Aintree Racecourse fear into the most professional of jockeys. All fences bar the water jump are covered with spruce, unlike at any other course in British National Hunt racing. Four other races take place over the National fences. These are the Topham Chase (formerly known as the John Hughes Trophy Chase) and the Fox Hunters' Chase at the Grand National meeting, and the Grand Sefton Handicap Chase and Becher Chase in the December meeting. Within the large National course there is also the smaller Mildmay course containing hurdles and fences. These fences are made of traditional National Hunt material. The National and
1848 Grand National 1848 Grand National The 1848 Grand National Steeplechase was the tenth official annual running of a handicap steeplechase horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool on Wednesday, 1 March. It attracted a then record, field of 29 competitors for a prize valued at £1,015 to the winner. The race was won by Lieutenant Josey Little on Captain William Peel's Chandler trained by Tom Eskrett. Lieutenant Little wore Captain Peel's colours of white silks with a black cap. The horse won in a time of 11 minutes and 21 seconds, forty-two seconds slower than the course record set the previous year.