Film festival. Arts festival. Fringe Festival. Aquathon Festival. Festival of the Sea. Triathlon Festival.
It's easy to see what's not lacking in Galway. In a county full of festivals few can rival the Galway Races though. Not one for the faint-hearted, seven days long, it's more stamina sapping for punters than horses.
This year's renewal will be its 150th so they are obviously doing something right. Attempting to find winners is the only way to truly see out the week.
Given how difficult that can be, it is amazing it's been going on this long. Here are four horses to follow that could pay for next year's trip.
Feature
The feature races during the week are the Galway Hurdle and Plate. Given the sheer volume of prizemoney on offer, they are now a completely different type of race to before. Now races more for graded types either on the way up or down the ratings rather than hardened handicappers.
Gordon Elliot won the Plate with a Grade one novice winner last year and Mengli Khan will be up near the top of the betting to do something similar this year. Reliability isn't his forte though so a more solid selection is Snugsborough Benny.
Liam Cusack's charge has course form and was placed in an Irish Grand National last time. The forecast rain won't do any harm and at a double-figure price can go close.
In the Hurdle it's easy to see why Band of Outlaws tops the market, especially with his juvenile allowance. Another horse with graded form at a bigger price is Chosen Mate for Gordon Elliot.
Chosen Mate had a nice tune-up on the flat at Leopardstown recently which should leave him spot on for this week. A mark of 142 looks very fair and he can be prominently ridden, no harm given how long the run-in at Ballybrit is and the occasional luck required in-running.
Maestro
Elsewhere Jassaar was hoped to be a Royal Hunt Cup horse for Royal Ascot, he didn't get in there and was beaten since at the Curragh. He could be one for the Galway Maestro Dermot Weld in the BMW Mile on Tuesday.
The Nap of the week will be a short price, but Innisfree is entered on Monday evening. He could not have been anymore eyecatching on debut at Naas. He is a stunning looking horse who will strip fitter for the outing. The horse who finished third behind him won easily at Leopardstown, wherever he runs, back him.
See yiz at the Hole in The Wall!
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