British Racing and Racecourses
Encyclopedia
British Racing and Racecourses (ISBN 978-0950139722) published in 1971 with a first print run of 10,000, was written by the female
equestrian
writer
, Marion Rose Halpenny
, and was the first book with general all round racecourse information, precise definitions of terms used to describe track surfaces, with plans of all racecourses that had broken completely new ground.
along with a plan of each, but that it had been done by a woman on her own, which in the racing world, especially the Jockey Club
, was still very much male dominated and opposed in many areas to the introduction of women into the sport, let alone writing about it, but it was the first gazetee of its kind for British racing.
and especially the Queen Mother
who both wrote letters expressing their pleasure at receiving copies. The Queen mother’s letter showed she had read it and enjoyed it greatly.
So began the task of collecting the necessary information, sifting through it, selecting items and preparing them for the book. She did all this without knowing it would ever be published and was pleasantly surprised when the first publisher she sent the manuscript to accepted it straight away.
Though met favourably by the media, who liked the lone woman against the establishment angle, male
chauvinists
in the racing world were luke warm and a series of copy cat books, written by men, were quickly published afterwards. The diagrams of the tracks of the racecourses, which were an innovation of Marion Halpenny, were also quickly copied by newspapers and other publications and are still often used and seen in publications today. All came from the book British Racing and Racecourses.
Female
Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male...
equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, Marion Rose Halpenny
Marion Rose Halpenny
Marion Rose Halpenny is an equestrian writer and horsewoman, born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, and known as the Lincolnshire turf authoress, who has written a number of articles and books on racing, but is mainly known for her pioneering book British Racing and Racecourses, which was the first book of...
, and was the first book with general all round racecourse information, precise definitions of terms used to describe track surfaces, with plans of all racecourses that had broken completely new ground.
Ground Breaking
The book, that was a major five year project, was at its time, ground breaking, not only in that it was the first book to have ever been compiled listing all the racecourse of Great BritainGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
along with a plan of each, but that it had been done by a woman on her own, which in the racing world, especially the Jockey Club
Jockey Club
The Jockey Club is the largest commercial organisation in British horseracing. Although no longer responsible for the governance and regulation of the sport, it owns 14 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham and Newmarket, amongst other concerns such as the National Stud and...
, was still very much male dominated and opposed in many areas to the introduction of women into the sport, let alone writing about it, but it was the first gazetee of its kind for British racing.
Royal Letters
The book was well received by both the QueenElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
and especially the Queen Mother
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
who both wrote letters expressing their pleasure at receiving copies. The Queen mother’s letter showed she had read it and enjoyed it greatly.
The Start
The idea for the book came in 1966, when Marion Halpenny was at a race meeting and heard one woman asking another why a certain horse was wearing a nose band, it occurred to her at the time that the majority of people going to meetings knew very little about the details of racing and she thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to put all the information together in a book.So began the task of collecting the necessary information, sifting through it, selecting items and preparing them for the book. She did all this without knowing it would ever be published and was pleasantly surprised when the first publisher she sent the manuscript to accepted it straight away.
Though met favourably by the media, who liked the lone woman against the establishment angle, male
Male
Male refers to the biological sex of an organism, or part of an organism, which produces small mobile gametes, called spermatozoa. Each spermatozoon can fuse with a larger female gamete or ovum, in the process of fertilization...
chauvinists
Chauvinism
Chauvinism, in its original and primary meaning, is an exaggerated, bellicose patriotism and a belief in national superiority and glory. It is an eponym of a possibly fictional French soldier Nicolas Chauvin who was credited with many superhuman feats in the Napoleonic wars.By extension it has come...
in the racing world were luke warm and a series of copy cat books, written by men, were quickly published afterwards. The diagrams of the tracks of the racecourses, which were an innovation of Marion Halpenny, were also quickly copied by newspapers and other publications and are still often used and seen in publications today. All came from the book British Racing and Racecourses.