Goodwood boss: We're on the final furlong of Glorious plans

The racecourse is a real hive of activity as temporary facilities go up and building projects are complete in time for 11am on Tuesday, when we open up for the first day.

The weather’s not looking quite as settled as it was and I think the truth is no-one really knows what the week will be like. I’d think we might get one or two showers but we’re also confident of a mostly dry week with plenty of sunshine.

A little bit of rain the other night helped the groundstaff, who have had to work so hard during the heatwave to keep some moisture in the ground.

In terms of how entries are shaping up, it’s all good news.

We probably pretty much all the horses we’d hoped for - and more - for key races like the two Group 1s, the Sussex Stakes and the Nassau Stakes, and have excellent fields in prospect for the likes of the Stewards’ Cup, the Lennox and the Betfred Mile.

We are now seeing the five-day stage cards for each day. That’s when we know the festival is really upon us - there’s no going back now!

Our ticket office has been consistently busy for a while now and we’re on course to meet our targets for the number of people coming through the gates.

I’ve said it before, but we’re fortunate that Glorious Goodwood is a lot of people’s favourite week of the year - all we have to do is make sure we continue to put on high-quality racing with all the right trimmings.

If you’re coming to Glorious, I hope you have a wonderful week and find a few winners (something I will be looking to do in the Observer website’s tipping competition!).

And if you’re only thinking of coming, my advice would be - buy a ticket today!

Adam Waterworth