THERE will be 12 fixtures at eight different venues in the West Midland Area this year with the North Ledbury returning to the fold after several seasons based in the Welsh borders.

Chaddesley Corbett stages four meetings with the Worcestershire venue holding the first meeting of the West Midlands season following the Harkaway Club's decision to move their fixture forward a month to Saturday, February 21.

There is an eight-week break before the next meeting on Saturday, April 17, and this should allow sufficient time for any remedial work to the course to be carried out in readiness for the Lady Dudley Cup, which is the centrepiece of the Worcester-shire meeting.

The Wheatland transferred their point- to-point to Chaddesley Corbett last year and this obviously proved beneficial because they remain at the course and race on Saturday, May 8, while the Albrighton Woodlands stage their usual end of season finale on Monday, May 31.

The infrastructure at Maisemore Park near Gloucester has been improved in recent years and they were originally due to hold three meetings during 2004.

The Ledbury start the ball rolling on Sunday, March 28, and were due to be followed by the Cotswold Vale on April 10 but due to unforeseen circumstances the meeting is likely to move to Andoversford. The aforementioned North Ledbury stages the final fixture at this venue on Monday, May 3.

The Duke of Beaufort's meeting at Didmarton, near Tetbury, is always worth going a long way to see and with just one other point-to-point scheduled for Saturday, March 6, there should be plenty of runners with the consequence that the car parks should be fuller than normal for this popular day in the point-to-point calendar.

The Cotswold settle for their familiar date which is the day after the Grand National. Their course at Andoversford has been in use for over 40 years and this year's fixture takes place on Sunday, April 4.

In a change to the original schedule the Cotswold Vale Farmers meeting is likely to transfer to this venue and takes place on Easter Saturday, April 10.

Paxford has proved an extremely popular venue since the course opened in 1997. Point-to-point meetings held over the Easter holiday period are always popular so expect large crowds if you intend visiting the North Cotswold on Monday, April 12.

The Croome and West Warwickshire course, at Upton-upon-Severn, is steeped in history and has played host to some of the best horses that have raced between the flags. The riverside meadows at Ryall's Court provide a perfect setting and their meeting on Tuesday, April 13, is a fitting climax to what has loosely been called the West Midland Point-to-Point Festival, following on from the North Cotswold the previous day and the Cotswold Vale Farmers meeting on Easter Sunday.

Woodford lies in the shadows of Berkeley Castle and while there are plenty of close races and exciting finishes they do not match the dramas that took place early in the castle's history. With the course at the southern extremity of the West Midlands area it always attracts runner from outside the area, which helps create a competitive atmosphere. The Berkeley meeting is held on Saturday, April 24.

Woodford is a flat galloping course and is in complete contrast to the Clifton on Teme's undulating course at Upper Sapey near Bromyard. With these two meeting held over the same weekend (the Clifton on Teme race on Sunday, April 25) local owners will be well catered for and will have no excuse not to support their local point to point.

FIXTURES

Saturday, February 21: Harkaway Club, Chaddesley Corbett.

Saturday, March 6: Duke of Beaufort, Didmarton.

Sunday, March 28: Ledbury, Maisemore Park.

Sunday, April 4: Cotswold, Andoversford.

Saturday, April 10: Cotswold Vale Farmers, Andoversford.

Monday, April 12: North Cotswold, Paxford.

Tuesday, April 13: Croome & West Warwickshire, Upton-upon-Severn.

Saturday, April 17: Worcestershire, Chaddesley Corbett.

Saturday, April 24: Berkeley, Woodford.

Sunday, April 25: Clifton on Teme, Upper Sapey.

Monday, May 3: North Ledbury, Maisemore Park.

Saturday, May 8: Wheatland, Chaddesley Corbett.

Monday, May 31: Albrighton Woodland, Chaddesley Corbett.