FINAL preparations were under way at Roscommon racecourse on Friday as manager Michael Finneran and his team had their fingers crossed for some nice weather ahead of their second two-day race meeting of 2016.

With three days racing already under their belt, and six more to come, Michael is praying that the weather gods will be kinder to him than they were at the two-day fixture held in June. Then two races had to be abandoned due to the underfoot conditions, though it should be said that this was something outside of the control of the track officials.

In fact, the jockeys riding were praiseworthy for the track’s management and classic-winning rider Colm O’Donoghue was quoted in The Irish Field: “Everyone has done their best and there is a nice dig in the ground tonight, but the horses just weren’t getting a grip on the ground. It’s just one of those things and it’s unfortunate”.

No one was more disappointed than Michael Finneran, appointed manager in 1998, who has overseen the spending of some €3 million at the racecourse during his time in charge, and last February he was able to tell attendees at the Horse Racing Ireland Future Focus Roadshow about the ambitious five-year plan the course has. On the night the managers of five courses representing tracks in the west and midlands spoke about their hopes.

One very interesting figure to emerge was that these five courses more than hold their own against the rest, accounting for 21% of the total racecourse attendance in Ireland. This is set against the figure of having 13% of fixtures.

At the most recent meeting the new Tote building was officially opened and racegoers voted it a huge improvement and success. The development plan contains a wide range of improvements and capital works, all done to improve the customer experience.

As a nursery for future stars, Roscommon has a record that is second to none, both on the flat and in National Hunt terms. It has seen jumping stars such as Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Imperial Call, Grade 1 winning hurdler Won In The Dark and the top-class The Game Changer hone their racing skills on the picturesque 10-furlong, right-handed circuit.

Even more impressively, the subsequent Group or Grade 1 winning juveniles Again, Wrote and Preseli all raced at Roscommon, as did Ascot’s Group 1 Gold Cup winner Enzeli. More recently, the Irish Oaks runner-up Jack Naylor was sent to Roscommon to open her racing account.

A key element in the success story of racecourses such as Roscommon is that they command local support. This is the foundation on which everything is built and, in addition to local racegoers attending in their thousands, Michael is delighted at this time of the year to welcome visitors from further afield.

On Monday there is the added attraction of a richly endowed best-dressed lady competition, with a €2,000 cash prize courtesy of Super Valu stores in Co Roscommon for the winner, and €100 each to the other nine finalists. Marietta Doran, a keen follower of racing as well as fashion, has the onerous task of picking a winner.

Local support does not stop at the punters paying their way at the turnstiles and Michael is especially pleased with the sponsors that his race meetings attract. Most are from the locality, while the course is also able to garner sponsorship from national and international brands.

Named in honour of the townland where the racecourse is situated, the Listed Lenabane Stakes is the feature flat race of the season at Roscommon and will be contested on Monday, while under National Hunt rules is stages the Grade 3 Kilbegnet Novice Chase at its final meeting of the year.

Whatever the weather, and hopefully it will be good, the future for racing at Roscommon remains bright.