town of punches

It’s my birthday, and I have both today and the Bank Holiday Monday off. Today I considered going to the Punchestown Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival, but the weather is atrocious, making it hard for me to justify the €12 bus fare and the €35 entrance fee, just to walk around in the rain. I enjoy getting out on to the course if I go to the races, but Kempton Park near London is the only course I’ve been to so far where that’s really possible. Last time I was at Kempton, I walked around the whole course, being at the start of most of the races with my camera, chatting with the TV crew. From what I’ve seen of Punchestown on TV, the course appears to be totally open, with a small crowd at every fence, so I must try later in the year, when the Chase season starts again.