Spring weather is hard for professional meteorologists to predict at the best of times, but with conflicting forecasts telling the public it may or may not rain, Aintree clerk of the course Sulekha Varma has had her work cut out.
"We are, unfortunately, not able to plan too far ahead," said Varma, who yesterday changed the ground on the Grand National course to 'good to soft, good in places'. "Basically, the forecasters are telling us they don’t know beyond Tuesday and Wednesday - some think it is going to be dry, some think it is going to be wet," she told the Mirror.
Aintree's policy is to tailor the National going to the easy side of good, but heavy rainfall on top of watered ground due to poor accuracy of forecasts could see the track become boggy.
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Lack of accuracy also plays havoc with those looking to visit Aintree for a day's racing. To wear, or not to wear a hat, don a waterproof or pack your sunglasses and suncream - are all dilemmas faced by visitors.
Grand National 2022 weather forecast
Thursday
NHS Day will start off cloudy then will be swiftly followed by light showers in the late morning. Though the forecast says it will be 8°C, the MetOffice says it will feel like just 2°C to 3°C.
Rain is forecast from 10:00am to 19:00pm, so packing an umbrella or waterproofs is advisable.
Friday
At present, the Met Office is predicting sunny intervals, changing to thunder showers in the afternoon. "After a mostly dry start with some sunshine" but cloud will bubble up through the morning. Scattered showers may develop at around 13:00, it will also feel chilly but far less windy than on Thursday.
Though it may change, currently the Met Office expects a thunder storm to hit Aintree at around 14:00, just as racing its getting underway. Conditions should clear up after 17:00pm and a clear, dry evening is forecast for festivities after the racing ends. A high temperature of 8°C is expected, but will feel like just 5°C.
Saturday
Grand National day will almost be a replica of Ladies Day, with the sun breaking through morning clouds at 10:00am.
While racing is on, it will be 8°C, but will feel like 4°C - though the sun should be shining.
