TRAVELLED WELL AND HAS STAMINA

Xander Brett on his successful mission to visit every British racecourse

- XANDER BRETT

A cemetery doesn't make for an encouraging race- course arrival.

Redcar's welcome, however, at the end of the driveway and back in the land of the living, was thankfully more vigorous.

It was jokingly suggested that I should have contacted the commit- tee in advance, informing them that, by sheer circumstance, their venue was to form the final stop on my three-year-odd tour of the race- courses of Great Britain.

Well, strictly speaking, it's three years and the liberty of including Wincanton, somewhere I haven't been since I was tiny, but where I still recall Tony McCoy giving me his autograph.

There's no prize for completing the 59-strong set. If there was, I'd doubt- less be sharing it with numerous other enthusiasts. Still, I felt a certain sense of satisfaction that Wednesday at Redcar, snug in the realisation that I'd traversed the country from south to north and east to west.

I'd initiated the count during my final months at university in Bristol, my racing interest rekindled when I reported from A Plus Tard's Gold Cup for my student radio station. Then reliant only on public transport and still with finals to finish, I headed for the likes of nearby Taunton, Chep- stow and Bath.