Carlisle
Date of Review: 13th June 2022.
Address: Durdar Rd, Carlisle CA2 4TS, Cumbria
Website: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/carlisle/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carlisleracecourse/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/carlisleraces
Email: info.carlisle@thejockeyclub.co.uk
Phone: 01228 554700 To Book Tickets: 0344 579 3002
Accommodation: https://www.booking.com/landmark/gb/carlisle-racecourse.en-gb.html
Track Layout: (Image: credited & acknowledged to At The Races)
Course Information: Carlisle is a dual purpose (flat & jumps) course that has three separate tracks: flat, hurdles, and steeplechase. It is a right handed, pear-shaped course that has three straight sections and three bends. The course runs downhill for the first three furlongs, but levels out at the mile marker. It is just over a mile and a half in distance. The turns are fairly wide, but due to the numerous undulations of the track, horses are required to be well balanced. It has a long uphill finish of just over three furlongs, which provides a stiff test of a horse’s stamina.
Due to this, a lot of the longer-distance races are steadily run. The course is generally considered to be fair, with horses that are held up having ample time to make up ground during the long run to the winning post. The course is situated on clay subsoil, which is slow draining. This causes the ground to become very testing, particularly during the winter.
The course holds around 24 fixtures a year, from February through to December. Carlisle has a rich history of horseracing, records show that racing first took place in 1559, at another location named The Swifts.
The oldest race run under the British Horseracing Authority’s rules is the Carlisle Bell, which was first run in the same year. The race still takes place to this day, in June, and is run over a distance just short of a mile.
The course at the current location opened in 1904. In 1914, during World War I, the course was taken over and occupied by troops of the volunteer Lonsdale 11th Battalion, who used the area for training purposes. Tragically, the vast majority of the battalion were killed at the Battle of the Somme.
A piece of British horseracing history was made at Carlisle in 1929 when it grabbed the limelight off Newmarket Racecourse, which had planned to run the first ever Tote betting operation. However, the authorities had overlooked that the card at Carlisle commenced 15 minutes earlier, so the first bets ever placed on the Tote were placed at Carlise, and therefore, it will always be remembered as “the pioneer of the Tote.”
Trivia Time! The most famous of all the Grand National winners, Red Rum regularly started his season at Carlisle by running in the Windermere Handicap Chase at the autumn meeting. He won the race twice, in 1973, and 1976, and finished third in 1975. The following year, the race was renamed “The Red Rum Chase’. Red Rum himself returned once again to the course in 1979 to officially open the refurnished Red Rum Bar, which is still in operation today.
Location Map - Carlisle Racecourse
The Racecourse Advisor Guide to Carlisle Racecourse:
Course Access:
By Road: From the north & south, the course is easily accessed by car, with a 5-minute drive off the M6 at junction 42. Follow the signs for Dalston, and the racecourse is on the left-hand side of the road. It is well signed. From the east, take the A69 or A66 to the M6 motorway. Join the M6 and leave at junction 42 and follow the directions above. From the west, travel along the A595, following signs for Carlisle. Continue along this road and take the third exit at the next roundabout. Follow the road past the Garden Centre and turn left at the junction. Follow this road, and at the T-junction in Dalston, turn right. Follow the road until you reach Bridge End Pub. Turn left over the bridge and follow the signs for Durdar. When you reach the next junction, turn left. The racecourse is approximately a mile on the left-hand side.
By Rail: The racecourse is 2.2 miles from Carlisle Station, a major station on the West Coast Main Line, lying 102 miles south of Glasgow Central, and 299 miles north of London Euston. A complimentary shuttle bus service operates two services from the racecourse to English Street in the town centre, timings are 20 minutes after the last race and 30 minutes after that.
By Air: The nearest airports to the racecourse are Newcastle Airport (NCL) – 50.5 miles. Edinburgh Airport (EDI) – 74.9 miles. Glasgow Prestwick Airport (PIK) – 77.7 miles. Landing facilities for helicopters are available but need to be booked in advance with the course. Rating: 8/10.
