Home and hosed as Aintree wins plaudits
ON the terrace of the Lord Sefton Stand, one anxious racegoer looked down towards The Chair and posed a dark question.
‘Why are the screens up?’ she asked her partner. The Randox Grand National field whizzed past in front, a blur of colour and thundering hooves, but her gaze was fixed on that iconic obstacle, as those fording shields were hastily erected.
There is no worse sight to see on a racecourse than screens raised being around a stricken horse or jockey; they raise the desperate feeling that a horsebox will go back to the yard empty or a rider will soon be on their way to hospital. On Grand National Saturday, the anxiety and tension is heightened.
This great race endured a spell of being front page news for the wrong reasons, so when the screens went up you feared the worst. Happily, though, they were soon taken down and Irish jockey Donagh Meyler rose to his feet. His mount, Measureofmydreams, had already galloped off unscathed.
That gelding returned home safe and sound and so did the other 39 runners. It is a point that must be hammered home. Since Synchronised, the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, was fatally injured in 2012 to spark opprobrium, the last five Grand Nationals have all passed without tragedy.
Aintree have taken huge steps to ensure the safety of all participants, modifying fences and shortening the distance of the race, neither of which has diluted the excitement. And their determination to maintain that record was particularly noticeable on a glorious Merseyside day, when the temperatures soared past 70 degrees.
To the side of the Lord Sefton Stand, under a giant canopy with a simple air conditioning system, a team of helpers, armed with vats of water, were waiting to spring into action after the race.
Rather than sending the first four horses straight into the winners’ enclosure they — along with the rest of the field — headed for that canopy and were given a good dousing and a reviving drink to aid the recovery process. No stone was left unturned.
‘I’ve never known the organisers of an event like this to be so quick to change and help the welfare of the horse,’ One For Arthur’s trainer Lucinda Russell enthused. ‘I think it’s absolutely fantastic that they were prepared to act straight away. Aintree are first class.’
To stand by that canopy in the immediate aftermath, as those riders who had got around regained their breath and their partners were drenched and given affectionate pats, you could see how much emotion and care is invested in these fourlegged athletes.
Nobody can say with certainty that darkness will never descend on the Grand National again, but what can be said unequivocally — after a fine three-day meeting without a fatality — is that Aintree have done all they can to minimise the risk.