55 Years and Counting

When George Ash first joined the Lingfield Park groundstaff team in October 1967 he thought it was a job he might do for “a couple of years”. Fast forward 55 years to 2022 and George has become a vital member of the Lingfield Park team, helping them to maintain their flat turf, jump and all-weather tracks and deliver over 80 fixtures per year.

In this article for #GroundsWeek George details the biggest changes he’s seen in turf management, the most rewarding moments of his career so far and what he enjoys most about being groundstaff.

George out on track at Lingfield Park where he has been a part of the team since 1967

There have been many changes at Lingfield Park since George first started. In 1989 they opened a new Equitrack all-weather racetrack, the first of its kind in Britain. In 2001 this surface was upgraded to Polytrack, a change that Ash was pleased to see and that got good feedback from owners, trainers and jockeys alike.

The Polytrack all-weather track at Lingfield Park, home to the Group 3 Winter Derby

What are the biggest changes you’ve seen since you started in the industry?

“In terms of turf management the biggest change I’ve seen is how much the rail is moved now. When I started in the sport the railing was connected to concrete posts, it couldn’t be moved even if we wanted to.”

Rail movements are now regularly used by groundstaff to allow the track to recover and provide fresh racing ground.

George also highlighted advancements that have been made in terms of horse welfare, including the use of screens to help keep a calm environment around a horse that’s being seen to by the vets.

“We managed to clear the track and make it safe to race with just 20 minutes to spare!”

What have been some of the most rewarding moments of your career so far?

“It’s always rewarding seeing the all-weather and grass tracks in pristine condition and ready to race.

“It can be difficult to do this at times, when the Beast from the East hit in 2018 we had to work through the night to keep the all-weather track raceable, but we did it and managed to get the fixture on.

“Another time when it had snowed we managed to clear the track and make it safe to race with just 20 minutes to spare!”

Ash and the team are known to have worked through the night in order to get the racing on

You can find out more about #GroundsWeek here.