Ayr Racecourse at Whitletts Road,

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Subdivisions of Scotland, council area and the historic Shires of Scotlan ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

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British Racing and Racecourses ''British Racing and Racecourses'' () published in 1971 with a first print run of 10,000,''Mum's the word for this lady racing expert'' Evening Telegraph – Tuesday, 16 March 1971 was written by the female equestrian writer, Marion Rose Halpenny, ...

'' () by

Marion Rose Halpenny Marion Rose Halpenny is an equestrian writer and horsewoman, born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, and known as the ''Lincolnshire turf authoress'',Your Chance for some horse trading – Racing by Geoff Ford – Evening Telegraph – Tuesday, 29 January 1 ...

– Page 71 was opened in 1907. There are courses for

flat Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

and for

National Hunt racing In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

History

Horse racing in Ayr dates back to 1576, but the first official meeting did not take place until 1771 at a racecourse situated in the Seafield area of the town. This first racecourse was a mile oval with sharp bends. In the early days, racing was supported by the local landed

gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...

and members of the Caledonian

Hunt Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antler, e ...

. Important figures in the course's history have included the Earl of Eglinton, Sir James Boswell and the

Duke of Portland Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

. In 1824, Ayr's most important race meeting, the Western Meeting, was established and by 1838 it offered £2000 in prize money and the most valuable two-year-old race of the season in Britain. The meeting's feature race, the Ayr Gold Cup, became a handicap race in 1855 and is now the richest sprint handicap in Europe. Due to the small size of the track and limitations on the size of the

paddock A paddock is a small enclosure for horses. In the United Kingdom, this term also applies to a field for a general automobile racing competition, particularly Formula 1. Description In Canada and the United States of America, a paddock is a small ...

, a new site for the racecourse was eventually sought and in 1907, the course was moved to its current location in the Craigie area of town. After extensive research into other British courses, the new course layout was based on that of Newbury, with the exception that Ayr's straight course is six furlongs rather than a mile. The former racecourse is now playing fields, known as the Old Racecourse, and part of Seafield golf course. Local road names Racecourse Road and Racecourse View also reflect this history. The Western Club, who owned the course, built the Western House (1919-25) initially as a club house, which later became a hotel and events venue. It is a listed building and an example of

Arts and Crafts A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...

influenced architecture by

Harold Tarbolton Harold Ogle Tarbolton FRIBA (1869–1947) was a 19th/20th century British architect, mainly working in Scotland. He was affectionately known as Tarrybreeks. In later life he went into partnership with Sir Matthew Ochterlony to create Tarbolt ...

. A jumps track was added in 1950 and in 1966 the

Scottish Grand National The Scottish Grand National is a Grade 3 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ayr, Scotland, over a distance of about 4 miles ( ...

was transferred to the track after

Bogside Racecourse Bogside Racecourse was a horse racing track situated in Irvine, Scotland, on the banks of the River Irvine. Its first meeting was held on 7 June 1808, and its last on 10 April 1965, although there is evidence of an event known as the Irvine M ...

was closed down. It is now regarded as the premier racecourse in

. Ayr Racecourse hosts numerous race meets throughout the year, but the two primary ones are over jumps in April and on the Flat in September. The Scottish National festival runs for two days every April and is a Grade 3 handicap National Hunt steeplechase race. The Grand National race itself is broadcast live on ITV annually, and more than 20,000 attendees see it live at the track itself. Flat handicap race the Ayr Gold Cup is run over six furlongs every September, with eight races taking place throughout the day.

Characteristics

Flat

Flat races at Ayr are run over the following distances: *5 furlongs *6 furlongs *7 furlongs 50 yards *1 mile *1 mile 1 furlong 20 yards *10 furlongs *1 mile 2 furlongs 192 yards (disused) *1 mile 5 furlongs 13 yards *1 mile 7 furlongs *2 miles 1 furlong 105 yards The track is a left-handed oval of 12 furlongs including a half mile run in. A six furlong chute joins the round track after just over a furlong. The course is generally flat, with gentle undulations, particularly in the straight. The turns are well graded and it can be regarded as basically a fair track. The turn approaching the straight is slightly downhill, and those prominent can gain an advantage once in line for home. Sprints are held over the straight course. It is a particularly wide course which allows sprints to have fields of up to 28. The jumps course is left-handed with nine fences. There is a steady downhill run to the home turn and a gentle rise to the finish. There is a run-in of 210 yards after the last. Hurdle races are run over distances of: *2 miles 1 furlong *2 miles 4 furlongs *2 miles 6 furlongs *3 miles 110 yards *3 miles 2 furlongs 110 yards *3 miles 3 furlongs 110 yards Chases are run over: *2 miles *2 miles 4 furlongs *2 miles 5 furlongs 110 yards *3 miles 1 furlong *3 miles 2 furlongs 110 yards *3 miles 3 furlongs 110 yards *3 miles 5 furlongs *4 miles 110 yards (Scottish National) The jumps course is a left-handed one and a half mile circuit with nine fences. It runs downhill to the home turn and thereafter there is a gentle rise to the finish, a run-in of 210 yards. Conditions can get extremely gruelling.

Facilities

The paddock stand at Ayr is named the Rothesay Stand in honour of

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

and Camilla,

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

and

Duchess of Rothesay Duke of Rothesay ( ; gd, Diùc Baile Bhòid; sco, Duik o Rothesay) is a dynastic title of the heir apparent to the British throne, currently William, Prince of Wales. William's wife Catherine, Princess of Wales, is the current Duchess of Ro ...

Awards

Ayr has been voted Best Racecourse in Scotland and the North East nineteen times by the Racegoers Club, including nine years in a row up until 2013. It has also won the Neil Wyatt Ground Staff Award for the Best Dual Purpose Course twice – in 1996 and 2011. This award is voted on by representatives of the

National Trainers Federation National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

and

Professional Jockeys' Association A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

to recognise the achievements of racecourse groundstaff. In 2012, Ayr was nominated in two categories in the Racecourse Association Showcase Awards – the Food and Beverage and Owners' Experience categories, winning the latter. It has been designated a five star visitor attraction by

VisitScotland VisitScotland, formerly the Scottish Tourist Board, is a national tourism organisation for Scotland. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government, with offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, and other ...

Facts and figures

Flat

*Number of fixtures (2016) – 19 *Prize money (2015) – £1,384,100 *Top jockey (2010–2015) – Graham Lee *Top owner (2010–2015) – Johnie Delta Racing *Top trainer (2010–2015) – Jim Goldie *Top trainer (2007 – 2011 inc.) – Richard Fahey, 55 wins from 325 runs

Jumps

*Top trainer (2007 – 2011 inc.) –

Donald McCain Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...

, 44 wins from 319 runs

Notable races

;Discontinued races *

Scottish Derby The Scottish Derby was a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It was run at Ayr over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 metres), and it was scheduled to take place each year in July. ...

(''last run in 2005'')

References

External links

Official websiteCourse guide on GG.COMCourse guide on At The Races
{{Horse racing in Great Britain Horse racing venues in Scotland Sports venues in Ayr 1907 establishments in Scotland Sports venues completed in 1907

History

Characteristics

Flat

Facilities

Awards

Facts and figures

Flat

Jumps

Notable races

See also

References

External links