BOTH THE WRONG TIME AND WRONG PLACE FOR EXPERIMENTING

If the twelve months that have gone by since odds were being offered on whether Cheltenham 2020 would go ahead feel like they've flashed past in a blur, then the coming year will be more of the nonsensical same, the difference being for racing that it will finally face its first stages of judgement day as the extent of the financial damage inflicted by the plague from March to March will be measurable.

And it gets even gloomier as the initial hit is only that - the stakeholders within the sport will then experience further trepidation as the second, inevitable blast of the fall out will follow. We can be sure of this as we already know that the social distancing measures that severely limit racecourse capacities will remain in place for the remainder of the calendar year,

We likewise already know that those venues that sold their souls completely to the cult summer attendees will have empty piggy banks if the situation does not return to normal by springtime. Added to this are the courses who have part embraced the business mode of cashing in on the party crowds - they will feel the affect of further restrictions but will be able to survive, with Ascot, York, Newbury and Newmarket being prime examples of this category.

There was once a time when Chester would have fitted snuggly in this resilient category but unfortunately it changed direction many years ago and its future is shackled to its ability to pull in the cult crowds. Not surprisingly this racecourse already has a mapped proposal to unlock the gates to an audience come the opening May meeting.

Come to think of it, when racing was shut down in the UK following Midlands Grand National weekend on the back of Cheltenham week, Chester racecourse were the first pushing for a response as to whether crowds would be able to return for the May 2020 meeting. Then, on realization that for the foreseeable future they would have to race without a crowd, they cancelled the meeting citing the main reason as not being able to control social distancing on the street which offers free, first class viewing from the wall.

They eventually resumed racing to an empty arena in September but this was only after an arrangement had been secured for the streets and footpaths directly around the Roodeye to be closed from 11.30am to 6.30 pm.

The course chief executive Richard Thomas later announced that if the government made a clear statement to the effect that if there was no prospect of audiences being allowed back in 2021, they would have no choice but to mothball the venue in its capacity as a racecourse for the whole season.

This makes it all the more baffling that the course management are bullish about their proposal of being able to manage a crowd of 5,000 for its first meeting, now only two and a half months away. With the course using its facilities as a vaccination centre from this week, this has given them encouragement that they can run a race day operation where the attendees are are given Covid 19 tests with a twenty minute turnaround time.

In addition to the crowd size being a fraction of the usual number and therefore non profit producing for the course, common sense declares that the result will be messy bordering on farcical when you examine what they have proposed.

Those who have secured tickets will be given a time to arrive and entry point, with arrival time staggered meaning that some would be forced to access the course unreasonably early, with some others having to loiter nearby before arriving at a time where there will be no opportunity to settle in.

Even those arriving at a midway time will still have to go through the process of the Covid testing, then wait at least twenty minutes to be given the all clear. Presumably, they will have to stay in a designated area as they wait for the all clear and will be 'watched' by some characters with big egos who have been given temporary contracts for the meeting, some of whom will be revelling at the short term power they hold and may even have picked up an attitude from viewing too many episodes of The Sweeney.

Let's presume a racegoer is vetted and proven free of Covid. They will then make their way to their designated area where they will remain and probably have a numbered seat in the stands from where they will view the action, along with nominated tables to go to where they can order food and drink, and though it's not yet clear, be able to place bets through employees of Chester Bet who will likely be walking around with hand held machines.

Of the declining number of genuine fans who make appearances at this venue, most will not be jamming the phone lines for tickets to put themselves through this arrangement. There will be no freedom to wander over to the paddock, a miserable restriction when there could be future classic winners on show in  the Vase, Dee and Cheshire Oaks, or the build up in excitement as the paddock fills out prior to the Cup. I am also guessing that these designated areas will also forbid a stroll over to the rails to watch a race close up.

Then, you have those that a cult attendee course like Chester goes out of its way to court. They are the characters that form the throng of the cult crowds, completely on a different planet to the genuine fans. These too will feel shackled, not because they have any urge to see the juveniles in the paddock before the Lily Agnes, but because they desire face to face social contact, touching, play acting, shouting and dancing, and relishing a feel of freedom as they let off steam and enjoy themselves in the cult course attendee way.

If they know what the day entails they will not be turning up - if they haven't done their homework and expect something near to normality they will be in for a let down and as the alcohol is consumed this could result in some flashpoints as it will be next to impossible to control social distancing.

For those who actually have a feel for this sport, the May meeting stands head and shoulders above all the others, linking with the York Dante meeting the following week as the jigsaw for the Epsom classics are pieced together. It is in a different dimension to the mainly trashy fare the course has added to the fixture list down the years. And while we would love to see it go ahead, for this year at least it may be wise if the gates were kept firmly shut.

image from Pixabay

This track from an album with no weak tracks was released the week before 17 year old apprentice Alan Cressy rode Eric to beat the Piggott ridden favourite Irvine in the 1972 Chester Cup. Future star jumping sire Celtic Cone ran in the race. There would have been no stupid marquees blocking the view of racing fans and no cult attendees. This album is testimony to how exhilarating the sound of the guitar can be. The modern day cult attendees would be most unlikely to recognize or appreciate quality music.