Fakeham Racecourse is situated 11 miles inland from the seaside town of Wells-next-the-Sea on the north Norfolk coast. National Hunt racing first took place on the course, in its current location, in 1905 after the West Norfolk Hunt transferred its race meeting from East Winch, near King’s Lynn, 20 miles to the west. The number of fixtures staged at Fakenham gradually increased over the years, particularly under the auspices of Fakenham Racecourse Ltd, formed in 1965, to the eleven currently held annually. HRH The Prince of Wales officially opened a new members’ stand at the course in 2002.
Course Characteristics
Fakenham is left-handed, sharp, undulating square, barely a mile around. There are six, fairly stiff fences, or four flights of hurdles, per circuit and a run-in of 250 yards. The undulations, tight turns and short back and home straights favour handy, front-running types rather than out-and-out gallopers.
Track Facts
Grand National winning jockey Bob Champion visited Fakenham in May 2010 as part of his charity ride to all sixty racecourses that existed in England, Scotland and Wales at that time in as many days.
One of the peculiarities of Fakenham is that in hurdle races over three miles the last flight is jumped four times in total. Numerous jockeys, including experienced jockeys, have been banned for taking the wrong course at Fakenham over the years.
In her hundredth year, in 2000, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother visited Fakenham, only for racing to be abandoned because of bad weather.