This film was made by Farmer Norman Stephenson, who lived close to the racecourse at Arras Farm. Kiplingcotes is situated near Market Weighton, a town in the East Ridings of Yorkshire. The Kiplingcotes Derby is widely regarded as being England’s oldest flat racecourse, the first recorded race taking place in 1519 and the 497th race was held 17th March 2016, with no signs of stopping any time soon.  Kiplingcotes is unusual for many reasons, with lots of quirky traditions that are still...

This film was made by Farmer Norman Stephenson, who lived close to the racecourse at Arras Farm. Kiplingcotes is situated near Market Weighton, a town in the East Ridings of Yorkshire. The Kiplingcotes Derby is widely regarded as being England’s oldest flat racecourse, the first recorded race taking place in 1519 and the 497th race was held 17th March 2016, with no signs of stopping any time soon. 

Kiplingcotes is unusual for many reasons, with lots of quirky traditions that are still adhered to today. The race is open to any rider 10 stone or over, those weighing less must carry stones to make the weight up. Horses of any age are welcome. The racecourse is four miles long, starting at the village of Etton and finishing at Londesborough Wold Farm. The race always takes place on the third Thursday in March, one of the many traditions that surround the derby. The winner of the race receives interest accrued on the £365 fund (£50) which was set up by a nobleman in 1619; however, the second place prize is all the entry fees from the other riders, which usually comes out as more money than the first prize!

Another strange tradition of the race is that if any year is missed, the derby must cease forever. Astonishingly, a race has never been missed, thanks to a few plucky riders. Mr Stephenson set out in heavy snow in 1947 to ride his horse along the 4 mile course. He was the only rider that year, and the only spectator was Harry Ruston, clerk of the course.  In 2001, a Ken Holmes rode the course despite health fears from the recent foot-and-mouth outbreak.  Another aspect to this race that makes it so unusual is its location, not part of any community in particular, with no facilities or grandstand. 2012 was the first year a bookmaker was present to take bets. There are no formal entry rules either; anyone can race as long as they enter before 11am on the day of the race itself. 

Horse racing has been extremely popular on our shores for hundreds of years, and is the second largest spectator sport in the country today, after football. Like a lot of things, horseracing was first introduced in Britain by the Romans. By the 10th century, the sport had become very popular and winning racehorses became very valuable and were popular gifts for royalty. Henry VIII and Charles I set breeding laws for racehorses and standardised rules, furthering the popularity of the sport. In the 18th century, horseracing became the first standardised sport in Britain, with the formation of the Jockey Club. Before this, races would usually only have two horses competing, and the courses would be a lot shorter than seen today. Technology advanced and allowed the sport to flourish in the 20th century, with photo finishes introduced in 1947 and starting stalls in 1965, and of course the biggest racing events such as The Grand National would now be televised and be accessible by millions. The arrival of bookmakers into the sport forced the Jockey Club to incur stricter standards to ensure quality and longevity, and shaped the sport into what we know and love today.

References:

Collins, Tony, Martin, John & Vamplew, Wray, Encyclopaedia of Traditional British Rural Sports, Routledge, 2013.

Hobson, Jeremy, Curious Country Customs, David & Charles, 2007.

Peach, Howard, Curious Tales of East Yorkshire, Sigma Press, 2010.

http://www.greatbritishracing.com/about-great-british-racing/the-history-of-great-british-racing/#64QWtDbYLI1SBVEq.97

http://www.racinguk.com/about-us/horseracing-history