Parking: Ample free car parking for the general public is available in the North & South car parks, which are located directly opposite the main entrance of the course, which is directly across the road.
The racecourse has dedicated blue badge parking spaces available in the Owners and Trainers car park. It is less than 100 meters from the disabled parking bays to the racecourse entrance. To pre-book a disabled parking space, call the Racecourse on 01228 554700 to arrange this.
The racecourse opens between 2 and 2.5 hours before the first race. Rating: 9/10.
Pricing: On the day we visited, admission into the main grandstand for the 6-race card which consisted of: 1 Class 4 race. Three Class 5 races and one Class 6 race cost £22.00. Concession tickets for OAPs were £19.00. Children under the age of 18 are allowed in for free if accompanied by an adult. This gives you full access to all the areas of the racecourse including the parade ring and finishing post.
Tickets for £17.00 are available if booked online in advance. For groups of 6+ tickets were available for £15.30 each, if booked in advance. There was also a “Punters Package” available online, which had to be booked in advance and for £35.00, gave you: an admission ticket, racecard voucher, along with a meal of pie & peas with a hot drink, and also one alcoholic drink. So overall, pretty good VFM (value for money), we feel.
There was a corporate hospitality option of the “Executive Box Restaurant", which for £85.00 got you the following: an admission ticket, a racecard, two-course set roast menu, table service on private tables, and private betting facilities. So once again, decent value for money, we feel.
Please be aware as this is a Jockey Club owned course it has a card only / no cash policy.
The Racecard: Once again, at a Jockey Club owned course, the racecard was a major disappointment. The good news is that it was only £2.50. The bad news is, that you get what you pay for, and you don’t get a lot. In fact, you get 29 pages of very little. Over 11 pages were adverts, fixtures, and terms & conditions. No racecourse layout, which is, or should be a basic pre-requisite in any racecard. You did, however, get a map showing the location of the course facilities.
There was nothing in the document that you can’t get for free in a newspaper or online. In that case, why bother producing and printing racecards for weekday, low-level meetings, when only a few hundred people attend? simply to keep your £2.50 in your pocket. Rating: 7/10.
Catering: Here at Racecourse Advisor, we enjoy doing “racecourse reviews” and not restaurant reviews. Nor do we pretend to be food critics. Our aim is to give you an overall idea of what is available regarding the culinary options and prices at the track on racedays.
The catering options at Carlisle are pretty good. Not the best we have seen, but nowhere near the worst either. There is a large food hall called The Bell Inn located just after the main entrance, which houses a couple of large bars, a traditional Chippy (always good!), a coffee shop, and a bakery type outlet. The pricing at the fish & chip shop was:
Battered fish, chips, and mushy peas are £9.50. Cumberland sausage, chips, mushy peas, and gravy £8.50. A vegan option of fishless fillet, chips, and mushy peas for £8.00. Pie, chips, mushy peas and gravy £8.50. Pie and peas £5.50. Chips, cheese, and gravy cost £4.50. Chips and gravy (a northern classic!) or curry sauce at a bargain price of £3.75 per serving or a simple portion of chips for £3.75. Basically, decent grub at decent prices.
The Coffee House right next door was serving up the pie of the day or plant based pie of the day for £5.50 each. Various sandwiches for £4.70 and a salad box for the same. For the coffee’s, an Americano was £3.35, a cappuccino, flat white, or hot chocolate was £3.50 each and an espresso was £2.50. Various teas were available for £2.80 each.
The Bell Hall Catering Facilities – Carlisle Racecourse.
Across the outside seating area, facing the Owners and Trainers bar, are Silks Café and the Red Rum bar. Silks Café is a smallish affair with wooden tables and chairs for seating (see photos below), which was serving up a couple of offers: a main meal with one side portion with gravy for £7.50 or a main meal with two side portions and gravy for £8.75. The main meals were pretty substantial, with the likes of Cumberland sausages, steak pie, a steak-less pie as a vegan option, and hotpot ragout. The side portions were mashed potatoes, mushy peas, braised red cabbage, and gravy. We didn’t partake; however, we did get to chat with a couple of customers who had gone for the steak pie, mash, peas, and gravy and said they were very good. They certainly looked good, that’s for sure.
