Inside track

Apr 5 2008 by James Armstrong, The Journal

THE Grand National is run over 4.5 miles and takes around nine minutes and 15 seconds, which makes this race without doubt the most gruelling race in the world.

Here at Gosforth Park the longest race on our card today will be one-and-a-half miles as the Flat season is set for its curtain raiser.

The weather forecast for the weekend is hardly going to hail the start of summer with popping champagne corks and the clink of Pimm’s bottles, even if we do know that spring is somewhere over the horizon.

Make sure you are wrapped up warm for what should be a thrilling afternoon (it cannot be colder or wetter than the Boat Race I witnessed last Saturday on the banks of the wind-swept Thames).

The National Hunt course is undergoing a much needed two-week rest while Gosforth Park plays host to the first Flat meeting before we revert to our last day of jumping on April 14.

The course looks a little less testing than is normal this early in the year – currently Good to Soft, Good in places.

But with the growing season yet to kick in, the course will improve a lot when the grass starts to grow with some warm damp weather.

The £16,000 bet365 Call 08000 322 365 Handicap Stakes (Class 2) race over seven furlongs is the feature race of the day. It has been well supported by local trainers, notably David Barron who has three horses entered for the race.

They are Flipando, last seen at Newcastle when winning the Seaton Delaval Trophy back in 2006 on the opening day of the Northumberland Plate Festival, Skhilling Spirit, a valiant third in the Cammidge Trophy held here in March last year at the Lincoln Meeting and Partners In Jazz.

There will be three races televised on Channel 4 and all races including the John Smith’s Grand National will covered by a Big Screen in the centre of the course

I would like to wish two previous winners of the Totesport Eider here at Newcastle all the best of luck in the big race at Aintree – Comply or Die, the mount of Timmy Murphy who was victorious here a month ago and Philson Run, a winner back here in 2005.

JAMES Armstrong is clerk of the course at Newcastle racecourse.