Musselburgh boss happy with new weighing room - but says making improvements 'not as simple' as people think

Musselburgh general manager Bill Farnsworth admitted the course had "been very lucky" with its project to build a new weighing room and sympathised with tracks that have yet to upgrade theirs.

The track has had "only positive feedback" since its new facility was opened officially last weekend after a process that took just over a year and cost between £260,000 and £270,000.

"We're delighted with the way our weighing-room has come together but it was difficult to make it work," Farnsworth said on Friday. 

"The key thing is the valets and the social areas for the jockeys are all together and open plan, so there's still a community feel, with the changing rooms at either end.

"We've been very lucky and I feel sorry for the courses that are still where we were, scratching their heads wondering how the hell they will make it work."

Andrew Mullen uses an exercise bike in the new weighing room at MusselburghCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Some tracks have been criticised for delays in modernising changing facilities but Farnsworth said: "People say, 'Courses just need to get on with this', but it's not easy.

"We had a fixed footprint to work with and it was a question of rearranging the internal space to meet the requirements of male and female jockeys, valets and all the users of the weighing room.

"It was really difficult and I remember getting to design number 27 and we were really scratching our heads – we solved one problem and found another – until one of the architects had a eureka moment and a plan appeared, like completing the Rubik's cube, and we all went, 'That's it'."

Weighing rooms special report:

‘All you can think about is that smell’ - the shocking conditions inside Britain’s weighing rooms revealed 

The shocking state of female changing rooms dubbed 'racing's dirty secret' 

'Once you’ve been in business class you want to stay there' - former jockeys' chief on the disparity in weighing room standards 

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