Gales Delay Seasons Race At Cheltenham

In a dramatic turn of events, gale force winds caused the cancellation of day two of the world renowned Cheltenham Festival – the day scheduled for the running of the Seasons Queen Mother Champion Chase, due to be attended by a number of Seasons competition winners.

This meant that for the first time in its 49 year history, the thrilling two mile national hunt race had to be re-scheduled for the following day, Thursday March15th, along with other races. This resulted in an unprecedented number of 10 races being run on that day, over a period of some six hours.

The National Hunt Two-Mile Champion Chase was first run in 1959 and the Queen Mother’s name was added to the race title in 1980, the year of her 80th birthday. The event has produced some great winners and some great Festival memories, including some of the most incredibly exciting finishes in the history of the sport.

Peter McNeile, Director of Sponsorship for Cheltenham Racecourse, sent Insight his following personal report of the 2008 Chase:

“Trainer Paul Nicholls and Jockey Ruby Walsh had to wait until the 10th race of the Cheltenham Festival to register a victory but did so in stunning fashion, as Master Minded ran away with the Seasons Holidays Queen Mother Champion Chase.

“Carrying the Kauto Star colours of owner Clive Smith, the five-year-old shone like a beacon throughout the two-mile showpiece at Prestbury Park. And the breathtaking manner of his win was a special present for Nicholls’ wife Georgie, who was celebrating her 32nd birthday.

“The winner’s outstanding performance puts him in line to be compared to the two mile greats like Badsworth Boy and Pearlyman, dual winners of the race in the eighties and nineties.

“Despite the high winds forcing the abandonment of Wednesday’s card, and the re-scheduling of the lost races on to the following two days, the Festival got back on track with some breathtaking performances all round, headed up by Master Minded, Inglis Drever’s third win in the Ladbrokes World Hurdle, and Denman’s eclipse of Kauto Star in the Totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup.”

Results, video and reports can be found on www.cheltenham.co.uk.


SUCCESSFUL MARKETING RESULTS
Group Marketing Director Leslie McCann stated that he is delighted with the success of Seasons sponsorship of the prestigious race as part of raising the company’s corporate profile, both in the UK and worldwide.

“As a result of tens of thousands of potential customers being exposed to the race and its accompanying publicity since last year’s initial sponsorship, independent research has confirmed that the name Seasons has been mentioned far more often this year than last. I am convinced that this exercise has contributed to enhancing Seasons’ reputation in an ethical and professional way and that this in turn has benefited our existing owners by giving them an enhanced sense of pride in the company.”

He went on to confirm that the race sponsorship is part of Seasons marketing budget and that no management fee income is used to support what is essentially an exercise designed to promote the creation of new business.

Commenting on the unusual circumstances of the 2008 Cheltenham Festival, he said: “Whilst we were disappointed that the original race date was cancelled, members will be aware of the resulting huge amount of additional national news coverage for the Seasons brand name, when it was mentioned many times on the major news bulletins.

“We were also very sorry that those prizewinners who won a day out to watch the race were not able to attend. These included entrants via Channel 4, ITV West, the Western Daily Press, and Seasons website. However, arrangements are in place for them to attend next year’s Festival and we shall look forward to sharing the excitement of attending next year’s Chase then.”