York racegoers helped to raise a record sum of at least £450,000 at the 46th Macmillan Charity Raceday on Saturday (June 11).
That takes the total raised since 1971 to more than £7 million.
Nearly 27,000 people flocked to the Knavesmire for a day of racing and fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support.
The event is the biggest single fundraising event in the Macmillan calendar.
Following a card of seven races with experienced jockeys, it was the turn of ten members of the public to race. The amateur riders have trained for months to prepare for the Best Western Hotels & Macmillan Ride of their Lives.
The riders, eight of which are from Yorkshire, all raised money for Macmillan to take part, smashing last year’s fundraising record total of donations in the process.
The class of 2016 raised approaching £150,000, with further promises expected to take them through that threshold.
In a race with no losers, the first past the post was Ruth Carr aboard Dubai Dynamo, a horse she trains herself from her racing yard at Stillington, near York.
Before the turn of the millennium Ruth, 39, was well known on the Lady Amateur circuit but by her admission it was a huge challenge to get herself back fit enough to ride the Knavesmire.
To the great credit of Ruth and her supporters, they have already contributed approaching £35,000 and further donations to the justgiving pages of Ruth and the other nine riders will swell this total.
The day also included charity auctions, with lots including exclusive holidays and sporting memorabilia, while 23,000 raffle tickets were sold over the two days for a range of prizes including £500 cash. More than 100 Macmillan volunteers helped collect donations from generous racegoers.
Lynda Thomas, Chief Executive of Macmillan Cancer Support, said:
This is the biggest single fundraising event in our calendar, so plays a big part in funding Macmillan services, which are there to ensure that people get the best quality care and support throughout their cancer journey.
