Postmen's syndicate inches away from big payday (From York Press)

Postmen's syndicate inches away from big payday

9:03am Monday 15th October 2012 in News By Dan Bean, dan.bean@thepress.co.uk

A GROUP of York postmen were just inches away from a bumper £403,000 payday at the races.

The final selection in their Scoop6 bonus race, Countrywide Flame, was beaten by just half a length by 66-1 shot Aaim To Prosper.

The postmen, David Farrow, Alan Wood, Dave Bell, Nick Bradley, Chris Pamplin, Steve Kelly, and Craig Maxwell were at York racecourse on Saturday and watched the bonus race at Newmarket on television alongside Channel 4 racing presenter Derek Thomson.

Although the syndicate missed out on an extra £403,000 they still took home £121,599.

David Farrow, 31, plans to use his share of the winnings to pay for his honeymoon and wedding, and said: “It was incredibly exciting and we were treated to a tremendous day out.

“It’s been amazing. I’ve hardly been able to sleep all week. We’ll all be back on our rounds next week.”

Steve Kelly said: “It was so close, but that’s racing. I definitely prefer it this way though, this is part of it.

“This week for us was more nervous because of the amounts. We can’t believe it, we’ve really enjoyed the day. I was sat at home this time last week with nothing. Now I’ve got £17,000. I’m going to have a holiday.”

James Brennan, marketing manager at York Racecourse, said about 20,000 people had attended the final race days, taking the total for the 2012 season to about 342,000, and planning had already begun for the first races of 2013.

He said: “What a fantastic final day we had. Only the third time this season we’ve operated under bright blue skies and it seemed the weather must have been 10 degrees warmer than it was on Friday, so people were sitting on the lawns and soaking up the final rays of the 2012 season.

“It’s been pretty remarkable considering the economic climate, so we’d like to say a big thank you to York and North Yorkshire who have backed us throughout the season, and hopefully will do in the future.”