They were also selling a range of hot drinks, such as tea, coffee, hot chocolate, espresso, etc. for prices ranging from £2.40 to £2.90, depending on your fancy. The Red Rum Bar is the main bar area on the racecourse; it’s a decent size, light, and airy, with raised tables and stools for seating. There is also a patio / concourse area immediately outside with picnic tables and benches for seating (see photos below).
The drinks menu was pretty comprehensive, with a pint of Guinness Madri larger or Prahva Pilsner for £6.60 a pint. A pint of Worthington was £6.25, as was a pint of Carling. A pint of Aspall cider would set you back £6.50. House red, white, or rose was £7.00 a glass (18.7cl), and bottles of the same were being knocked out for £27.50 each. All spirits were priced at £5.20 each (25ml). The good news was that the locals weren’t kicking off and fighting each other inside the bar like they were last time we visited.
Across the concourse and close to the racecourse is another bar called Monet’s, which serves, champagne, wines, gins etc. However, this was closed during the day of our visit, as were one of the main bars in the Bell Hall area along with the Generals Bar & BBQ bar. There were no ‘street food’ vendors on the course, not even the ubiquitous Burger or Hog Roast vans. We are pleased to report that there was an ice cream van on site, and it appeared to be doing a brisk trade!
Catering Facilities – Carlisle Racecourse. Top: The Red Rum Bar. Bottom: Silks Café
However, to be fair, overall, the catering at the racecourse was more than adequate for the smallish crowd in attendance. Decent grub at reasonable prices was the order of the day. Rating: 7/10.
Guinness Standard: We are pleased to report that Draught Guinness was available at the bars in plastic pint glasses at a reasonable cost of £6.60 (it was £5.75 in 2022). It was a nice pint. Cold and well-kept. Rating: 8/10.
Viewing: The viewing experience at Carlisle Racecourse, it must be said, is not the best. At the start of longer races, the starting stalls are situated on the first corner. Immediately after the race starts, the horses run downhill and completely out of sight. In fact, they stay out of sight for a full 33 seconds (yes, we timed them), which is a significant portion of the race. The sight line is also hampered as they approach the final bend again, due to trees. The horses only really come back into sight around the 2-furlong marker. Without the big screen next to the winning post, watching these types of races would be difficult.
The main viewing area is in the Jubilee grandstand, which is the most modern and was built in 2002. It is, however, quite small, with only about 12 or 13 terraces to stand on. The other major downside is that this area is not covered, therefore no protection from the elements whatsoever.
The private boxes are also situated on the top floor of this stand. The other main viewing area is the older owners & trainers stand, which is also open to the public. Unusually, it is situated well past the finishing post and is more of a head-on view, looking directly down the home straight. This stand is covered, so protection from the rain and sun if needed. This stand is a decent size and has two levels of terraces. There are approximately 14 steps on both the upper and lower terraces. Neither stand had any seating. There is a large portable viewing screen located just before the winning post.
Viewing: Unfortunately, the viewing of the actual races at this course is not good. The horses are out of sight when running down the back of the track due to buildings and trees. The sight line is also hampered as they approach the final bend again, due to trees. The horses only really come into sight at around the 2-furlong marker. Without the big screen above the winning post, watching most of the races would be difficult.
The Jubilee Stand (left) and the Owners & Trainers Stand – Carlisle Racecourse
There are two other viewing areas on the course, located on the 365 Suite and the Lonsdale Hall, which are further down the home straight around the half-furlong mark, but again, they have no cover whatsoever. These stands are much older and were hardly used on the day of our visit. In front of these stands is a large, grassy concourse area with plenty of picnic-style tables and benches, which would be ideal in the summer. There is also a raised viewing platform for the disabled just in front of the half-furlong mark.
