No crowds but puddings are on the menu as racing returns to Cartmel

Racing will return to Cartmel on Sunday in a totally different guise to the norm with a behind-closed-doors fixture at the unique track.

There will be no fairground rides or barbecues at the idyllic Lake District course, but general manager Geraldine McKay is just glad to be able to provide fixtures for an area short of jumping opportunities.

Cartmel's season usually runs from May through to August, with bank holiday crowds known to reach 22,000, and three of its nine fixtures have been salvaged from the Covid-19 wreckage.

"We're delighted to be back in any form this year and get racing on for the north," said McKay. "This isn't our business model and what we generally do, as we usually have very large attendances and a party atmosphere, but it's great to be involved. It would have been very sad to have a year without racing at Cartmel."

There was great demand for the eight-race card with 74 horses declared, and McKay revealed one of the track's traditions will remain.

"There will still be sticky toffee puddings for winning connections," she said. "We got a full house of horses and are really pleased with the support we've got.

"We've been really clear in our communication to racegoers to help us this year by staying at home to watch the racing. We don't want people to come, so we can operate racing safely."

Looking to the future, McKay added: "We have a relatively small team but we've had to be resilient and question every cost as we want to make sure Cartmel is here in years to come. We run our business very efficiently anyway, so we're not having to service a lot of debt.

"We want to go into 2021 in the best position possible. We know next year is still going to be different but we'll be looking to welcome back some crowds and get a bit of our magic back."

Click here to view Cartmel's racecard

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