Point to point

On Saturday, Ian and I met Sally, James, Kirsty and Oliver at the Aspatria Point to Point race meeting. Breezy and sunny it was great weather, if a little chilly from time to time, and the meet was well-attended; we met several other people we knew at the course or in the beer tent.

As Oliver is not yet two it was his first experience of betting but Ian, who had a misspent youth himself, soon had him at the bookies’ stands getting odds on a horse also called Oliver.

All the horses competing are hunters, mostly locally in the north and Borders hunts. 23 hunts are listed in the Northern Area Point-to-Point Association; I must admit I had not realised there were quite so many. My equestrian ambition had always been to ride well enough to hunt but I doubt I will ever achieve this though Sally and I did discuss the novice meets with a chap dressed as if he knew what he was talking about.

I am reliably informed by my tipster that many of the horses have top pedigrees. The breeding isn’t something I know about but the look of the horses is enough evidence of quality. Sal and I were bowled over by some of the handsomest specimens – of the horses that is (just to clarify). A lot of the riders were women and they are braver than I; it is all very fast and scary especially over the jumps. At least if you fall off when climbing you are unlikely to be trampled by hooves. Fortunately on this particular day, although there were some falls, no-one was hurt.

And as our winnings more than covered our entry fees it was a great day’s free entertainment.