The 2010 Cheltenham Festival will occur over four days in March, Tuesday 16th - Friday 19th, and the excitement is already mounting. The Cheltenham Festival is now one of the biggest events in the racing calendar and is followed by thousands of fans, with attendances at the meeting growing by the year, as well as increased audiences through the means of television, radio and online listening. The betting that occurs throughout the duration of the Festival is phenomenal with millions of pounds exchanged between punters and bookmakers for each of the twenty-six races. The first meeting at Cheltenham took place in 1902, and the introduction of the Gold Cup in 1924 really increased the public draw. The Cheltenham Festival is now seen as the climax of the National Hunt season, and the 2010 meeting is proving to be one of the most exciting yet with the forecast showdown between champion trainer Paul Nicholl's stablemates Kauto Star and Denman. The entrants to the Festival, and in particular the big races such as the Gold Cup, are the best in the business, be it horses, jockeys or trainers, hence why the meeting attracts such a lot of attention. In order to accommodate such fine specimens with a level (but challenging!) playing field, the racecourse at Cheltenham has to be of exceptional quality. The racecourse is an aesthetic and natural amphitheatre, but it's the undulations of the course, the test of the fences and hurdles and the fight to the finish up the famous Cheltenham hill that will test the strength of any thoroughbred racehorse and rider. The racecourse is made up of three courses: The Old Course is used each season for The Showcase, The Open and the first two days of The Festival, The New Course is used each season for The Boylesports International, New Year's Day, Festival Trials Day, the 3rd and 4th days of The Festival (including the Gold Cup) and The April and May meetings, and The Cross Country Steeplechase course is used for one race each at The Open, Boylesports International and The Festival each season. An area that the racecourse particularly excels in is in providing the best underfoot conditions on the track. The racecourse recently had its biggest improvement since the 1960s when the track was upgraded and expanded in 2002. This included a larger area to use throughout the racing season, and the new course widened to increase the track by 10%, giving an extra five acres of space. In order for this work to be completed a large embankment had to be removed at the two-mile start and more than 18,000 metres of soil excavated in order to put in the extension to the track, a new canterdown and a service road. For better viewing purposes the course was widened by 50% opposite the main stands by reclaiming land for the Courage Best Enclosure and turning it back into a turf area. The drainage was enhanced to provide the best possible solution for the existing track as well as the upgraded areas. All of these enhancements mean that the ground is fresh for the third and fourth day of the Festival, which would not have been the case if the improvements had not have been carried out. The commitment of the Jockey Club and the organisers of the Cheltenham Festival definitely know how to keep horseracing alive!
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This years Cheltenham Festival will be one of the best yet, conditions are perfect and the Gold Cup is set to be the high light of the meeting
The Cheltenham Race Festival is nearly here, runners & jockeys are busy preparing for Englands most popular racing day. Then in April the Grand National from Aintree will be run in the climax of the National hunt season
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