AUDENSHAW

Audenshaw Racecourse, Snipe Inn Track, Ashton Old Road, Audenshaw, Greater Manchester.

POSTCODE———————————-M34 5RE

LOCATED————————————Five miles east of Manchester city centre set behind The Snipe Inn which is situated on the A635 Manchester Road, half a mile west of junction 11 of the M60 also a good guide of its location, at the rear of a Travelodge on the A6140 Expressway.

ORIGINAL SITE—————————–Built inside the infield of a Trotting Circuit.

DATE CONSTRUCTED——————–During the First World War period.

DATE VENUE OPENED——————-1919 for harness Racing.
Meaning other sports may have taken place prior to the arrival of Greyhound Racing.

FIRST MEETING—————————–March 15th 1932.
Greyhound Racing only.

LICENSED OR INDEPENDENT———-Independent
All venues covered would have to be licensed with the government, licensed suggested in this section would refer to tracks operating under NGRC Rules.

INSIDE OR OUTSIDE HARE TYPE——Sumner electric hare.
Please note that the Electric Hare suggested is only a guidance and would have been in operation for a certain amount of time at this venue. Although it is not necessarily guaranteed that it was operational all the time, as other types of lure may have been used and updated as time progressed.

DISTANCES———————————–Not known.
Please note that most racing venues distances had become varied throughout the years, the ones given above were at once point set and offers only a guidance to the track size.

CIRCUMFERENCE————————–465 yards.
Please note that alterations at most racing venues throughout its existence would see that the circumference of the track would vary, the one shown above offers only a guidance to the track size.

BIG RACE NAMES————————–None known of.

STADIUM SHARED WITH—————-Harness Racing, Athletics and Speedway from 1928-1931.

LAST MEETING—————————–Springtime / March 1934 as The Greyhound Company went in to voluntary liquidation during April 1934.
Greyhound Racing only.

STADIUM CLOSURE DATE—————Mid 1930’s.
Meaning other sports may have taken place after Greyhound Racing had ceased.

STADIUM DEMOLITION——————Prior to the Second World War.

BUILT ON SITE——————————Housing on Astbury Avenue and Milton Road and some other undeveloped land.
In some cases, structure’s that originally covered the venue after the stadium had been demolished, may have been themselves demolished too, so the one described is more likely to be the one which now presently covers the site.

EVIDENCE LEFT TODAY——————The Snipe Public House that it was named after the venue still remains open for business.

FURTHER COMMENTS——————None

Five miles east of Manchester city centre situated either side of the A635 is the district of Audenshaw. It was during the closing months of the First World War, that a trotting circuit developed on a 21-acre section of land left behind by the disbanded local Athletics and Hare Coursing Clubs.

The venue became known as The Snipe Track, due to its location found behind the nearby Snipe Inn. The first Trotting meeting came during 1919, with the sport regularly featuring right up until 1931. In 1928 Motorcycle Dirt Track Racing was introduced, on a circuit that was marked out within the infield of the Trotting circuit. During its three years of existence, the sport had produced very little other than controversy, although attracting healthy crowds, poor safety at the track had seen three riders lose their lives. Most riders wore masks and rode under different alias’s just to hide their true identity, as the venue had been discarded by most motorcycle clubs and had warned that their members should not ride there under any circumstances.

But the Snipe Track still had one more sport to talk about, that of Greyhound Racing, staging its first meeting on the 15th of March 1932. The use of the trotting circuits grandstand was used as an advantage viewing point, its huge size could accommodate as many as 10,000 racegoers. The grassed circuit itself was 465 yards in circumference, along with a Sumner electric hare system to lure the hounds, along with kennelling accommodation for over 200 greyhounds.

But again, greyhound racing was another sport that failed to settle at The Snipe, as during the early months of 1934 the greyhound company went into voluntary liquidation, with all the equipment being sold off by April 1934. The Snipe venue drifted into obscurity well before the beginning of the Second World War, as new housing began to cover the site. Houses on Astbury Avenue and Milton Road, along with some undeveloped land found behind The Snipe Pub covers the site.

The Snipe Public House still remains in business today, and is situated north of the A635, half a mile west of junction 11 of the M60. Access to the circuit was down a track to the east of The Snipe Pub which ran in a north westerly direction up behind today’s Travelodge on the newly constructed A6140 Expressway.

A programme, photograph or even memorabilia for this track is required for this page, if you can help please contact me.