Race type - Jump
Hexham
Course details
Claims to be the "home of National Hunt racing in Northumberland". Hexham's undulations are severe, hill-like even, and this can make it a real slog. Especially the steep climb on the home turn sorts the men from the boys. Stamina is a requisite at Hexham – prominent racers can be lucrative - if it is not factored to much into the price.
The modern course owes much to Charles William Chipchase Henderson as he revived it in the late 19th century and his descendants still take an active role today.
GUIDE - For Racecourse
Left-handed, undulating, oval circuit of about 1m2f.
Hexham markets itself as the "home of National Hunt racing in Northumberland" and it's hard to dispute that as it's the county's sole surviving racecourse. It's also England's most northerly track, being located within a few miles of Hadrian's Wall, and whilst it is nowhere near as historic as that world heritage site, racing in the area can still be traced back to as early as 1720. The current site first came into use in 1793 and it's easy to see why they chose this particular spot on Yarridge Heights as it provides a natural amphitheatre of sloping grass, giving racegoers a superb view of the racing action as well the magnificent surrounding countryside. The modern course owes much to Charles William Chipchase Henderson as he revived it in the late 19th century and his descendants still take an active role today.
Principal Races
It is said that King James VI of Scotland whilst riding south to take up the English throne (he became James I) described the area as the "Heart of all England". His geography may have been a bit out but his words have stuck through the ages and the "Heart of All England Hunt Cup" run here in May is now the course's most prestigious race, attracting a decent field of maiden hunter chasers and their amateur jockeys. The course also has its own 'National' with the running of the 'Northumberland' version over 4m in November, and only the stoutest stayers need turn up.
Course Characteristics
Hexham's undulations are severe, hill-like even, and this can make it a real slog especially when the ground is riding on the heavy side. The worst of these is the steep climb on the home turn and this really sorts the men from the boys with stamina a requisite. As a result, it pays not to be right up with the pace from the start and those horses who are ridden with restraint, thus conserving their energy for the finish, tend to fare best. Laying front runners or prominent racers can prove to be lucrative if you know they are suspect stayers, although this is often factored into their prices. Like Kelso, all races on the chase course finish on a right-handed chute, which branches off the main circuit and takes the runners all the way to the finishing line. There is one fence to jumped followed by a 1f run-in and horses can stop quickly on it if their stamina runs out.
Top Trainers
Two lady trainers in Sue Smith and Lucinda Russell have fared best in terms of winners here in the past five seasons with 23 and 22 respectively. Of the pair, it's Russell who might prove the most profitable to follow as the quality of her string is improving all the time and this is reflected in her current strike rate of 24%. Ferdy Murphy trains in North Yorkshire and most of his wins come on the northern circuit, with his runners here being led into the winner's enclosure here around 15% of the time. J J Lambe trains in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland and his forays across the Irish Sea have proved to be fruitful with one in three of his runners obliging in the current season.
Top Jockeys
Of the jockeys still riding, it's Brian Hughes who leads the way with his 21 winners since 2007 coming at a strike rate of 13%. That's on the up, though, as he now rides for the up-and-coming James Ewart amongst others and he's proved particularly profitable to follow in the current season with one in four of rides passing the post in front. Denis O'Regan, Richie McGrath and Peter Buchanan have traditionally done well here, with the likes of Keith Mercer, James Reveley and Campbell Gillies coming up on the rails.