Countdown to the Cup

Before you know if, it will be April first and we’ll have an exciting day of racing.

For those who held spaces last year, they have until January 27 to renew their orders and secure their tailgate spots. After that, on February 1, we will go live and put all remaining tailgate spaces on sale to the general public. If last year was any indication, these spaces will sell quickly.

Once again, early bird general admission tickets will be sold for a $10 discount of $40 each, if purchased by Wednesday, Feb. 15. After that date, all tickets will be sold for $50 each.

By TOBY EDWARDS

Don’t get left out. That is the best bit of advice that we here at the Carolina Cup office can offer as we count down the days to the 88th running of the Carolina Cup presented by Mullikin Law on Saturday, April 1 at the Springdale Race Course. We started taking orders for renewals for those patrons who held tailgate and other reserved spaces for last spring’s Carolina Cup on January 2 and our phones have being steadily ringing while our website has been a hub of activity as past ticket and space holders want to make sure they secure their same spots this spring. If you recall, the 2022 races sold out all reserved spaces. We don’t want that to happen to you this year which is why we are getting the word out to get your tickets and spaces early and not be on the outside looking in.

There is no doubt that last year was a big year for the Carolina Cup and the momentum and the size of the event continues to grow. People are excited to get back out to Springdale and to come out to watch the races and all the other pieces which make up the day; whether it is the TruVista Kids Zone, the Paddock Shoppes, the hat contest and the best dressed contest, there is a lot of other things going on inside the facility than just the racing, the tailgating and meeting with all your friends and family.

Our office staff always look at this time of the year with a little bit of trepidation. We have some new people in the Carolina Cup office this year so we are doing some training with them as we go along. In mid-January, we had interns starting from the University of South Carolina to help with our chores while they all gained valuable experience in the field of event planning. We are excited about having brought them on board.

Things are definitely starting to ramp up here.

If you would like to purchase tailgate spaces and/or tickets to the Carolina Cup, we invited you to visit our website at www.carolinacup.org to purchase your tickets and spaces, call our office at 432-6513 or, come visit us at our location inside the National Steeplechase Museum on Knights Hill Rd. in Camden. We love seeing people come through the door and chat about our races with guests.

As we sit here in the first days of the new year, sales have been steady across the board for the Carolina Cup. We are selling every type of ticket; the tailgating areas are probably the most popular, but whether you are looking for an all-inclusive luncheon option like the Post and Paddock Club or, possibly, our top end Discover SC Skyline Club on top of the grandstand, we are seeing a lot of interest for all areas. The Meadow continues to be very popular and I can foresee us being sold out in a number of areas quite quickly.

So, once again, we urge you to get your tickets and parking spaces well in advance of the races so that you will be able to look forward to a stress-free race week and race day.

We look forward to seeing you on April 1st … no fooling.

(Toby Edwards became the executive director of the Carolina Cup Races in 2019. The former owner/ trainer/steeplechase jockey is also the race director for the Block House Races in Tryon, N.C., and The Steeplechase at Charleston.)

For more information about how you can support economic development in Kershaw County, contact the Kershaw County Committee of 100 at kccof100@gmail.com