Marshalling his troops - Pitchcare

for courses...
boasts 28 hectares of racing surface over
two courses. The Rowley Mile hosts
racing during spring and autumn,
starting with the Craven meeting in mid
April and ending with the final meeting
of the year during the last weekend in
October. From the end of June to the
end of August, the Rowley Mile takes a
break and racing is transferred to the
July Course. Both courses can be
extended by using the Beacon, an extra
ten furlongs of track, for longer events.
Amazingly, whilst off track facilities
have developed, expanded and changed
beyond all recognition since the reign of
Charles II - £10 million was invested in
new amenities for the July Course alone
in 2006 - the actual race tracks have not
been altered in terms of position or
length since the day they hosted their
first races.
What has changed is the maintenance
and turf management of these famous
grass surfaces, which enables an intensive
schedule of thirty-eight race days per
year on surfaces that are as good as, if
not better than, any in flat racing.
“We pride ourselves on producing an
excellent racing surface,” says Michael
Prosser, Clerk of the Course and Director
of Racing. “The Darley July Cup is
recognised as the best sprint in the
world, and last year attracted horses
from as far away as Australia. We invest
time, energy and money to court the best
sprint horses in the world.” No pressure,
then, on Alan Hatherley, promoted to
Estates Manager two and a half years ago
and responsible for every inch of track
and paddock at Newmarket.
Like many turfcare professionals at the
top of their game, Alan reached his
current position via a roundabout route.
Born in Bishop’s Stortford, he started his
working life as a greenkeeper, before
moving to Guards Polo Club in Windsor
Great Park, simply because the job
involved working around horses.
“I’ve always loved horse racing,” he
says. “None of our family has ever
ridden, but I can remember first coming
to the races at Newmarket when I was
three or four years old. Racing was a part
of our lives. We were regular punters.
We’d place our bets, and we loved the
excitement of a modest gamble.” From
Guards Polo Club, Alan moved to
Windsor Race Course and, two years
later, having answered an advertisement
for a groundsman at Newmarket, he took
the job despite the fact that, in some
ways, it represented a sideways, if not
backward step. “I started at the bottom
and trained on the job,” he says. “I don’t
know of anywhere with higher standards.
Nothing gets missed and nothing gets
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