Increased support from leading-brand companies is further endorsement of British point-to-pointing ahead of the new season which opens in November. At a sponsors’ gathering and season’s launch at Cheltenham today it was revealed that Skinner’s Pet Foods, which has a network of stockists around the UK, is backing 22 ladies’ open races. That is an increase of two, culminating in a prestigious hunters’ chase final at Stratford in May. The first two home in the Goodman Nash Mixed Open at the Avon Vale will qualify for the Skinner's Final. Skinner’s is also sponsoring the national women riders’ title. Frontline construction company JRL Group Ltd is ramping up its backing for the sport’s point
Retired soldier Peter Wright will look to rally the troops once he begins his role as Chief Executive of the Point-to-Point Authority this Autumn. Peter, who lives a stone’s throw from the PPA Swindon office in nearby Highworth, will be the third person to hold the role since the PPA’s creation in 2008. As a Lieutenant Colonel, Peter spent much of his previous career working in or on Africa, including time in Somalia, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. During that period he acquired a wealth of experience and skills that look set to serve him well in his new career, including strategic analysis, planning and diplomacy. A lifelong pointing enthusiast, Peter has acted as Clerk of Course at Larkh
British Point-to-Pointing’s latest fixtures list reveals there will be 173 meetings at 100 locations around the United Kingdom in the coming season – and an increased emphasis on early-season meetings. The release of the 2018/19 list, which was ratified by the British Horseracing Authority on Friday, confirms the earliest commencement to a British season will take place at the former Jump racing venue of Buckfastleigh in Devon on Sunday, November 18. A total of 14 meetings have been scheduled before the end of the year, a 75 per cent increase on the eight pre-New Year fixtures held last season. The annual Avon Vale Races will remain in the final weekend of March, scheduled for Saturday March
