YORK Racecourse chiefs declared they are “ready to go” as their £2.5 million trackwork project gets its first serious test today with the start of the May Festival.

Racing resumes on Knavesmire following a ten-month break and it is a new surface which greets the horses and jockeys following the massive construction scheme which aimed to improve drainage.

The Press reported how a selection of Richard Fahey’s horses cantered on the new track last month, but today is the first occasion top quality thoroughbreds will race in anger.

William Derby, York Racecourse chief executive, declared the ground to be “good to firm” and added he was delighted with the way the race declarations were shaping up. The top three-year-old fillies put their Epsom Oaks credentials on the line in the Tattersalls Musidora before a host of top sprinters battle for Group 2 Duke of York Stakes honours.

Derby said: “It’s good to firm and we put on five millimetres of irrigation on Monday and another five on yesterday morning. The forecast over the weekend was for rain during the week. That has gone away now. There is an 85 per cent chance of it being dry during the week and the ground is on the easy side of good to firm. We are very pleased with the ground and will be pleased to get racing again.

“We are happy with the trackwork and we look forward to seeing how it performs. It is hugely exciting. The declarations look good. There is a certain amount of trepidation at not having raced for such a long time. We are pleased and ready to go. It is all before us.”

Meanwhile, Crowded House will face nine rivals in the totesport.com Dante Stakes tomorrow.

Brian Meehan’s colt, the sponsor’s 6-4 favourite, will be hoping to follow North Light, Motivator and Authorized in landing the £150,000 Group 2 contest before going on to Epsom Derby glory next month.

“It is going to be interesting, to say the least, how it all pans out, but Crowded House has always had the Derby as his target and we will see how he gets on,” Meehan said.

Strong opposition lines up against him, including five from Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle stable – Golden Sword, Age Of Aquarius, Fame and Glory, Freemantle and Black Bear Island.

Godolphin have declared Kite Wood, the unbeaten Redwood and Nehaam go for Barry Hills and John Gosden, while Craven Stakes runner-up Sans Frontieres will run for Jeremy Noseda.

“Sans Frontieres put in a solid effort in the Craven Stakes and deserves his chance here,” Noseda said. “He should be suited by the step up in trip to a mile and a quarter and will go on fast ground.”

Native Ruler, Monitor Closely and Glass Harmonium make up the rest of the field.