Grand National in front of the stands. The majority of the race therefore took place not on the actual Aintree Racecourse but instead in the adjoining countryside. That countryside was incorporated into the modern course but commentators still often refer to it as "the country". There are 16 fences on the National Course topped with spruce from the Lake District. The cores of 12 fences were rebuilt in 2012 and they are now made of a flexible plastic material which is more forgiving compared to the traditional wooden core fences. They are still topped with at least of spruce for the horses
1849 Grand National the third fence on the second circuit, which resulted in several competitors being knocked out of the race. The custom among riders at the time would have been to continue in the race unless impossible to do so, regardless of how many times they had met with mishap. Therefore, many of the competitors would have been remounted once or more during the race, or put to fences again after refusing. Only those horses that had been injured, run loose after falling, persistently refused an obstacle or had riders too injured or fatigued to continue would not have completed the course.