Changes To Grand National Fences Over Time: Better For Horses But Less Of A Lottery

The Grand National is one of the most famous and thrilling horse races in the world. With millions of people tuning in year after year, the Aintree Racecourse event sees the city of Liverpool become the focus of sport, even if only for half an hour or so. Described as the ‘World’s Greatest Steeplechase’, the National has a number of fences that are as well-known as they are feared.

Over the years, the nature of the fences in the race has changed to the point that someone who took part in the first ever version of the race wouldn’t even recognise it. The question is, how have they changed and why have the changes been brought in?

How the Fences Used to Be

The first thing that should be noted about the Grand National and the way in which the race has changed has nothing to do with the fences. The race used to be run over four and a half miles, but it was felt that the horses would approach the first fence going too quickly, so the initial obstacle was brought forward in order to ensure that the horses couldn’t have reached too quick a speed to jump it safely.

As a result, the modern race is run over four miles and three and a half furlongs. Ultimately, though, it is the fences that make the National one of the most intimidating and exciting races in the world of horse racing.

Back when the race was run for the first time in 1839, the obstacles that the horses had to get over tended to be made up of natural ones that would be found in the countryside. The likes of actual stone walls, brooks, hedges and farmer’s gates would be used, marked with a flag so that the jockeys would know the ones that needed to be jumped. It wasn’t until 1845 that the stone walls were removed and replaced with something less dangerous for the horses.

That didn’t mean that things were easy, however. In fact, as the 1860s rolled around the fences were increased to become higher and more difficult for the horses to jump.

Even as recently as 2012, the fences were mostly made up of a core of wooden stakes that were then topped with some branches from spruce trees to a depth of at least 14 inches. The spruce branches have been a key part of how the National has looked for almost as long as the race has taken place, so to the outside observer it might not appear to be all that different now from how it looked decades ago.

That is just perception, however, with massive changes being made for the safety of the horses but the overall visual of the race remaining much the same. The changes made in 2013 have had the biggest impact.

Piecemeal Changes

One of the most interesting things about the Grand National is the manner in which changes have been made to it in a piecemeal fashion, rather than wholesale. Any time the Jockey Club has realised that something needs to be done about the challenge posed by a fence, alterations have been made so that it becomes much safer for the horses to jump.

Becher’s Brook is possibly the best example of that. When it got its name after the first running of the race, when Captain Becher fell off his horse and secreted himself into the brook to remain safe, the fence was four foot ten inches high with the landing side having a drop of around eight foot.

The brook was found directly underneath it, but that was filled in in 1990. The landing side was modified for the first time in 1954, then again in 1987 and once more in 2011. The landing side nowadays is between five and ten inches lower than the take-off side, which is obviously significantly better.

The ditch in front of the Canal Turn has also been removed, whilst The Chair’s landing side is six inches higher than the take-off. It remains the tallest fence on the course, though, coming in at five foot and two inches tall. Some of the changes have been made to unnamed fences, such as the one jumped fourth and 20th, which is not two inches lower than it was.

Some of the biggest chances to the National came in 2013, which was when the timber cores of the fences were removed and replaced with plastic birch. This made it easier for horses to get their legs through the fence if they didn’t quite jump high enough to make it over. Four fences also had their landing areas levelled in order to make them safer for the horses to jump.

The British Horseracing Authority had carried out a review that also led to the orange take-off boards being increased in height. Any and all changes made to the Grand National have been introduced to make it as safe as possible for the horses to run the race.

Whilst purists might feel that the Grand National isn’t the test of a horse that it once was, it remains a challenge of stamina and jumping ability. The big changes to the fences have simply made it safer, with fewer fatalities happening in the years since they were brought in.

Between 2003 and 2012, for example, the average number of horses that finished the race was 14.7, with nine fatalities. Between 2013 and 2023*, meanwhile, the average number of finishers was 16.7 and there were just five fatalities. That is five too many, of course, but the Grand National continues to introduce changes to make it as safe as it can be.

*The 2020 race did not take place because of the global health crisis at the time.