Towcester - A New Dawn Arising

[Forrest-Gump]

A New Dawn Arising

Somewhat ironically given the pressures faced by everyone in society, especially businesses, greyhound racing is about to see a new track open - or rather a former track reopen.

Towcester arrived in a blaze of glory in December 2014, becoming the first new greyhound track to open in 20 years. Within three it was staging the Greyhound Derby no less, with Seamus Cahill’s Astute Missile and then Kevin Hutton’s Dorotas Wildcat winning the sport's biggest event in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

Both were great occasions, grand affairs with concerts after racing to keep the party going. Towcester had a touch of class, so missing in the years Wimbledon was barely hanging on as the home of the Derby. Towcester was a breath of fresh air, albeit even on the night of 2018 Derby Final things were unraveling.

Not long after, and because of myriad reasons not necessarily associated with greyhound racing, Towcester was placed in administration. The dream, it seemed, had died - so step forward Kevin Boothby.

The Henlow promoter, a huge greyhounds man, had been so impressed by Towcester on his visits to the Northamptonshire venue he bought the company! Okay, not quite, but a lease has been secured on the racecourse and he has set about righting the wrongs of Towcester 1.0.

Towcester 2.0 is different already. The racecourse stables are now kennels, with trainers Frank Gray and Tony Tuffin on site. More will follow and a kennel strength of 200 has been spoken about - with no travel required. That last detail seems the most pertinent given the current situation.

Before lockdown, a May 23 launch date had been mooted for Towcester’s return. That looks unlikely now, although the track could still be in a better position than others to start racing. Unofficial trials have taken place, albeit with strict social distancing measures in place, and the changes to the track’s layout have been well received.

Built by the Hesketh family to stage eight-dog racing which would enable them to tap into international markets, criticism of the circuit centered on the track being too wide. The circumference has now been reduced, although Towcester will remain a Hove and Central Park-type running circuit.