Chelmsford Racecourse was a horse racing venue located at Galleywood, near Chelmsford, Essex. The course was active from at least 1759 until its final closure in April 1935. The course initially staged Flat racing before switching to National Hunt racing in 1892. Amongst the horses who raced at the course was the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Golden Miller, who won two hurdle races at Chelmsford in 1931. Parts of the course have been preserved and can still be seen. [1]
The course was described as being right-handed, about two miles long with a run-in of six furlongs. The course enclosed a windmill, a brickworks and the church of St Michael and All Angels. It crossed a main road twice and a by-road, and the roads were closed to traffic when race meetings were held. [2]
Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic premise – to identify which of two or more horses is the fastest over a set course or distance – has been mostly unchanged since at least classical antiquity.
Horse racing is the second largest spectator sport in Great Britain, and one of the longest established, with a history dating back many centuries. According to a report by the British Horseracing Authority it generates £3.39 billion total direct and indirect expenditure in the British economy, of which £1.05 Billion is from core racing industry expenditure and the major horse racing events such as Royal Ascot and Cheltenham Festival are important dates in the British and international sporting and society calendar.
Great Baddow is an urban village and civil parish in the Chelmsford borough of Essex, England. It is close to the city of Chelmsford, and, with a population of over 13,000, is one of the largest villages in the country.
A race track is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals. A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also used in the study of animal locomotion.
Greenwood Raceway was a horse racing facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Maldon and East Chelmsford was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1997 to 2010 it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Kempton Park Racecourse is a horse racing track together with a licensed entertainment and conference venue in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, 16 miles south-west of Charing Cross, London and on a border of Greater London. The site has 210 acres of flat grassland surrounded by woodland with two lakes in its centre. Its entrance borders Kempton Park railway station which was created for racegoers on a branch line from London Waterloo, via Clapham Junction.
Doncaster Racecourse is a racecourse in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It hosts two of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the St Leger Stakes and the Racing Post Trophy.
Galleywood is a village surrounded by countryside in Essex; it is situated on the outskirts of the city of Chelmsford, about 30 miles from London. The A12 trunk road passes nearby, which connects to the M25 in London. Galleywood sits astride a Roman road running south from Chelmsford towards Vange Creek; currently, the B1007 Stock Road and B1009 Beehive Lane run through it. Galleywood was a part of the Great Baddow parish, comprising two villages or hamlets: Galleywood and Galleyend, about a mile apart. Galleywood has a population of 5,757 and has a higher percentage of retired citizens than the national average. Galleywood Common is approximately 400 yards in width and one mile in length, consisting of open fields and woodland. It also has St. Michael's Church in the woodland, which is visible for many miles around.
A steeplechase is a distance horse race in which competitors are required to jump diverse fence and ditch obstacles. Steeplechasing is primarily conducted in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Canada, United States, Australia, and France. The name is derived from early races in which orientation of the course was by reference to a church steeple, jumping fences and ditches and generally traversing the many intervening obstacles in the countryside.
Wetherby Racecourse is a racecourse situated near the market town of Wetherby in West Yorkshire, England, located 12 miles (19 km) from Leeds city centre. For most of its history the course has hosted only National Hunt racing but staged its first Flat racing fixture in April 2015.
Chelmsford City racecourse, originally known as Great Leighs Racecourse, is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Great Leighs near Chelmsford, Essex, England. When it opened in April 2008, it was the first entirely new racecourse in the UK since Taunton opened in 1927. It went into administration in January 2009, and racing did not resume until January 2015.
The Grand Annual is an Australian Thoroughbred steeplechase for horses that run at Warrnambool, Victoria during its annual May Racing Carnival. The distance is officially listed as about 5500 metres because many sections of the race are run in open paddocks with little or no fences. The race is the longest horse race run in Australia on a public course. There are 33 obstacles, more than any other steeplechase in the world.
Lincoln Racecourse is a former horse racing venue to the west of the city of Lincoln, at Carholme, a flat tract of common land, Lincolnshire, England. It was the original location of the Lincolnshire Handicap. The course closed in 1964, and the following year the race relocated to Doncaster Racecourse where a small change to the race title sees it run as the Lincoln Handicap.
Union Course was a horse racing course in what is now Woodhaven, Queens, in New York City. It hosted some of the most famous horse races in American history, including the 1823 match between American Eclipse and Sir Henry. The track was located between what are now Jamaica Avenue on the north, Atlantic Avenue on the south, 78th Street on the west, and 85th Street on the east.
Rhoda was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won the third running of the classic 1000 Guineas at Newmarket Racecourse in 1816 and was the most successful racehorse in Britain two years later. Rhoda was one of the most active of all British classic winners, running in at least forty-five contests between 1816 and 1820 and winning twenty-one times. Her actual number of competitive races was even higher as many of her later races were run in multiple heats, with the prize going to the first horse to win twice. She won the 1000 Guineas on her second appearance but did not run as a three-year-old after finishing unplaced in the Oaks Stakes. Rhoda won three races in 1817, ten in 1818, four in 1819 and two in 1820.
Vespa was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won the classic Oaks Stakes at Epsom Downs Racecourse in 1833. The filly's win at Epsom, a 50/1 upset, was the only success in her first two seasons of racing. She produced her best form as a four-year-old when she won four times, including three important races at Newmarket Racecourse. At the end of her British racing career she was sold and exported to Hungary.
Galleywood Common is a 44.6 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Chelmsford in Essex, near the village of Galleywood. It is owned and managed by Chelmsford City Council.
The Burradon Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run at Newcastle over a distance of 1 mile and 5 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in March or April at the course's Good Friday meeting.
The Cardinal Stakes is a flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run at Chelmsford City over a distance of 1 mile.