The FINAL Report from 'Sampsons' for the 2003 Point to Point Season.

 

Everyone reading our reports will be aware that Ruth and I have enjoyed our pointing season immensely and witnessed it coming to an end at Umberleigh in a delightful atmosphere and with beautiful weather and with some regret but it wont be long before hunting starts and we will see it all commence again.

 

Our thanks , and I am sure we speak for all followers of this great sport, go out to the volunteers who have made this a wonderful season and provided much required funds for the many hunts.  A lot of unpaid hours go in to the making of a good point to point course and this year we have seen racing over well built jumps, good grass cover and 'goings' that have been achieved only by real hard work.  Thank you again.

 

The standard of racing has been of the best and some horses have gone on to National Hunt racing, some have had a go at Hunter chasing and others will be coming back next year with renewed endeavour to achieve a win in a maiden. 

 

The novice jockeys have had a taste of the sport and are now keener than ever to make a name for themselves.  The regulars are still regulars and will no doubt continue to be so.  Those who are amongst the top in this sport continue to provide the competition that is necessary to encourage others and to produce the spectacle that this sport is.

 

Owners and trainers are the life and soul of this sport and the sales catalogues tell me that no one is giving up or intend to do so in the future.  Syndicates are flourishing.

 

The tin and the bag are now emptied and put away for a while.  Their contents have fluctuated throughout this season, from rock bottom to overflowing and we are not going to try and work out which level was obtained at the end.  As far as we are concerned WE WERE WINNERS all the way.  We have enjoyed ourselves every weekend whilst attending forty one meetings, where else but at a point to point meeting could you do that?

 

The web site will be left open during the break but some pages maybe updated both in design and content as new material becomes available.  If there is any change you would like to see please let me know and we will oblige if we can.  Up to now it has had over ten thousand pages viewed since we started in  January and we are so pleased about that.  Thank you to all who emailed us and to Lee and all the Secretaries for their assistance in providing details, sometimes when under great strain.

 

My final note:  Seven thousand spectators at a Point to Point, of which five thousand are men.  They drink one pint each making 625 gallons of liquid to be disposed of and only seven outlets provided.  This works out that 15 minutes of time must be spent in a queue facing away from the track.  Besides the pain, humiliation of crossed legs with hands deep in the pocket, short conversation in case a laugh is encouraged and sometimes an argument as to whom was first and having paid fifteen quid to enter and have missed at least one race which took only just over six minutes to complete.  Unfair!  Then there are also ladies!!  In most cases more toilets please or at least a screen about fifty yards long and all will be well.  At your committee meeting please don't say : 'It was alright last year' because unless it was as good as Umberleigh, it wasn't good enough!

 

Oh! one more point.  Hopefully some of our spectators will be new to the sport and if a course layout is on the outside of the back cover of the race card they will not have to ask the question as to where the start is etc.

 

That's it folks and as my mother would say :

'This is not a dress rehearsal you know, get out and enjoy it!'

 

Fred and Ruth