Off the clock

Myles’ favourite week in sport

Two days at the Cheltenham Festival, a father-and-son tradition, and the annual needle with Damien.

Written by Myles Davies

Myles and Damien outside The Centaur at Cheltenham racecourse

Last week, my favourite week in sport. My father and I took our annual trip to Cheltenham for two days of the Festival.

Horse racing has always been a big part of my life. As a young lad, many weekends were spent travelling around the southern racing circuits of the UK. My father introduced me to the ins and outs of the sport. How to study a form card, what a handicap meant, the importance of bloodlines, trainers, jockeys and the effect of the going.

And the biggest of them all is Cheltenham. The pinnacle of jump racing. The home of the sport.

Myles by the rail at Cheltenham, the grandstand behind

Tens of thousands of people from all walks of life gather at Prestbury Park. Some come for the racing, some for the fashion, some for the drinks. But for five minutes, seven times a day, everything stops and all eyes are on the horses. These equine athletes have the power to make an entire racecourse fall silent, gasp and then erupt with cheers in remarkable choreography.

View over the parade ring at Cheltenham from the balcony

It is also a place where some of the traditions of racing still show themselves in the crowd. Tweed jackets, flat caps and even ties, which are becoming less and less prevalent in today’s working world. A day spent studying the form card, learning the jockeys’ names, and watching these incredible horses gallop along the undulations of Prestbury Park to the roar of the 70,000 in attendance.

We were lucky enough to witness one of the most beloved horses in racing win the Champion Hurdle on Tuesday, as Lossiemouth stormed home. Afterwards, her owner Rich Ricci stood quietly taking in the applause, clearly emotional. The story of Lossiemouth captured the hearts of many that afternoon.

A runner and jockey in the parade before a race at Cheltenham

Later in the week, he would go on to win the Gold Cup, the greatest prize in jump racing, with Gaelic Warrior.

I actually had the chance to meet Rich briefly at last year’s Festival. It is always fascinating to see someone who built a career on Wall Street become one of the most recognisable figures in British and Irish racing. His pink with green spotted silks continue to be synonymous with the sport and, after this week, firmly at the very top.

Myles in front of the big screen at Cheltenham during a replay

If he ever writes a book about that journey, it would be one I would happily read.

For Damien and I, the Festival always has another layer of interest in the background. The Prestbury Cup is essentially a running tally across the week between winners trained in the UK and those trained in Ireland. With Damien’s Irish background and me coming from the UK, that record tends to receive a little extra attention between us as the week unfolds.

Myles and Damien by the course map at Cheltenham

And this year it went the same way it has for the past eleven years.

Ireland lifted the Prestbury Cup again, winning 15-13.

Next year Damien. Next year.