I am throwing myself on the mercy of the numerous and knowledgeable people who are so helpful on these forums. We are lucky enough to have done a lot of traveling and one of our favorite spots has always been England. We are planning what I suspect will be our last planned-by-us trip. One of the things I always wanted to do was go to a horse race; the flats are fine but steeplechase would be the best. I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out the wheres and whens with no real confidence in what I am doing.
Most of our details are still fluid. We are aiming at an arrival between September 7 and September 17, staying for 2 or 3 weeks. On the list of current possibilities in addition to London are Dover, Brighton, The Isle of Wight, Leicester, Cardiff, and Cambridge. But I am able, at this point, to give up places on the list and consider other destinations to get to see a steeplechase. In reality, probably Sheffield is as far north as I think I can "sell" but I am willing to try almost anything.
So please, if you can offer some advice I would be deeply grateful. And if your advice is there is no steeplechase in England in September, then that is just how things are and I can move on from there.
Posted by
Portsmouth
5554 posts
Unfortunately your dates don't quite line up for Fontwell, near Chichester, which is en route from Brighton to the Isle of Wight. They have a steeplechase on Friday 1st September https://www.fontwellpark.co.uk/whats-on/afternoon-jump-racing. If changing your dates is doable then that might be an option.
Posted by
London, UK
417 posts
Have a look at the the UK Jockey Club’s website for National Hunt or Jump Racing. They list all the meetings and hopefully one or two will work for you.
Posted by
Stratford upon Avon
470 posts
There are meetings at Stratford upon Avon on 9th September and 9th October
Posted by
Royaume-Uni nul points, pas plus
2600 posts
This is a list of upcoming events.
https://www.britishhorseracing.com/racing/fixtures/full-year/
Jump racing in September does happen though is rather sparse compared to March/April. Come in those months and you have the Cheltenham Festival and the Grand National at Aintree.
Posted by
OP
NH
212 posts
Thanks for all your advice. It is most interesting to learn that the language about horse racing is quite different in England than in the US. I have spent a really interesting few hours learning about point to point, steeplechase, flats, fixtures.
The tracks in the US I have been to, when you buy an entrance ticket, you get to pick a seat in the grandstand. But as far as I can tell admission tickets in England allow you into the grandstand but for example, in Bath ...Unless you have booked a ticket with a reserved seat included, a restaurant package or hospitality option, there is only limited seating available across the racecourse and the majority will be outside. I am not being critical at all. I always assumed that going to a horse race, world wide, generally was more the same than different. It's always good to have your assumptions challenged.
I have also followed up on the suggestions I have received. My sense is that a September trip offers few opportunities for watching steeplechase. I will keep looking and maybe, before age 80 arrives, we can fit in a trip whose scheduling is built around steeplechase meets.
And if you do have any additional suggestions to make, I would be delighted to receive them.
Kathy
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17562 posts
I was curious why the jump faces would all be in the winter and early spring, and fount this National Hunt Racing website:
https://www.britishracecourses.org/national-hunt-jump-horse-racing/
They state that the flat racing takes a break during the winter, and the softer ground at that time is considered more favorable to the jumpers. Although they say there is a “summer season”:for jump racing from May to September, There is not a comprehensive calendar of the meets. I poked around at random, could not find a single summer race.
This website lists five summer jump races, but the latest is in August.