Earliest meeting: Wednesday 27th September 1922
Final meeting: September 1925
The North Devon racecourse of Shebberton, situated along the Abbotsham valley near to Cornborough, was 1 ¼ miles in circumference, with racing organised by Mr Skidmore-Ashby. The earliest record of racing was on Wednesday 27th September 1922 when the card consisted of pony and Galloway races. On Monday 6th August 1923 a meeting took place specifically for horses of 15 hands or under, and the one mile race was won by Belka, an 11 year old, from Shazada and Kimaree. During the 3 years when racing was staged at the course there were additional meetings involving Arabian horses. The final meeting was held in September 1925, after which racing ceased due to the ill health of the chief organiser, but additional festivals continued to be organised at the track, with racing playing just a small part. On Whit Monday 28th May 1928 the racecourse was the venue of 3 races for Galloways, one trotting race and 15 races for greyhounds, whippets and lurchers.
At least 2 photos of the course, taken by Stan Andrews, still exist today. One shows the finish of a race and the other shows what the racecourse would have looked like.
Westward Ho Stakes, Bideford Plate, Abbotsham Plate, Shebberton Cup
For further reading about this unique course visit http://www.westwardhohistory.co.uk/racecourse.php
Monday 6th August 1923
Shebberton Cup over 1 mile
1. Belka, 11 year old
2. Shazada, 10 year old
3. Kimaree, 12 year old
A 1 ¼ mile course situated along the Abbotsham valley near to Cornborough. Little remains of the course today apart from the Racecourse Bungalow which was the former clubhouse of the racecourse. Little remains of the course today, apart from the Racecourse Bungalow referred to above which was the former clubhouse of the racecourse. See photos below.
I am grateful to Karen Redvear for the photos showing what the ground on which the former racecourse stood looks like today. She comments that the Old Club House became a private residence once racing ceased and today the land of the former racecourse is owned by Cornborough Farms Ltd. There is also Youtube footage of the former racecourse; follow the link below:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcbrUp7oNKM&feature=youtu.be
Much of the information about this course has been found using internet research and is in the public domain. However, useful research sources have been:-
London Illustrated News
Racing Illustrated 1895-1899
The Sporting & Dramatic Illustrated
Northern Turf History Volumes 1-4 by J.Fairfax-Blakeborough
The Sporting Magazine
A Long Time Gone by Chris Pitt first published in 1996 ISBN 0 900599 89 8
Racing Calendars which were first published in 1727
