Redcar Racecourse is a

thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

venue located in Redcar,

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The racecourse was opened in 1872.

History

Racing began at Redcar on the sands at Redcar beach in the early 18th century. The final meeting here was in 1870. In 1872, Redcar Racecourse as it stands today was opened with a Grandstand erected in 1876. Between 1913 and 1923, Redcar F.C. was based at the racecourse. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

the racecourse was used as both an airfield and an army camp. In 1945 after the Second World War, Major Leslie Petch OBE managed the racecourse and revamped the neglected course. Redcar was the first racecourse in the UK to have both a timing clock and furlong posts. Under Petch's stewardship, a new grandstand was erected in 1964. This stand is still at the racecourse today. Following his retirement, the Zetland family took control of the racecourse.

Lord Zetland Marquess of Zetland is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 22 August 1892 for the former Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lawrence Dundas, 3rd Earl of Zetland. Zetland is an archaic form of Shetland. The Dundas family ...

introduced the

Two-Year-Old Trophy The Two-Year-Old Trophy is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years only. It is run at Redcar over a distance of 5 furlongs and 217 yards (1,204 metres), and it is schedu ...

race. Notable winners of this most lucrative race at Redcar include

Pipalong Pipalong (foaled 26 January 1996) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She was sold cheaply as a yearling but developed into a top-class specialist sprinter who excelled on soft ground. Trained in Yorkshire ...

, Captain Rio,

Somnus In Roman mythology, Somnus ("sleep") is the personification of sleep. His Greek counterpart is Hypnos. Somnus resided in the underworld. According to Virgil, Somnus was the brother of Death ( Mors), and according to Ovid, Somnus had a 'thousand ...

and Limato. Zetland sold part of the Redcar Racecourse land to supermarket chain, Safeway, for £3.6 million in order to finance major developments on the racecourse including new stables. On 30 July 1980, prolific owner Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum had his first winner in the UK with Mushref. In 1996, International Racecourse Management took control of the racecourse. The nephew of Major Leslie Petch, John Sanderson, became chairman in 2018.

The Course

Redcar is a left handed flat oval of just over 1m 4f with relatively tight banked bends. There is also a 3f chute that joins the track where the top bend meets the straight, providing a 1m straight course, purported to be the only 'Straight Mile' in the UK that is straight and level.

Notable races

References

{{Racecourses in Yorkshire Horse racing venues in England Horse racing venues in Yorkshire Sports venues in North Yorkshire Buildings and structures in Redcar and Cleveland