Ian Mongan strode out of the weighing room, saddle under his arm, resplendent in a royal blue and yellow diamond top, to board Daunted.

The Brighton jockey paused in the afternoon sun to say: "It's great to be back racing."

Mongan was picked in a photo-finish for third place on the horse trained by Brighton's Gary Moore in the Prince Regency Spring Textile Show Claiming Stakes.

The duo then teamed up to win the final race with 10-1 chance Bravura Racing had returned after a week following its self-imposed suspension, provoked by the foot-and-mouth crisis, at Lingfield Park yesterday.

The all-weather track's flat meeting was overshadowed by the concerns of the National Farming Union and farmer-friendly racing folk about spreading the disease.

Sandra Crawley, in Lingfield's race office, admitted she had fielded "lots of calls" from residents and farmers objecting to the meeting.

With livelihoods at stake in rural areas, the worries were undeniable and it might have seemed inappropriate that racegoers were having a fun day out while farmers across the country were forced to kill livestock.

Some felt it smacked of fiddling while the farmers burned and Mongan, certainly, tempered his delight at earning his £60 riding Daunted with a sympathetic ear towards racing's current opponents.

He said: "I've had a week without money that has affected my livelihood and all the abandonments because of the weather, as well as the foot and mouth problem, has meant racing hasn't really got going. But the week off has re-charged my batteries, I was able to chill out and keep away from horses and now I am back it is so exciting, such a thrill. You don't realise how much you miss it. All the jockeys today are raring to go.

"Lingfield is a lucky course for me, and although I didn't get any winners today, I've had plenty.

"But I've got to respect the farmers' situation. Whether racing carrying on is a good idea or not it seems weird that we continue whereas in France and Ireland it doesn't."

"If I was in charge, personally, I would not go ahead with racing out of respect for the farmers."

Racing wore its diplomatic brown trilby so as not to offend its rural neighbours in the vain hope foot-and-mouth outbreaks would have reduced, along with the furore, in time to save the doomed Cheltenham Festival.

Moore said: "No-one likes to see livelihoods taken away, and I certainly hope that it isn't us that will be part of doing it."

But the trainer was philosophical over missing a week. He said: "We can't work for 365 days a year. It hasn't really cost me anything apart from the purchase of some disinfectant.

"In fact I'll be glad when the whole thing's over because the smell of the disinfectant lingers.

"Today is no big deal. I don't feel any different although it's good horses are well and able to run.

"If the meeting doesn't cause too much upset, it's fine by me. Everything's done that you can do, so who am I to say any different about whether racing should have carried on."

Moore scored a couple of thirds and fourths. He said: "It was a bad day because I expected a couple of winners."

The day was really about the big issue. Punters, trainers, jockeys, lads, owners, racecourse staff, bookmakers and horses were all disinfected as they rode, walked or cantered over black plastic pads at every entrance and exit. Trainers like Moore even had to have their horseboxes steam-washed. He said: "They did mine twice."

An attendance of 1,300 was recorded, with cynics suggesting that half were from the media.

Some thought people had stayed away as a protest and there was certainly a subdued atmosphere. The loudspeakers offered the only sustained voluble sound as the horses' hooves rumbled across the sandy surface.

But the banter between bookies, punters, and the tic-tac men, produced a quiet chatter.

Brighton track bookmakers Sam Harris Limited, formed in 1926, were doing average business. George, 78, and son Adrian Harris, were realistic. Adrian, 48, said: "All the news about the sport is a bit depressing, but it hasn't made a great deal of difference. If it went on a long time, of course, it would be horrific, I'd have to find something else to do. There was a lot of money in bookmaking but now you don't earn fortunes."

Punter Michael Payne, 67, from Bexhill, was pleased to be back in the betting ring.

He said: "I've retired now and go all over Sussex and Surrey for racing. I'm down a little today, but you don't expect to earn much. Coming out even is a good day and hopefully that's how mine will end today. From the punters' point of view it is obviously great that racing is back."

Clerk of the course, Chris Stickels clearly had a lot on his mind, but he said: "All the pre-conditions and procedures were put in place and everything's gone well. The Jockey Club and the British Horse Racing Board advised that the meeting went ahead and we are supporting racing's return."

The expert view, from commentator and journalist Brough Scott, is simple. He said: "Racing has had its period of mourning and now it's time to move on. Science has proved there is no risk, it's just a question of whether it is appropriate to carry on, but if everybody keeps calm it should be OK."