With the Easter holidays now upon us, keeping the children entertained is a constant challenge, but look no further than your local racecourse for the answer!
Across Yorkshire’s racecourses, family days are being planned in earnest and as the weather turns fair, what could be better than a day in the fresh air, with some competitive sporting action on the track and lots of activities in between races.
The key dates to put in your diary for the Easter break are as follows;
At Beverley you can get creative with Easter egg decorating workshops and in addition to the racehorses, Ian’s Farm, a mobile petting farm will be on site with all your favourite animals. Keep an eye out, you might even see the Easter bunny!
Ripon’s activities the following day include The Big Bubble Man, face painting, balloon modelling and of course a bouncy castle.
There’ll be stilt walkers giving out mini eggs to those who arrive early at Redcar, along with bouncy castles, balloon modelling and face painting in the Course Enclosure.
Catterick has a permanent playground in their Course Enclosure and there will also be a bouncy castle at their Easter family day, plus an egg hunt!
Admission prices vary at each different racecourse but start from £5 per adult at Catterick and accompanied under 18’s are free. Car parking spaces can be booked in the Course Enclosure and you can take your own picnic alternatively there are catering options on site.
Generally, gates open two hours before the first race, giving you plenty of time to get stuck into the crafts and activities before the racing starts.
You will find it helpful to buy a racecard when you arrive. This gives you all the details of the runners and riders on the day and you might find this video from Catterick about how to read the racecard helpful, there will also be information about the activities on offer, timings for the day and places to eat. You can even ask the jockeys to sign it!
Take the opportunity to get up close to the rails and feel the ground shake as the horses gallop by. Listen for the thundering hooves and as they get closer you will see the horses and jockeys working in harmony to do everything they can to get to the line first – really, nothing beats this thrill.
