The Grand National has improved significantly, and any complaints about Saturday’s race are unjustified.

The long drive south began at 8pm. As in every other year, my husband told me to stop at a services for food before our favored places closed.

He also tried to convince me that when seeking to carry out a one-stop strategy, that stop does not necessarily have to come beyond the journey’s halfway point. Despite his good advice, it was the very first thing he said that made the biggest impact.