Beverley Racecourse

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Beverley
Beverley Racecourse.JPG
Beverley Racecourse
Beverley Racecourse
Interactive map of Beverley
Location Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire
Owned byBeverley Race Company Ltd.
Screened on Racing TV
Course type Flat
Official website

Beverley Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in the town of Beverley in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It has been described as an "unpretentious but agreeable" racecourse. [1]

Contents

History

Racing in Beverley can be documented as far back as over 300 years ago, and the founding of The Jockey Club in 1752 really formalised its presence in the town. With the founding of The Jockey Club, the occasional racing at nearby Westwood Pasture was recognised, and Beverley Racecourse was founded. An annual meeting at Beverley was first established in 1767. [2] Before that races had only occasionally been run there. [3] Then, for a short period between 1798 and 1805 racing once again stopped. [4] Later in the 19th century a three-day meeting was taking place annually in the week after York's May meeting. [4] [5]

Between 1915 and November 1920, the racecourse was commandeered by the Royal Flying Corps (the Royal Air Force from April 1918) as a base for fighter aircraft and training during World War I. [6] [7] In 2012, Beverley hosted racing on 19 days. [8] Its most prestigious races being two Listed races - the Hilary Needler Trophy for two-year-olds in May and Beverley Bullet Sprint over five furlongs in August for three-year-olds and up. [9]

The racecourse is a right-handed flat course, [10] that is just over 1 mile 3 furlongs. [10] It is predominantly flat but with a stiff, uphill finish and tight turns. [11] Beverley has the most pronounced "draw bias" on a UK racecourse on its 5 furlong course. The sharp right hand bend and the fact that the ground runs away to the left make a low draw (i.e. on the inside rail) much more advantageous than a high draw (i.e. on the wide outside and on ground sloping right to left). [12]

The first grandstand was commissioned for the racecourse on 22 May 1767 at a cost of £1,000. [3] [13] A £90,000 stand was opened in Tattersalls enclosure in 1968. [1]

In August 2018, it was announced that planning permission was being sought for a £4.8 million grandstand to replace the existing 1960s structure, with an expected completion of April 2021. [14] Instead, the racecourse management shifted their strategy from a complete demolition and rebuild to a more conservative, multi-phase refurbishment. [15] [16]

As of July 2019, 10 horses have died at the racecourse since 2007. [17]

Notable races

MonthDOWRace NameTypeGradeDistanceAge/Sex
May/JuneSaturday Hilary Needler Trophy FlatConditions5f2yo f
May/JuneSaturdayTwo Year Old TrophyFlatConditions5f2yo c&g
JulySaturday Charlie Wood Stakes FlatConditions1m 4f 23y4yo+
Aug/SepSaturday Beverley Bullet Sprint Stakes FlatListed5f3yo+

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Mortimer, Onslow & Willett 1978, p. 58.
  2. ↑ "Main Races and Events Held At Beverly". Britishracecourses.org. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  3. 1 2 Poulson 1829, p. 448.
  4. 1 2 Poulson 1829, p. 449.
  5. ↑ Oliver 1829, p. 430.
  6. ↑ Simmons, Geoffrey (2009). East Riding airfields : 1915-1920. Ottringham: Flight Recorder. p. 29. ISBN   978-0-9545605-9-1.
  7. ↑ Chorlton, Martyn (2014). Forgotten airfields of World War I. Manchester: Crécy. p. 42. ISBN   9780859791816.
  8. ↑ "2012 Fixture List" (PDF). British Horseracing Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 17 May 2013.
  9. ↑ "British Flat Pattern and Listed Races 2010" (PDF). British Horseracing Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 17 May 2013.
  10. 1 2 Halpenny 1971, p. 79.
  11. ↑ Wright 1986, p. 27.
  12. ↑ "Beverley Racecourse". Oddschecker.com. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
  13. ↑ "Our History". Beverley-racecourse.co.uk. Retrieved 17 May 2013.
  14. ↑ "Beverley racecourse new grandstand planned". BBC News. 20 August 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  15. ↑ O'Sullivan, Alistair (12 December 2020). "Updated Facilities Await Racegoers Return". Beverley-racecourse.co.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  16. ↑ "Beverley Racecourse - The Together Group Construction Limited". Thetogethergroup.co.uk. 21 April 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  17. ↑ "Beverley". Race Horse Death Watch. Retrieved 28 July 2019.

Bibliography

53°50′41″N0°27′24″W / 53.84472°N 0.45667°W / 53.84472; -0.45667

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