Newmarket Gallops Tour, Part 3

n part 3 of our tour of Newmarket, John Berry takes us on a tour of the jumps training area and the Limekilns.

Newmarket is everything we know it to be now because of the wide expanses of grass outside the town and the Limekilns is possibly the best area of it all. Composed of hundreds of acres, the grassland is centuries old and absolutely perfect for turf training. Over the summer, all the horses, including all the famous horses, have done their fast work on Newmarket's grasses as it is truly what makes Newmarket great.

In the 1980's, room was made for artificial surfaces and all-weather gallops. The Al Bahathri Gallop, an all-weather gallop, was named for Sheik Hamdan who invested in it to show his gratitude for Newmarket as its training facilities produced him a Classics winner. Now, trainers turn to the Al Bahathri Gallop when the Limekilns become too firm in the winter months.

An often overlooked area is called The Links Gallops used to train horses to jump. The area used to be the National Hunt Racecourse and is only a few hundred acres big and lined with practice hurdles and fences. Additionally, polytracks and gallops can be found in the area that are excellent for training in the winter months.