- The Jockey Club, who run Cheltenham, have made a series of radical changes
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Cheltenham is like Manchester United in so many ways: a glorious history with so many stories, never far from daily conversations and always expected to be successful.
But the Cheltenham of recent years had started to mimic the United of the Glazer era – living off former glories, complacent and being eclipsed by different challengers. The end result was the most recent Festival in March, when the torrent of criticism they faced was relentless.
They had two choices. Block out the noise and carry on as stubbornly as United did, falling further off the pace and seeing rivals claim their turf. Or be proactive and understand the need to make changes. I was relieved, then, to this week see they chose the latter option. They have listened.
We have seen the most dramatic changes to the racing programme at The Festival for two decades and I’m thrilled there is now a clear picture for novice chasers. If you want to be a champion, you run in either the Arkle over two miles or the Browns Advisory over three miles.
Taking Grade One status away from the Turners Novices Chase will make it easier to explain to a television audience, enliven ante-post betting markets and make more competitive racing. I know people are complaining already but they need to look out of the bubble.
The Cheltenham Festival will undergo its most revolutionary changes in 20 years to improve the fixture’s quality and, crucially, enhance the experience for racegoers from next year
Grade One status has been taken away from the Turners Novices Chase in a key change
The change can help enliven ante-post betting markets and make more competitive racing
A bigger picture must be seen here. While alterations have been made to six races, the vast majority of the people who go through the gates won’t be fussed if a mare is carrying a weight penalty in a hurdle race or that professionals can now ride in the former amateur-only National Hunt Chase.
They go to Cheltenham because it is magnificent and people are hugely passionate for it. The course executive know this and are aware of the need to look after those who make The Festival one of the highlights of the year.
What struck me this week as the changes were being announced was the story about tickets rising to as much as £175 at Lord’s next summer. My colleague, the esteemed David Lloyd, called that decision “elitist nonsense” on these pages and he’s right to say such prices can’t be justified.
Cheltenham have taken a different view and frozen their ticket costs, even providing discounts for those wanting to attend multiple days.
They are offering meal deals – I’d love to see a voucher with a QR code in a racecard offering a £1 off a hot or cold non-alcoholic drink (imagine the goodwill that would get) – improving existing facilities and thinking ahead.
The increased price of a pint of Guinness – £7.80 – has caused debate but Cheltenham aren’t outliers here. A friend of mine went to Lord’s for a day this summer and tells me he paid £24.80 for two pints of lager, a chicken wrap and a packet of crisps. This, unfortunately, is the state of the market.
Had Cheltenham carried on simply looking at the bottom line, experiences like March may have become the norm. I think back now and all the excitement you associate with it – the opening race roar, the cheers when a hot favourite delivers a challenge – was missing.
Course executives know they must look after the people who make the Festival what it is
The majority of people who go through the gate will not fussed that the National Hunt Chase, which used to be an event purely for amateur riders, has been opened to professional jockeys
Ticket prices have been frozen with discounts to those wanting to attend multiple days
Cheltenham and The Jockey Club have their eye on the ball with efforts to welcome racegoers
We endured miserable weather, the situation with car parking was pathetic and I’ve never had four days at Cheltenham where complaints seemed to start every conversation. I’d have been totally demoralised if no action had been taken.
Cheltenham still have plenty of challenges ahead of them and I cannot write without highlighting the impact that Great Western Railways and greedy hotel chains have on racegoers before they have even seen a horse. The extortionate prices they charge have nothing to do with the course.
But The Jockey Club, Cheltenham’s owners, need to keep listening. I want racegoers to arrive at the track and be welcomed with open arms. It should be a case of spectators feeling they are welcome guests rather than as if they are privileged to have been admitted through the gates.
What encourages me most, though, is that Cheltenham have got their eye on the ball. Manchester United lost their focus and who knows when the ship will turn under INEOS? Cheltenham and The Jockey Club have made the decisive first step. Let it reap dividends.
