CATTERICK RACECOURSE

Course: Catterick Racecourse

🎫 Ticket & Value: Grandstand £20 Ladies Day

👀 Track view: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

🍔 Food: ⭐️

🍺 Guinness: ⭐️

⭕️ Parade Ring: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

🏇 Runners and riders: ⭐️⭐️

🎉 Atmosphere: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

⭐️ Overall Experience: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

👍🏻 Best for: Parade Ring ⭕️

If you’re looking for an affordable day at the races with a warm atmosphere and friendly staff, then look no further than Catterick Racecourse. A duel purpose track with racing all year round, the Yorkshire track is located about an hour away from Leeds just off the A1 and is easily accessible by car.

Firstly, Catterick boasts a decent track view from the stands and by the rail. Up in the grandstand you get a good view of the majority of the track, with most of the flat races starting on the far side of this left-handed circuit. There are some large trees and bushes in the middle of the course which does block some of the track view, particularly at the top end when the horses are coming around the bend into the home straight. A highlight of the track view is when standing right up by the winning post itself, as the way the Catterick is designed you get a great view right down the home straight watching the horses come towards you at the finish. Something a little different compared to many other courses we’ve visited.

Unfortunately, the food at Catterick was disappointing as the options trackside were particularly limited. There was only the usual burger van that sold the standard burgers and chips, and an ice cream van down by the rail. Whilst the price points were fair, the lack of variety and options for punters were particularly poor considering it was Ladies Day, quite a big fixture on the flat racing calendar. The hotdog was average at best, alongside the chips and curry sauce that I ate on the day. Certainly an area I would look to improve as a racecourse.

Again, the Guinness at Catterick racecourse was another aspect that was disappointing. At £6.95, the price point trackside is more than fair but that’s where the positives end. As seen all too often at racecourses, the Guinness was poured straight to the top of the plastic cup with no time to rest or settle. The head was foamy and bubbly as a result of being poured straight to the top, and this was reflected in the taste. Whilst the taste of the pint wasn’t the worst I’ve experienced, it was clearly impacted by the pour and lack of care taken by the staff.

A highlight of Catterick racecourse however, is the parade ring. Positioned the other side of the main entrance, you are greeted with the modern and cosy parade ring as soon as you enter the racecourse. Whilst the course is compact, the parade ring is a good size and has some small tiered standing at the top end where the jockeys walk out. The quirky location of the parade ring also means that the jockeys walk through the crowds from the weighing room, giving fans unique access to the jockeys themselves. Despite not being able to access the whole way around the parade ring, you have a great view of the horses parading pre-race with the stables in the background. This is where horses get their saddles adjusted or checked by the vets and stable staff before heading out to the track. The best part about the parade ring is when the horses head out to the track, you can follow the horses right up to when they exit onto the course and head down to post, which is a great experience.

The Runners & Riders on Ladies day were what you’d expect to see at a smaller northern racecourse during the flat season. With the biggest jockey booking on the card being multiple Group 1 winner Jason Hart, the majority of jockeys on show were fairly regular names to Catterick with the likes of Cam Hardie, Dale Swift and Jason Watson just some of the names on show. Despite the lack of top jockeys on the card, the racing across the whole day was competitive and enjoyable. Most races enjoyed a decent field size which made betting for punters more interesting and enjoyable, with only one race having a heavy odds on favourite win comfortably.

With plenty of class 4, 5 and 6 races in action as well as plenty of course specialists on offer, the racing across the day was enjoyable and exciting with some close finishes between horses. It was evident that local owners and trainers target Catterick as a track, with the Racing Emporium and Seb Spencer enjoying a lovely double on the day at what appears to be their local racecourse. They later went on the win the title for most winning owners at the racecourse across the whole flat season.

As expected on Ladies Day, the atmosphere around the racecourse matched the occasion with racegoers creating a buzz around the place from race 1. The betting rings were fairly busy throughout the day, and the parade ring often had plenty of keen racegoers eyeing the horses up pre-race with their complimentary racecards. There was a fair amount of noise coming from the stands and trackside when the horses approached the finish, and in the restaurant and hospitality bars you could see large crowds watching the races for their designated areas as well. They also had a live singer by the stands, which created a nice atmosphere trackside in between races.

Overall, Catterick racecourse offers racegoers around Yorkshire and the North of England an opportunity to experience competitive, lower grade racing all year round. It provides a good track view of the racing itself, meaning you can enjoy the racing from multiple viewpoints alongside a wonderful parade ring to get up close to the horses and jockeys pre and post race. A shame about the food and Guinness on offer, as this being improved would certainly enhance the raceday experience for the average racegoer.