Best Turned Out jumping yard in 2012?

Stable Staff in National Hunt yards will be vying for £1,600 in prize money during 2012 thanks to a new Best Turned Out (BTO) series organised by Racing Welfare and sponsored by EPDS racing.

One racecourse per month will be carrying a race on their card as an “EPDS- Racing Welfare BTO series” qualifier. The groom who leads up the horse judged Best Turned Out in that race will receive £50 in cash plus an ‘EPDS-Racing Welfare BTO series’ Gilet. Their yard then goes onto a league table with the finale being held at the Racing Welfare Charity race day at Wincanton on December 6th where the yard with the largest number of BTO series points will receive a perpetual trophy and £1,000 cash prize to be shared between the staff. To help prevent a tie the judges in each of the series races will award 15 points for a BTO, 10 for second best and 5 for third!

The series starts at Huntingdon Races on the 27th January 2012.

Richard Negus Fundraising and Communications Executive for Racing Welfare was enthusiastic about the new series “Winning a Best Turned Out is always popular with trainers, staff and owners alike. With prizes of £1,000 for the winning yard and £600 for individual grooms up for grabs thanks to EPDS racing there is fair incentive to make sure those plaits are straight! We believe that this is the first time that such a series has taken place and we are indebted to EPDS and the 12 racecourses who are helping us highlight the hard work undertaken by all racing staff in getting a racehorse to look a million dollars at the races”

The sponsors EPDS Racing provide an affordable and ethical way to enjoy the experience of owning a racehorse. They are also keen to encourage the next generation of racehorse owners and offer a discounted membership to their Racing Club for everyone under the age of 25.

The ethical approach covers the whole of their involvement in the sport. They are  committed to a happy and healthy environment for all their horses, including plenty of turn out and a guaranteed re-homing/retraining policy for the end of their racing careers. The EPDS ethos also carries on to the human element in racing by supporting the work of Racing Welfare in improving the lives of stable staff, past and present via direct donations from each Racing Club membership fee and the backing of the Best Turned Out Series.”

The EPDS- Racing Welfare BTO Series is administered and organised by Racing Welfare and sponsored by EPDS Racing. The Series races dates and locations are below:

Huntingdon – January 27th
Warwick – February 11th
Carlisle – March 18th
Ludlow – April 5th
Fakenham – May 27th
Stratford – June 2nd
Worcester – July 31st
Bangor on Dee – August 31st
Market Rasen – September 29th
Fontwell – October 6th
Wetherby – November 17th
Wincanton – December 6

Make sure you follow Racing Welfare on Twitter @Racingwelfare and EPDS Racing @EPDS_Racing!