Ripon Racecourse will be hosting the first post-lockdown Ladies’ Day in the UK this week.

Races will take place on Wednesday (16th June) and Thursday (17th June) with prizes handed out to the ‘Best Dressed Lady’ and the ‘Best Hat’.

The racecourse will also be welcoming local female vocalists The Cherrytones for some pre-racing music.

And Jonathan Mullin of the Ripon Race Company is looking ahead to the event which he describes as one of the ‘highlights of the season’.

He said:

“It’s been a tough year for everybody and racing behind closed doors has been a means to an end, but Yorkshire’s Garden Racecourse is not designed to be empty! It’s been great to finally have racegoers back at our last two meetings and we’ve had some really positive feedback from those.

“Ladies’ Day is always one of the highlights of our season and we wanted to keep it in its traditional slot, coinciding with Royal Ascot. There was some discussion about finding a different date for it but we decided to be positive and give people something to look forward to sooner rather than later.”

The event at Ripon Races is the first post-lockdown ladies event in the UK.

Ripon Races have teamed up with local businesses to offer a number of prizes to ladies attending the event.

The winner of the Best Hat competition will win a prize from Harrogate-based Milliner Jenny Roberts, whilst the Best Dressed Lady will win an overnight stay at luxury Ripon hotel Grantley Hall and a £500 for The Secret Spa in Bedale.

Jonathan added:

“It goes without saying that we will be adhering to the rules and restrictions in place, but we’re very hopeful that we can put on a great day of racing with a touch of glamour, despite circumstances not being ideal.”

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