Pressure on the whole town: How hosting the Epsom Derby is a job for everyone - as told by the racecourse's head groundsman

Try as you might all year to prepare the perfect track for the famous Derby, with the eyes of the world on you, it could all be scuppered by a bit of bad weather.

“It’s a lot of pressure, definitely” says Craig Williamson, who is preparing for his third Epsom Derby at the helm.

“It’s a big task to take on and there are a lot of variables to take into account, but we’re a dedicated team and we’re focused on preparing the best racetrack we can come June.

“And sometimes all you can do is do your best and pray everything goes OK.”

Head groundsman Craig Williamson

Racing stops every year in August and horses won’t run on the track until the following spring – to allow the track to recover.

Then come the New Year, attention turns to making sure the course is flat and measures up to a compendium of specifications, right down to the exact four inches at which each blade of grass must stand.

And while the summer is full of other races, Mr Williamson does concede his entire job comes down to the state of the ground in early June.

The pressure of having your entire year evaluated on one race would be too much for most to bear, but having grown up around the Derby, Mr Williamson says he is used to it.

He said: “I grew up around Epsom and horseracing was always a part of my life.

“I’ve seen 21 Epsom Derbys in my time so I know how pressured each race is – not just for me but for the whole town as well.

“In the same way I’m under pressure to provide a good track, the racecourse is under pressure to provide a good atmosphere and the town is under pressure to make people feel welcome.”

The importance of the Derby to Epsom is hard to over-state; not only does it bring in more than 150,000 visitors and many millions of pounds into the town every year, but it also represents an integral part of Epsom’s identity.

Perhaps even more than the eponymous salts, the Epsom Derby is the one thing that really puts the small, historic market town on the map – and the town’s gratefulness is repaid in the shape of miniature horse figures carved into its benches and bollards.

It is understandable, then, that everyone feels it is incumbent upon them to put on a good show every June, from friendly service in the bars and cafes to impeccable coverage of the event in this local newspaper.

But does that just put more pressure on the chief groundsman and his team?

“I suppose it does a little bit” Mr Williamson says, laughing.

“But we don’t really think of it like that. We don’t see ourselves as being in the spotlight.

“We take so much care in doing this because we really care about the state of the grounds, but we’re not the centre of attention.

“We do what we can and we hope for good weather around the time of the Derby.”

A warm winter means Mr Williamson is ‘quietly confident and fairly relaxed’ about the state of the ground so far, he says.

“But it’s only March, yet. I feel OK but I’m sure the nerves will start to kick in soon.”

The 237th Epsom Derby will run this year on Saturday, June 4 – with Ladies’ Day taking place on Friday, June 3