Gareth Gale’s big blow
60mph storm could mean today’s races at Cheltenham are postponed until Saturday
CHELTENHAM festival could become a victim of Storm Gareth today amid fears high winds could cancel Ladies Day.
The course was buffeted by heavy wind and rain yesterday and festival chiefs admit they may have to postpone today’s racecard until Saturday. Bad weather 11 years ago saw races moved to the Thursday and Friday of the meeting but it would be the first time the whole of one day’s card has been shifted.
Clerk of the course Simon Claisse said last night: “We wanted to give an early insight into conditions for tomorrow with the forecast challenging.
“We are monitoring the situ- ation and will keep racegoers informed as the conditions present themselves.”
Winds are due to hit around 60mph at midday, according to Met Office forecasts, shortly before racing is due to commence and around the time the majority of the 60,000 punters will be arriving. Gales could cause temporary structures to become unstable and threaten safety.
Storm Gareth began to hit Britain hard last night, with 80mph winds across what weather experts have described as a 1,000 mile “weather bomb”. Forecasters issued danger-to-life weather warnings for England, Wales, Ireland and parts of Scotland.
Storm Gareth is the third named storm in five weeks and is due to the position of the jet stream across the UK.
The Met Office admitted the storm was a “shock to the system” after the recordbreaking winter temperatures just a few weeks ago.