UK Horse Racing – History Behind Cheltenham Racecourse
Cheltenham is a town in the Gloucestershire county that will forever be synonymously affiliated with horse racing. Say Cheltenham, think horses.
It is one of the most famous and prestigious grounds in the history of the sport. Along with other race grounds of Ascot, Newmarket, Doncaster, Haydock, and Aintree, Cheltenham is considered to be the sine qua non for those wishing to experience live horse racing.
Why? Well, we are here to share the details of Cheltenham’s racecourse past and reveal why it still remains much-loved and holds its icon reverence to racegoers and punters.
The Beginnings of Cheltenham
It was in 1815, on top of Nottingham Hill where the first organised race took place. This was the setting of the first Flat Race with the first set of races taking place on Cleeve Hill in 1818.
The two events lead to the popularity of horse racing and over the decades that followed crowds of thirty thousand started to amass on the locations.
At the time, there were two day meetings that took place during the height of summer, the 3m Flat Race and the Gold Cup.
The race was not always met with joy, despite the number attending. In 1830 the main grandstand was burnt to the ground following criticism from the parish priest at the time, seemingly stoking up enough outrage with the congregation to carry out such acts.
In order to suppress the violence being carried out, the race was moved to Prestbury Park in 1831, where the racing venue currency remains to this day. The steeplechase was established in Andoversford nearby in 1834 and in 1898 moved to the Prestbury Park venue.
In 1964 the Jockey Club Racecourse formed, back then, it was known as the Racecourse Holdings Trust. This was formed to help secure the future of the racecourse in Cheltenham.
This group now owns 14 racecourses in total, combining flat, jump and dual-purpose courses. Add to them, a number of training grounds in Lambourn and Epsom.
Inside the Modern Era of Cheltenham
It wasn’t until the Dickinson Famous Five along with the Dawn Run, hurdle and Gold Cup win, that the Cheltenham Festival transcended into the higher echelons of public awareness which was in the 80s. This was the time of Desert Orchid triumphing over every Cheltenham race.
The Cheltenham Festival is able to amass an estimated 50 million in revenue for local pubs, shops, hotels and clubs. It is the biggest event in the United Kingdom to bring in such revenue.
The formation of the festival is something that now dominated the horse racing calendar and with good reason, the expansion of competition and trophies leads this to be the biggest sporting event in the UK and it all began in 1911.
Best Betting Offers and Racing Tips
In total, there are 27 races that take place at Cheltenham. The break down of this is 14 chases, you have 12 hurdle races and a single flat race. The beauty of all of this and why it began comes back down to the betting. Cheltenham offers a fantastic abundance of opportunities and ways to bet on the nags.
If you are new to this concept, then here are some of the horse racing betting offers that are available at Cheltenham and from within the best online sport betting casinos, that you can join in time for the next festival event in March 2021.
Types of Horse Racing Bets
Single: a single bet is one wager on a single horse in one event.
Double: this bet forms of two bets that can be of different races and two horses.
Treble: this bet covers three events with 3 different horses.
Accumulator: this is a mixed bet slip that can involve over 4+ different events and horses.
Trixie: the Trixie bet can involve 4 bets of which you are betting on a return of any 3 out of the four. Your cost increases as you pay a single on each bet and the Trixie.
Patent: this bet holds 7 possible outcomes, with money on each single event like Trixie, if one comes in you win. This bet also covers doubles and a treble bet.
Yankee: this holds up to 11 bets, with a mix of doubles trebles and an accumulator. If you land two correct outcomes, you will gain a return.
Lucky 15: the bet allows you to make 15 selections forming 4 single bets, 6 double bets, 4 treble bets and 1 fourfold.
Super Yankee: this bet allows for 26 selections, and includes 10 trebles, 10 doubles, 5 fourfold, and an accumulator.
Forecasts: Betting on both first and second place horses.
Straight Forecast: make two selections in 1 race and predict the 1st and 2nd place.
Reversed Forecast: make the two selections and can be won in either order of finishing 1st or 2nd.
Each-way Betting: The prediction of a win bet and a place bet that can be 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and in some cases 5th, depending on the bookies offer.
