Chepstow Racecourse

Racecourse number: 45

First visited: 2009

Number of visits: 1

One evening in the summer of 2009 my family crossed the Severn Bridge on route to Chepstow racecourse. This would be an ordinary flat meeting and in truth I would have preferred to go to a jumps meeting. I have always enjoyed the early ones in October which to me signify the start of the jumps season proper. Also the Welsh Grand National over the Christmas period is such a great race. However one big advantage would be the good weather. Given we were on holiday not too far away it was an easy decision to go. An evening at the races and another racecourse off my list.

On arrival we were struck by the vastness of the track and its facilities. As it was a low key meeting there was only a small crowd and there ended up being very little atmosphere in truth. The course has the  parade ring in front of the stands which I think is a nice feature in general but on this night it contributed to the "where is everybody" feel. Undaunted we began with a chippy tea to set us up for a great night. Chepstow has a play area tucked away behind the stands which was ideal for my two kids and they visited quite a few times over the duration of the evening in between races.

On the betting front it would not be my night. Sometimes there is just nothing you can do. The early indicators were not good. I picked the wrong one of two fancied runners in the first then saw my selection in the second beaten a head. Not to worry, I knew of a sure thing in the fourth. Criticize, for trainer Roger Charlton, owner Khalid Abdulla and jockey Richard Hughes would turn things around for me. Backed from 8-11 to 8-15 others obviously agreed. Not a great price but at least I would have a winner. The Racing Post analysis probably reads something like this: Criticize, settled in behind, travelling well two out, found nothing. My certainty finished fifth of six and nothing is what I would find in my pocket at the end of this evening. Incredibly things got worse in the next race. Watching the runners walk around the paddock for race five I was anxious to identify the winner and had not given enough focus on the needs of my then toddler Jake. I was holding him up to watch the horses go past when his pull-up overflowed and my t-shirt got pretty wet. Like many of my selections that night I was a bit slow to react! Sensibly we did not stay for the last. 

It is always disappointing not to have a winner but not many downtrodden punters get pissed on by their son as well. Cheers Jake. One positive on the night was the picture above which is one of my favourites. Too rarely do we have a full family shot as usually you have to rely on the kindness of strangers. So thanks to whoever took this picture. Four years later it looks so dated, but I remember the evening and the period in our lives fondly. Hopefully I will go back and appreciate the Chepstow I know best at a national hunt meeting some time soon. You never know I might even back a winner.