NEXT Thursday sees the opening day of the 2019 Leopardstown Christmas Festival. It is a meeting that I grew up with as a child, helping my father [John] who was track foreman in those days. Since inheriting that role from him over 30 years ago, I am responsible for ensuring that the track is in prime condition come race day.

Coming from a family of five, I essentially grew up on the racecourse. In those days, a number of families lived on site here. There was a family close to the front gate, one at the Foxrock Village entrance and another at the rear of the enclosure.