Royal Ascot 2009 - Facts & Stats |
Champagne is traditionally the tipple of choice at the Royal Meeting with 60,000 bottles drunk in 2008. The Ascot English Tea includes Strawberry Scones with Devon Cream, Carrot and Walnut Cake, Macaroons and classic Cucumber & Mint and Egg & Cress Sandwiches. In 2008 racegoers consumed 300kg of clotted cream, 40,000 scones and 40,000 rounds of afternoon tea sandwiches! 170 tonnes of ice are used in drinks during the week. In 2008 the following were consumed over the five days: 1,500 lobsters; 1,000 kilos of fillet of beef; 2,500 kilos of beef sirloin; 2,500 whole sides of fresh salmon fillet; 500 kilos of organic smoked salmon; 4,500 Cornish crabs; 4,500 Loch Fyne Oysters; 2,800 Scallops; 8,000 Asparagus Spears; 11,500 punnets of strawberries. Pimms O’clock – 8,300 bottles of Pimms were consumed last year! Over 11 varieties and 50,000 bread rolls and bread sticks are served during Royal Ascot. Four tonnes of fresh fruit will be served in a variety of drinks including 1.5 tonnes of limes and 1.5 tonnes of lemons! - - - - - 14 big screens will be on site during Royal Ascot, the biggest being 100 square metres. 700 bales of shavings and 500 bales of paper are used for stable bedding over the week. There are 13,398 car parking spaces at Ascot over 10 Car Parks. There are 2,400 cleaners working on a 24 hour cycle during the week. - - - - - Since Queen Anne founded Ascot Racecourse back in 1711, a further 11 Monarchs have acceded to the British throne. - - - - - It was Queen Anne who first saw the potential for a racecourse at Ascot, which in those days
was called East Cote. Whilst out riding in 1711, she came upon an area of open heath, not far
from Windsor Castle, that looked an ideal place for “horses to gallop at full stretch.” The first race meeting ever held at Ascot took place on Saturday 11th August 1711. Her
Majesty’s Plate, worth 100 guineas and open to any horse, mare or gelding over the age of six,
was the inaugural event. Each horse was required to carry a weight of 12st and seven runners Gold Cup Day is the third day of Royal Ascot and is traditionally the busiest day of the week. Although you won’t find it in any marketing or promotional literature, it is colloquially known as Ladies’ Day.
The Gold Cup is Ascot’s oldest surviving race, and the winning owners receive a gold trophy
which becomes their property. Perpetual Trophies are only awarded for three races at the
Royal Meeting, the other two being the Queen’s Vase, inaugurated in 1838 to commemorate It was at around the time of the first running of the Gold Cup that the roots of today’s
traditional Royal Enclosure dress code emerged. Beau Brummell, a close friend of the Prince Regent, decreed that men of elegance should wear
waisted black coats and white cravats with pantaloons. Over the years, this has evolved into
the wearing of morning suits and equally formal clothes for ladies, who must wear hats. Although a Royal Stand dates back to the 1790s, the Royal Enclosure that current regulars are
used to at Ascot was born in 1845 when King George IV commissioned a two storey
stand to
be built with a surrounding lawn. Access was by invitation of the King. In 1825, the Royal Procession as an annual tradition began. The King, leading four other coaches with members of the Royal party, drove up the centre of the racecourse in front of the crowds and this has continued to the present day. Ascot’s much loved tradition of “singing round the bandstand” or “community / traditional singing” began in the 1970’s under the stewardship of Lady Beaumont, wife of the then Clerk of the Course, Captain Sir Nicholas Beaumont. The now unmissable sing song of British favourites and flag waving after racing was an immediate success with thousands of racegoers staying on and making it an integral part of their day. Now, traditional singing is listed as part of the day’s formal proceedings in the racecard and song books and flags are handed round.
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