Gone with the wind

Well, in over twenty five years of following National Hunt racing, the postponement of racing at Cheltenham on Wednesday ranks as one of the biggest disappointments I can recall. I am still shocked; I can't quite believe what happened. I left Coventry at 07.30; the weather was clear and blustery. At 08.30, approaching Cheltenham on the M5, I received two texts from friends informing me the day's racing had been called off due to the high winds. I can only describe the whole epsiode as 'surreal'. Let's be clear about this - the postponement was necessary not for racing reasons but for health and safety reasons connected with the temporary structures erected on the course. Personally I feel the postponement could and should have been announced much earlier; I shall be claiming my full refund in due course. The Racing Press / Establishment will do their best to make the best of this bad job but there are a lot of unsatisfied customers out there and I'm just one of many. When I should have been enjoying a Guinness and swapping form notes before the first, I was back in Coventry, checking out the sell-by date on yoghurts Mrs Tips had included on the weekly shopping line - what a stinker!