness Danon and
Seventh Sky. Around the top turn Agent
Archie received reminders from Jason Maguire but began to drop back through
the field. Absolutlyfantastic
led into the home straight from Captain Conan, Prospect Wells, AP McCoy to the inside aboard Darlan close up in 4th
position from Oscara Dara,
Vulcanite and Theatre Guide. Barry Geraghty’s mount led over 3 out; Darlan coming to
challenge the leader over the penultimate flight. AP’s mount was half a length up clearing
the last and went on to win by 3¾ lengths going away. Captain Conan finished 2nd, Prospect Wells
3rd and Oscara Dara
4th.
I
returned, via the Derby Terrace entrance, to the Winners’ Enclosure to see the
placed horses arrive back. As
Choc didn’t have a ride in the next race, I then proceeded directly to the
area in front of the Derby stand, rather than view the horses in the main
area of the Parade Ring. It had
started to rain ahead of this second event; so, as such, I was able to find
almost unlimited space along the course-side rails from where to view the
race! Less hardy souls were huddled at
the rear of the terrace, sheltering as best they could in the shadow of the
overhanging roof. The
starting gate for this race was at the far end of the home straight, with
that and two full circuits to travel.
Then
they were off; first time. The runners
were led away by Join Together and Yes Tom; the horses bumping in mid-air as
they cleared the first fence. It
nearly happened again at the second fence, the open ditch; sensibly, Paddy
Brennan switched his mount, Yes Tom, to the inside before the next obstacle,
where they assumed the lead. Yes
Tom led around the stands bend, from Join Together, Champion Court, Silviniaco Conti and Solix. Barry Geraghty’s
mount made an error at the 4th. Yes
Tom hit the 5th, but continued to lead.
The field was closely grouped around the far bend; Yes Tom still
holding the advantage, from Join Together, Solix,
Champion Court and Silviniaco Conti. Daryl
Jacob’s mount led over the open-ditch before Yes Tom went on again over the
next, where Solix made an error. The pace increased as the runners headed
down the back straight for the final time.
Join Together made an error at the open-ditch, before taking the advantage
around the final bend from Silviniaco Conti and
Champion Court. Turning
in, Champion Court and Silviniaco Conti disputed
the lead, soon setting up a three length lead over the remainder of the
field. Ruby’s mount had asserted by
the time they reached the final obstacle and went on to win by 13 lengths
from a weary Champion Court, with Join Together a further 12 lengths away in
3rd. Solix
finished 4th, 68 lengths behind him.
Again, following the race, I returned to the
Winners’ Enclosure, via the Derby entrance, to view the horses arriving
back. Once more, with Choc having no ride in the next,
I returned directly to the course-side rails in front of the Derby
Stand. Being the feature event of the day, there was a
Parade before the race. However, number
6 Poquelin was led out onto the course ahead of the
other runners, Ruby Walsh then waited to be legged into the saddle until
after the remaining runners had arrived in the enclosure in front of the Lord
Sefton/Earl of Derby stands. They circled just outside the walkway, the
lads and lasses sorting the runners into number order. Ruby, now aboard his mount, was led up in
front of the stands prior to the other competitors doing the same; the jockey
keeping his feet out of the irons in order to calm his mount. There was one scary moment, when Finian’s Rainbow seemed to spook as he crossed the
racecourse and plunged forward towards the plastic railings located at the
half furlong pole; he ran straight through them, but jockey Barry Geraghty remained in the saddle and soon collected
him. The runners headed down to the starting gate,
which was at the beginning of the back straight.
Then
they were off; first time. They were
led away by Albertas Run and Pocquelin,
from Finian’s Rainbow, Pure Faith, Kauto Stone, Forpadydeplasterer,
Kalahari King and Wishfull Thinking; Poquelin went on as the runners cleared the third, the
open-ditch. Around
the far turn, a group of three consisting of Poquelin,
Albertas Run and Finian’s
Rainbow had set up a break between themselves and the remainder of the
field. Forpadydeplasterer
hit the 5th fence. The
order heading down the home straight on the first occasion was Poquelin, Albertas Run, Finian’s Rainbow, Pure Faith, Forpadydeplasterer,
Kauto Stone, Kalahari King and Wishfull
Thinking. Albertas
Run hit both the 8th and 10th fences; Finian’s
Rainbow hit the latter obstacle too, as did Wishfull
Thinking. No change at the head of
affairs as the runners approached the far turn; Kalahari King tailing off. Albertas Run led over
the cross fence as Poquelin began to fade, Finian’s Rainbow now in second position. Wishfull
Thinking, having made further headway after this fence, came to challenge Albertas Run for the lead as did Finian’s
Rainbow. Forpadydeplasterer
made an error at the 3rd last when in fourth position. Richard Johnson’s mount took a narrow lead approaching
2 out, but was headed soon after the fence by Finian’s
Rainbow. The
latter cleared the last and galloped on to win by 7 lengths from Wishfull Thinking.
Albertas Run weakened before the last but
held onto 3rd place, Forpadydeplasterer finished
4th.
I
returned, via the Derby enclosure entrance, to see the placed horses arrive
back in the Winners’ Enclosure. I then
returned to the course-side rails ahead of the next race, the Topham Chase. * *
* * *
* * As
my diary for this day is rather large, I’ve written two instalments ... Click here to read my Aintree Diary 13 April 2012 Part II Click here for photos – Races 1, 2, 3, 4 & 6 |
