The Edinburgh Reporter

On the right track

Highlights to look forward to in the months ahead at Musselburg­h

- By STAFF REPORTER

MUSSELBURG­H Racecourse get its 11-fixture National Hunt jumps season underway this month and general manager Bill Farnsworth will be hoping it’s a smoother ride than the first half of 2022.

A combinatio­n of factors conspired against the best efforts of his hard working team to bounce back from the enforced Covid shutdowns of 2021, and like many businesses in the entertainm­ent sector the cost of living crisis is biting hard.

Last December, the racecourse was prepping for the traditiona­l Betway New Year’s Day opener, with ticket sales indicating it would be a potential sell-out crowd, but best laid plans came crashing down when racing was forced to return to “behind closed doors” amid concerns about rising Covid cases.

The knock-on effect when racing did reopen was to stifle ticket sales for the East Lothian track’s bet365 Scottish Cheltenham Trials Festival in February. However, the Flat season opener on Easter Saturday was a success and there renewed optimism around the Honest Toun track as the summer season approached.

The next big meeting, the £50,000 Edinburgh Cup Race Day in May, unfortunat­ely clashed with a Hampden appearance by Hearts and sales suffered, while the Jubilee weekend racing in June was up against lots of competing Jubilee events.

Farnsworth said: “The summer period saw our sales down 20-30% which was a national trend across racing and other sporting events and this was clearly the ripple effect of Covid. There was a massive number of events now back on the calendar, reorganise­d weddings and other family celebratio­ns taking place, concerts, and people were desperate to go on holiday. Naturally this called on people’s time and money, and we just had to accept that crowds and revenues were going to be down.”

Fortunes picked up in August with Musselburg­h’s annual Stobo Castle Ladies Day which is a fashion and racing extravagan­za which sells out every year and it was indeed the “highlight of the year” according to the Musselburg­h boss.

Advance ticket sales for the back-to-back summer finale meetings on 10-11 September had been promising, but matters were taken out of Musselburg­h’s hands with the sad passing of Her Majesty the Queen - bringing a halt to every major sporting event across the country.

But the East Lothian course has dusted itself down and is now looking forward to a busy jumps season and with tickets selling well is hoping for a record 7,000 New Year’s Day attendance on 1 January.

Other highlights include the bet365

Scottish Cheltenham Trials weekend on

4-5 February with prize money of more than £250,000, and the Go North race day on 24 March which celebrates horses and trainers who have competed over the winter on the Northern circuit.

Recognisin­g the difficult economic situation faced by many, Musselburg­h have reduced the price of their “early bird” weekday tickets from £20 to just £18 for those who book early, while concession­ary tickets on those days will be £15.

For more informatio­n on fixtures and to book tickets please visit the website at: www.mussselbur­gh-racecourse.co.uk

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