🎙️ Welcome to Tailed Off – your go-to podcast for the wonderfully weird world of horse racing! 🏇
This week on Tailed Off, we’re heading trackside with the man who quite literally sets the stage for race day – Windsor’s Clerk of the Course, Charlie Rees.
From growing up racing-mad in Hereford to becoming one of the youngest clerks in the country, Charlie lifts the lid on what his job involves – and it’s a lot more than “sticking a fork in the ground.”
He breaks down:
✨ What a Clerk of the Course really does – from race planning to ground management and dealing with trainers, jockeys & the BHA
✨ How the “going” is decided, what the going stick really measures, and why the 0–15 scale can be so confusing to racegoers
✨ The unseen graft behind race days at Windsor – 5:45am starts, weather calls, course walks, safety checks & stewarding
✨ The two-year journey to bring jump racing back to Windsor, the controversial “kidney bean” layout, and how it evolved back to the iconic figure-of-eight
✨ Fixture fights, prize money pressures and how racecourses jostle for the best dates and runners
✨ Charlie’s path from trainee to lead clerk, his advice for anyone wanting to work in racing, and what he’d change about the sport
If you’ve ever looked at a going report, moaned about a rail move, or wondered what really happens behind the scenes before the first horse goes to post… this one’s right up your street. 🏇
🎧 Listen now — and get ready to see horse racing in a whole new light.
Watch the video here: https://yt.openinapp.co/nvvmf or
On our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TailedOff
Listen to us on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1t4D1JFdqDtq7UDWS27ZX4?si=QKUzJyRsQwKMyoAAP5kf8Q
Or Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/tailed-off-podcast/id1790641086
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Horse Racing and Clerk of the Course
02:02 Understanding the Role of Clerk of the Course
04:01 The Science of Going and Ground Conditions
09:31 Race Day Preparations and Responsibilities
16:23 Fixture Planning and Coordination
19:44 Challenges in the Racing Industry
21:02 A Day in the Life of a Clerk of the Course
25:06 The Focus of a Clerk on Race Day
25:49 Analyzing Race Conditions and Course Safety
28:01 Designing Race Courses: Rules and Flexibility
29:44 Charlie Rees: A Journey into Racing
31:22 Transitioning from Turf to All-Weather Racing
33:34 Aspiring to Lead: Charlie's Clerk Journey
35:42 The Return of Jumps at Windsor
37:27 Planning and Approval for Jump Racing
39:06 Redesigning the Course for Jump Racing
42:41 Feedback and Improvement in Racing
44:23 Observations on Race Dynamics
46:27 Quickfire Questions with Charlie Rees
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