This is the race of a life time for many. The Grand National is what all race horse owners and jockeys aspire to. It is a three day event (the festivities) with the race at the Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool, which is typically held on a Saturday in early April. The race has been being run since 1939, and the lucky winner that year was a horse by the name of Lottery.

Horses start being trained as young colts to be a possible Grand National competitor. The horse will have been in other competitions and done well. The horse has to be able to run the difficult course at the Grand National. There is much training and a buildup of trust between trainer, jockey and horse. This race has 16 jumps on a 4.5 mile track, and there are 32 jumps all together that they must be able to make.

There are drop fences where the horses land on the other side of the fence and it is lower than the side where they jumped from, so the horse is moving toward the fence and does not know about this until he is in the air. There are fences where the landing side is higher than on the side from which they take off, and this is a test of the horse’s abilities.

About halfway through the race course is an ominous looking fence with a 90 degree turn after the jump; this also tests a horse and riders abilities to stay on stride. The final leg of the 4.5 mile run is a long run in to the finish line. This is when the horses are already tired from the vigorous course that they have just run.

This is an extremely difficult course for the horses and their jockeys. The horse is exercised and in his best weight and shape, and the jockey also must maintain his weight and strength. With this course being 4.5 miles strength and endurance is tested. The painstaking jumps on this race course take a toll on both the horse and jockey. This race is why they have worked and trained so hard. Six Hundred million people watch this race annually.

There are some good old stories and tales about the Grand National that include when the 1st race actually was, some say it was in 1837, while others disagree, and during the war they had to close the course and the race was held at Gatwick Racecourse, on the site of the current Gatwick Airport.

There have been many records set at this racetrack in Liverpool like the oldest winning horse at age 15, the youngest winning jockey at age 17, and fastest winning time at 8m 47.8s, Mr. Frisk in 1990. There are many great stats and stories about this race and track. The most winning horse was Red Rum who won 3 races in 1973, 1974, and 1977.

As with most horse races there is a big purse to win here, one of the largest. This is a big race for the horse, jockey, and the owner. The spectators also can make some money by making a few well made bets on their favorite horses.

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