Lewes Racecourse

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Irish Stamp

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Does anyone know anything or have any lasting memories of Lewes racecourse?

Went up there today with a couple of workmates and you can still walk around the course itself - currently being used as gallops by Jim Best and Suzy Smith (possibly Sheena West too). Great place to go and amazed that the running rail is still there and that they were able to race around such a sharp turn :)
 
They need to build one around Bexhill/Hastings.

I never knew of Lewes racecourse but thanks, as you do a right at the junction near the hospital/prision and drive down to the massive roundabout, on the way there is a massive yard of horses i think
 
The course itself is the horse shoe shape on Aldaniti's link. It's still clearly there and walkable.

The buildings to the right of the main straight are the old Tote and Grandstand - now home to Jim Best and Suzy Smith. There's also a 1 3/4m or so woodchip gallop put in near the finish post down towards the town and the grave of the 1920 Grand National winner is clearly visible along with Heath Stables (home to Derby winner Charlottestown amongst others and were John Gosden's father Towser sent out plenty of winners from).

Anyone for re-opening it? :)
 
Sheena West is just off the big A road - though unsure exactly where so it could be her yard you see IS.

If you take the road round the back of the prison (the chalky one) and walk along you get to Heath House and can walk all the way up the public paths and the course.
 
The history of Lewes racecourse and other closed/defunct tracks can make for very interesting reading.
Chris Pitt's book "A Long Time Gone" -- a record of the 90-odd racecourses which have closed in the past century -- is a tremendous resource.

An interesting claim-to-fame of Lewes concerns one particular race from over a 100 years ago is:

"Lewes was famous for one of the most remarkable races of all time, when in the Astley Stakes of 1880 three horses finished in a triple dead-heat a short head in front of two others that also dead-heated -- so only a short head separated the first five home."
 
A Long Time Gone is the book a colleague has - apparently it's near enough out of print these days though. Would love to read it and see all the old courses.

Heard today that they want to re-open the great Hialeah Park in Florida for QH racing - that's another great loss to the sport so hope they're successful in getting it up and running :)
 
Has plenty of history! why haven't they considerd re-opening? Fix an AW course around there, I would love to design a racecourse.
 
Chris Pitt's book has been re-printed and is readily available on Amazon etc. It's well worth buying and has some fantastic stories and pics

Chris - who's a hell of a nice guy and really interesting to talk to - told me his new book is being launched at the usual Midlands Racing Club Aintree Preview, at the SUWMC nr Birmingham: see

http://www.zyworld.com/crottly2/WMRC.htm (scroll down for details)
(Chris founded the MRC by the way)

There is no mention of the book on this page however so maybe publication has been delayed. It's about all the jockeys who *almost* won the GN, but didn't! He was hoping to get quite a few of them there on the night. I'm told it's a great bash if you are enywhere near Birmingham on 31st March, and anyone can roll up

Amusing trivia: Chris married his wife Mary who is American and from Massachusetts in the Winners Enc at Suffolk Downs!

IS, to re-open Lewes you'd have to rebuild the entire infrastructure and displace several trainers who operate on and from the old track. And the vicinity is well served already, with Brighton and Plumpton being very close, and Lingfield and Goodwood not far away
 
Thanks for the link HS - it was half jokey the re-opening the course. The reason it shut in the first place was the infrastructure, it was either Lewes or Brighton and with Brighton being in a big town/city it wasn't really much of a contest. Would still love to see them race around that bend again though :)
 
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