Returning to the racecourse on Saturday, I initially took the blue sky and sunshine to indicate that the weather was not going to live up to the Met Office forecast. The dramatic shadows cast on Cleeve Hill by the gathering clouds suggested otherwise:
I was determined to work more expansively on Saturday, but in the end the weather had the final say, as I was forced, along with most people, to seek shelter under the stands. I was in the Best Mate stand on Saturday - the cheap tickets but a great view of the course and a different atmosphere. When it started to rain up went the umbrellas over the bookmakers' joints:
Racing continued despite the weather, but even this had to stop as the entire course disappeared under a grey cloud of driving rain and spray. A clap of thunder and a single bolt of lightning came down from the sky - probably somewhere over Gloucester, but from where I was looking, right behind the Grandstand:
With the horses spooked and the course invisible, there was nothing to draw but the spectators on either side of me, staring out into the gloom:
The rain did eventually die down and the punters were happy to escape, mill around and splash in some puddles:
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