Punchestown and Fontwell to inspect with tracks braced for another cold snap | Horse Racing News
Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)
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By James Stevens, West Country Correspondent
Meet on Monday at Punchestown and Fontwell must pass inspections at 7.30am as courses in the UK and Ireland brace for freezing temperatures a week after heavy rain.
Punchestown course leader Brendan Sheridan said on Sunday: “Having spoken to Met Eireann the forecast for tonight is to drop below freezing and therefore we will be conducting a precautionary inspection tomorrow at 7.30am. There will be fresh ground on the hurdle track.”
Bustle is heavy in Punchestown, where races were held on Sunday, and Fontwell has been heavy too after an unexpected torrential downpour also left areas of standing water.
Philip Hide, Fontwell’s course leader, said on Sunday: “Forecasters didn’t expect what we had this afternoon. We announced the inspection for 7.30am, but that’s the worst case. I’ll be there earlier and if.” It’s a lost cause, it’s a lost cause. We are not without hope.
Frost wreaked havoc across the UK last month, prompting meetings at Ascot, Cheltenham and Doncaster to be canceled due to the cold.
Frost Covers have been discarded Chepstow and Plumpton in preparation for their meetings this week, with Newbury taking the same action due to falling temperatures.
Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)
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The thermometer could drop to -5C ahead of Tuesday’s meeting in Chepstow, and course leader Elizabeth O’Flaherty said: “Hopefully everything will be fine; we’re monitoring now and preparing to beat it.”
Newbury are due to host a game on Wednesday, with course leader Keith Ottesen hoping conditions don’t get as cold as -5C as that would limit the impact of the frost covers.
“We’re going to cover all takeoffs, landings and vulnerable areas and then hope for the best, which is that the weather doesn’t get as cold as forecast,” he said.
at plump sound, the prospect of snow worries course leader Marcus Waters ahead of Wednesday’s fortification. He said: “If it gets as cold as forecast, which is around -2C, we would be sure we would be protected. If we got snow we would have problems and there are forecasts to suggest there is something. We rely on luck with the weather.”
A freezing forecast has also led to this clone to schedule a 7.30am inspection on Tuesday for that day’s track meeting, and Track Director Lorcan Wyer said: “The track is now race ready and the ground is heavy. However, the current weather forecast calls for widespread frost in the coming days.”
The weather also had an impact Worcester, when the racecourse is partially flooded after fresh heavy rain has flowed. However, the flood did not cause any significant damage and the route should not be used until May.
General Manager Michael Thomas said: “Flooding happens a bit annually. The River Severn burst its banks on Thursday and the floods are just beginning to level off.
“It’s nothing we can’t handle, the grandstand always holds and it’s not a record high tide. We’ve seen a lot worse lately.”
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FIRST RELEASE ON JANUARY 15, 2023 AT 5:50 PM