The 365 Suite (bottom) & Lonsdale Hall Viewing Areas – Carlisle Racecourse
The Disabled Raised Viewing Platform – Carlisle Racecourse
As stated above, the viewing here is not particularly good, due to the characteristics of the racecourse. There are plenty of viewing stands, but very little if any seating, and only one of the four stands is covered, which, in our opinion, isn’t good. Rating: 6/10.
Parade Ring / Winners Enclosure: It has to be said that the Parade Ring / Winners Enclosure at Carlisle is impressive. It is a combined affair, situated next to the splendid looking jockey’s weighing room, called the Lester Piggott Race Centre. It’s rectangular in shape and surprisingly large
The Lester Piggott Race Centre – Carlisle Racecourse
The grass both inside and outside of the Parade Ring is perfectly manicured, and it is mowed in stripes reminiscent of the football pitch at Wembley Stadium. We doff our caps to the ground staff who look after and maintain this area. Excellent work!
The Parade Ring & Winners Enclosure – Carlisle Racecourse
It has a very well-tended hedge running around the whole perimeter, and you can access all of the ring, which is good. The pre-parade ring, which wasn’t accessible to the general public, is situated in the top right-hand corner. We liked this part of the racecourse a lot. Rating: 8/10.
Bookmakers / Betting Facilities: The main bookmakers pitch is situated immediately in front of the Jubilee grandstand on a large concourse area.
The Main Bookmakers Pitch & William Hill Concession – Carlisle Racecourse
On the day of our review, there were around 16 bookies plying their trade. There is also a large William Hill concession on site if that is preferred, along with a plentiful number of Tote outlets located at all points around the course. Overall, it was absolutely no problem to get a bet on and pick up anywhere on the course. Rating: 9/10.
Friendliness of Course Staff: A generous northern welcome was given by the numerous course staff who were available if required. We saw a number of litter pickers and toilet attendants during the day, and the racecourse was very clean and tidy. All of the staff on duty were friendly and helpful. Rating: 9/10.
Pros & Cons: The pricing of the meeting we attended was fair for a card of six low-level races. The parking is excellent. The only issue that could possibly arise is that it is on a field, so in the winter, some vehicles may experience some difficulty getting off, particularly, if there has been heavy rain.
The racecard was a disappointment, but that is pretty standard at most Jockey Club owned courses these days. Charging customers for such a poor product needs to be called out.
The catering was more than adequate. From what we saw, it was decent grub at decent prices. There were no street food vendors or burger vans on-site, but to be fair, the low attendance on the day probably didn’t warrant them.
The overall viewing experience is poor, particularly in the longer races, where the horses literally disappear out of sight for a relatively long period of time. There are plenty of viewing stands, however, only one is covered (the Owners & Trainers stand), so that is probably a bit of a crush when it rains, or in the winter.
The Parade Ring / Winners Enclosure is the jewel in the crown at this racecourse. It was worth our visit just to see it. It is impressive. No issue with the bookmakers, the William Hill concession, or the Tote. Getting a bet on and picking up, is no problem whatsoever.
The staff are very friendly, and the racecourse is kept clean and tidy and well looked after and maintained. Overall, a decent day of racing. However, due to the racecard, viewing issues, and lack of cover, we have deducted a couple of points from our score. Rating: 6/10
Wi-Fi / Internet Connection: Good internet connection via the Jockey Club App. We did experience some issues with the wi-fi in the Red Rum bar, where it was impossible to get a signal, but maybe that was just our phones.
VIP Watch: No VIPs were in attendance on the day of our visit.
Overall Racecourse Advisor Rating: 7.7/10.
The full day's racing results can be found here: https://www.sportinglife.com/racing/meeting/2024-06-10/carlisle/105079
Facilities & Location Layout of Carlisle Racecourse: (Image: credited & acknowledged to The Jockey Club)
Aerial View of Carlisle Racecourse: (Image credited & acknowledged to Google Earth)
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