Cheltz Fest 2021 Behind Closed Doors ?

[Lobos]

We live in hope..........

Pressed again on a timeframe for easing restrictions, Mr Gove said: "We will keep these constantly under review but you are absolutely right, we can't predict with certainty that we will be able to lift restrictions in the week commencing February 15-22.

"What we will be doing is everything that we can to make sure that as many people as possible are vaccinated, so that we can begin to progressively lift restrictions.

"I think it is right to say that as we enter March we should be able to lift some of these restrictions but not necessarily all."

[Craigy14]

We live in hope..........

Pressed again on a timeframe for easing restrictions, Mr Gove said: "We will keep these constantly under review but you are absolutely right, we can't predict with certainty that we will be able to lift restrictions in the week commencing February 15-22.

"What we will be doing is everything that we can to make sure that as many people as possible are vaccinated, so that we can begin to progressively lift restrictions.

"I think it is right to say that as we enter March we should be able to lift some of these restrictions but not necessarily all."

Lobos, it ain’t going to happen mate.

Move on.

[Lobos]

Lobos, it ain’t going to happen mate.

Move on.

I ain't giving up on this one. Never say never.

[Outlaw]

Every single deadline/target has failed miserably thus far... how anyone can be optimistic for March is baffling.

[Lobos]

Every single deadline/target has failed miserably thus far... how anyone can be optimistic for March is baffling.

One of the main reasons for Lockdown is to give them breathing space and chance to meet this vaccine deadline. Staff are being pulled from hospitals to help with jabs so the lockdown was essential at this time. It will be a massive ask but it's possible they can get all vaccinated within the timeframe. If that happens then there is no justification at all in keeping things shut.

[Saxon Warrior]

Cheltenham will have to decide on plans for Festival crowds well before March, that is one reason there wont be any, along with it not being financially beneficial to have a thousand or two in there.

[Parachute Paddy]

Reported in the Times Ian Renton said:

“We will soon have to be wholly realistic and accept that at the very best very small numbers will be present.”

“At the very least I would hope that we can have owners present and hopefully getting back to the days of December where we had a crowd totalling 2,000 people on each of those days. That is the sort of expectation we’re currently looking at.”

Few negative Nigels need to cheer up a bit.

[Saxon Warrior]

Reported in the Times Ian Renton said:

“We will soon have to be wholly realistic and accept that at the very best very small numbers will be present.”

“At the very least I would hope that we can have owners present and hopefully getting back to the days of December where we had a crowd totalling 2,000 people on each of those days. That is the sort of expectation we’re currently looking at.”

Few negative Nigels need to cheer up a bit.

His Nick Luck interview on the Podcast yesterday, suggested they would make a decision in the next week or two.

That was before the Lockdown news.

[Istabraq]

Cheltenham will have to decide on plans for Festival crowds well before March, that is one reason there wont be any, along with it not being financially beneficial to have a thousand or two in there.

Can’t agree there SW, the refunds due back to members are significant, ?75 per day or thereabouts so even having 2,000 members attend saves them refunding ?600k plus the contractual refunds on outsourced caterers etc.
My guess is they can make arrangements and undertake all logistical tasks from a week out, so I’d see the deadline as 10 March or thereabouts, I’m sure they’ll leave that decision at late as they possibly can and we know BHA are in constant discussions with government.
Like Lobos I won’t lose all hope until a statement is made but obviously accept the challenges involved...

[Parachute Paddy]

His Nick Luck interview on the Podcast yesterday, suggested they would make a decision in the next week or two.

That was before the Lockdown news.

It felt like most people knew there would be a lockdown in January anyway. I would be surprised if Renton hadn’t already considered this in his forecasts.

I view this lockdown as a good thing for festival attendance. It boosts the chances of going if anything.

[Saxon Warrior]

It felt like most people knew there would be a lockdown in January anyway. I would be surprised if Renton hadn’t already considered this in his forecasts.

I view this lockdown as a good thing for festival attendance. It boosts the chances of going if anything.

You should get a good price on that, at some point as well.

Cane the bookies and get to go to the Fez, is blue-sky thinking. I applaud it.

[Saxon Warrior]

Can’t agree there SW, the refunds due back to members are significant, ?75 per day or thereabouts so even having 2,000 members attend saves them refunding ?600k plus the contractual refunds on outsourced caterers etc.
My guess is they can make arrangements and undertake all logistical tasks from a week out, so I’d see the deadline as 10 March or thereabouts, I’m sure they’ll leave that decision at late as they possibly can and we know BHA are in constant discussions with government.
Like Lobos I won’t lose all hope until a statement is made but obviously accept the challenges involved...

I hope you are right.

Ian Renton has talked all along about having insurance, and mentioned it again yesterday. What that insurance actually covers may affect their thinking on whether to wait longer on crowds.

[Istabraq]

I hope you are right.

Ian Renton has talked all along about having insurance, and mentioned it again yesterday. What that insurance actually covers may affect their thinking on whether to wait longer on crowds.

Really ? I hadn’t heard that.
I knew Ascot had insurance and went on record in the Summer as saying the financial impact on them has been minimal but it would be fantastic news if many other courses have too....

[Parachute Paddy]

I hope you are right.

Ian Renton has talked all along about having insurance, and mentioned it again yesterday. What that insurance actually covers may affect their thinking on whether to wait longer on crowds.

That’s a fair point and we have no idea what any insurance policy is contingent on. I would say that it must make commercial sense for them to have allowed 2k in December, otherwise why would they have done this is. Unless it was just an act of goodwill to fans.

I can’t see there being much additional cost to the racecourse for letting fans stand in the enclosures come March. I wasn’t able to go in December, did they open the Best Mate enclosure at all?

[robith]

Track and Trace is a useless concept, outside of assisting in the early/low numbers stage of the virus.

OR

In a Country like China or South Korea where they control their people in harsher ways than is accepted here.

The expectations for test & trace in this country or any European country were over-the-top, and a political nightmare.

Not forgetting that a lot of people took no notice of self-isolating on return from holidays or if they got a call from track & trace.

its a Dodo concept once the virus takes hold.

Sorry Saxon, but that's demonstrably untrue. It is proven across multiple countries on multiple viruses to work.

But what it requires is government effort and people to obey instructions, which is where we really come unstuck. They didn't even put the data in a proper database.

That and we spent the summer paying people to go to restaurants.

The money spent on it was wasted because it was given out to the govt's mates with no oversight

Edit: quickly re your point on travellers, it's a public health emergency. you make them obey. My sister lives in Canada and came home for a month cos my dad is really unwell from his chemo. When she got back to Canada, she was detained whilst she was tested, informed she had to quarantine under threat of a $1m fine or 10 years in prison. She was called by the police every day and they even came to her apartment one day to check she was in.

Needless to say, at Heathrow she wasn't even tested, allowed to get off the plane and straight on the tube. If she didn't have the diligence to have booked somewhere to isolate she'd have been allowed to enter the country and do what she wanted.