Morning gallop at the Happy Valley Racecourse, 1975

Running on the sand track at the Happy Valley Racecourse, those steeds were not in competition but training. It was long tradition to have gallop training on a mud track in Happy Valley. The track was converted into a sound going sand track in 1925. In the old days, members rode their horses during exercise, so there was an old custom to provide morning coffee for riders’ subscriptions. Apart from stablemen, railbirds, touts and racing reporters would arrive at the racecourse to watch the gallops at dawn.