ACCORDING to a report in the Gazette, September 3, the construction of Jack Berry Rehabilitation Centre, is now well under way and on schedule.

However, no one from the IJF or the Malton Racing Industry will convince me that Old Malton is the best site choice of this long-awaited and much-needed facility.

During the early stages when the IJF were searching for a sitethat wouold tick all the boxes, I wrote to Mr Berry and suggested Wetherby. To my surprise, he phoned me one evening, out of the blue, and thanked me for my opinion and in his own words said Wetherby would be the perfect location.

As reported by the IJF, the centre will provide injury assessment, treatment and rehabilitation services to jockeys from the north of England and Scotland.

With only 31 per cent of licensed jockeys being in the Malton area and 66 per cent of Yorkshire racecourses being in close proximity of the best road network, the A1 motorway – running through Yorkshire to Scotland – with Pinderfield Special Injuries Unit at Wakefield to the south-west and James Cook Hospital to the north-east of the county, I feel a more appropriate and practical site could have been found.

Two areas that spring to mind, being either Wetherby or Thirsk.

Seeing as Thirsk is approximately midway between Malton and Milddleham in Wensleydale, the remaining 69 per cent of jockeys travelling on a daily basis for treatment would have had their journeys reduced considerably.

Also, the unfortunate ones from the north of England and Scotland would have had their journey time cut to a minimum after exiting the motorway.

Mike Kitching, Old Malton