Aintree Drying Up With virtually no rain on Sunday night and a dry day on Monday, the ground at Aintree, where the John Smith´s Grand National meeting starts on Thursday, has dried out slightly.Clerk of the course Andrew Tulloch, having walked around with Jockey Club inspectors and former jockeys Ron Barry and Peter Hobbs at noon, described the Aintree turf as 'in top order' and changed the official going on the Grand National course to GOOD TO SOFT - GOOD in places,while on both the Mildmay and Hurdles courses it is now described as GOOD - GOOD TO SOFT in places.Tulloch said: 'The forecast for the week is showers with spells of sunshine, with the possibility of longer periods of rain on Tuesday and early Wednesday.'However, the Met Office predict that the rain will give way to occasional showers in the second half of Wednesday, and that the meeting could well start on Thursday with sunny spells, and Friday, which features the hugely popular ´Best Dressed Racegoer´ award, should be dry and sunny.
