Cork Student raceday Cork Racecourse near Mallow will host their first student raceday tomorrow evening with the first of six races on an all National Hunt card getting underway at 4.25pm. The southern track has put together a great package for students which includes a bus to and from Cork city, entrance to the racecourse with a racecard, tipster and also music after racing all for the cost of just €8. Marketing manager Mary Kelly said: “The €8 charge will apply to all racegoers, and we have been getting a great reaction on facebook to the meeting. We are hoping to get about 500 students tomorrow.” “The student raceday at Limerick has built up into a great success over time, and they had a fantastic crowd last year which was their fifth year running the event. It takes a few years to really take off. We will have buses going from CIT and UCC, and the Young Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association are running a racecard competition with a Ticketmaster voucher for €250,” added Ms Kelly. She added: “UCC used to have a racing club, and are hoping that interest in this student raceday will help spark enough enthusiasm to get another one up and running. We all have to do our bit to help a new generation of people to come racing” Plans for the Easter Festival meeting, which runs from April 23-25, are going well with “loads of bookings” reported by Ms Kelly for the three-day ticket at €30. “Last year was the first time we got together with Mallow town to organise a Festival over the Easter weekend, and our crowds were up over 20%. We launched a marketing campaign for the Easter meeting this week, and have got great coverage both locally and nationally.” Meanwhile the going at the track is currently yielding (yielding to soft in places) following 5mm of rain last night. There is good drying at the track today, with the possibility of a further 5mm of rain tonight.
