| Title | : | World Racecourses |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0008284970 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780008284978 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 256 |
| Publication | : | Published January 1, 2019 |
The book features each track in regional order, starting with the famous Epson Downs course in England then taking in renowned locations such as Churchill Downs, Royal Ascot and Flemington Racecourse, all the way up to the state-of-the-art Meydan Racecouse in Dubai.
More unusual and lesser known courses are also featured including the Pardubicka in Czech Republic, St Moritz in Switzerland and Ngong in Kenya.
Each course is accompanied by an array of statistics and the latest photographs from these scenic venues. It also features alphabetical and by country’ indices for ease of reference.
World Racecourses Reviews
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I'm not much of a horse racing fan but I thought this might be a good book to look at.
Inside are "one hundred of the most significant, historic and unusual tracks... These places illustrate the fascinating history of racing and of its colourful and vibrant presence throughout the world"
The courses are arranged by continent then alphabetically by country. Each course has the name of the venue, its country (including a jockey shirt with the flag of that country), its location, some info on the track, principle races held there, the year the track was opened and famous moments seen there. Then there is some main text and sometimes a photo or multiple photos of the venue typically showing horses racing there. Some, e.g. Aintree and Ascot, also have diagrams showing the course layout with fences and so on. There is also a map of the continent at the beginning of each chapter pinpointing the tracks that feature, including a world "racecourse locator map" at the beginning of the book with all the 100 courses.
The text is informative, as you would expect given the author is the BBC's racing correspondent. The photos are also very nice (taken by professional photographers), especially the double-page spreads where horses and/or courses can be seen in all their glory. I can't comment on the 100 courses picked and whether others should have featured instead but overall the package is a beautiful looking, hardback book with lots of nice, full-colour imagery and a sufficient amount of info on racecourses around the world that fans will surely love.
