Hereford
Hereford's right-handed circuit of about a mile and a half is almost square and has nine fences, of which the first after the winning post is taken on a turn. The home turn, which is on falling ground, is pretty sharp but the other bends are easy. Races have a tendency to be well run and the ground can get very testing in mid-winter. The course restarted racing in October 2016 after a four-year hiatus.
It’ s great to get back racing at Hereford after a four-year sabbatical as it’s a superb, right-handed, National Hunt track and pretty much a mile-and-a-half square-shaped layout. Always proper, jumping ground and pretty testing mid-winter. It’s a fair track, and you have really got to be travelling nicely and be where you want to be, turning for home, as you run slightly downhill into the straight and the leaders can, and will, get away from you at this point if you’re not careful. The last obstacle can often prove tricky as you are really racing by then, and the track opens up a bit there and often horses can wander up the run-in.