IT’S time to cut the red ribbon and welcome in a new era at Worcester Racecourse. We opened our new weighing room at our Ladies Day meeting early last month but now the date for the official opening ceremony has been confirmed. It will take place at our afternoon race meeting on Thursday, July 25.
The feedback we have had from our six meetings held with the new building in operation has been phenomenal. Jockeys, officials, valets, stewards and broadcasters have all been hugely positive about the facilities. It’s the newest weighing room in the UK and although there may be bigger racecourses with similarly modern set-ups — some with more bells and whistles — none of them enjoy a rooftop terrace overlooking the beautiful River Severn.
So now is the occasion for a bit of old-fashioned pomp and ceremony. We will have the ribbon, the big pair of scissors and the guests of honour. David Thorpe, the recently-retired former chairman of Arena Racing Company, will be helping us along with the chairman of the Professional Jockeys Association, Nick Attenborough.
Chris Pitt, the author and racing historian who wrote the superb Pitchcroft: 300 years of racing in Worcester, will also be with us along with some of our oldest racecourse members. I have talked before about the upgraded weighing room, how it was vital for the long-term viability of the racecourse and how it secures a modern, progressive future by providing for the new trends within the sport, such as the rise in the num.