TWO MEETINGS RAINED OFF Towcester today lost its third straight meeting to waterlogging. An inspection this morning found the track was unfit for racing and led to the abandonment of tomorrow`s scheduled fixture.The card had survived an earlier inspection yesterday afternoon but clerk of the course Hugo Bevan said: 'We had half an inch of rain overnight and it is still raining.'It is absolutely saturated, completely waterlogged.'We haven`t had a lot of luck here as this is the third meeting in a row we have lost and the fourth in all this season.'Towcester`s most significant loss was its Boxing Day fixture, which it had paid a reported #450,000 to buy form Newton Abbot.Northern racegoers lost out again today with the abandonment of racing at Sedgefield. But after frost put paid to fixtures at Catterick and Musselburgh earlier this week, it was waterlogging which forced the latest abandonment.After an early-morning inspection of the track, Sedgefield clerk of the course James Hutchinson said: 'Unfortunately the meeting has been abandoned.'We didn`t have a lot of rain overnight, just about 4mm. But it was very wet to begin with and some parts of the course are waterlogged.'A total of 56 jumps meetings have now been lost this season, 20 since Christmas. - PA
