OPERATORS in Galashiels enjoyed a welcome boost to trade last week as Grand National winner Ryan Mania returned to his home town, writes Matthew Lynas.
Mania, who became the first Scots jockey to win the National since 1896 when he rode Auroras Encore to victory at Aintree earlier this month, received a hero’s welcome when he returned to the Borders town for a homecoming parade.
Scott Paterson, owner of the Ladhope Inn and Auld Mill in Galashiels, told SLTN there’s been a definite uplift in trade since Grand National weekend.
“Before the race was just like any other National, nobody was really that bothered,” he said. “Then a Gala boy was out in front and the atmosphere went from medium to mental.”
Paterson described trade around the subsequent homecoming parade as “like another Saturday”.
And it seems the party atmosphere in Galashiels isn’t over yet.
Having recovered from a fall at the Hexham track in Northumberland the day after his National win, Mania is set to compete in the Scottish Grand National at Ayr on Saturday (April 20).
