Laytown Racecourse

Laytown Racecourse is a seven-furlong straight track which is on a tidal beach. Racing takes place on just one day in September each year, with the races all run over either six or seven furlongs. Until the 2015 meeting, races commenced via a flag start, but stalls have now been introduced.

Laytown is unique in that it is the only official race event in Europe to be run on a beach, and the Laytown “racecourse” is not a permanent racecourse as such, but an annually recurring temporary arrangement on the coast. Located in County Meath, the stretch of beach was once the subject of a BBC documentary entitled Racing the Tide.