This year it was a quinella for trainer Katsuhiko Sumii,when Delta Blues beat stablemate Pop Rock home by
the shortest of margins.
Delta Blues became the first Japanese horse to win the Cup in it's
long history.
Delta Blues Wins A$5.1 Million Melbourne Cup Ahead of Pop Rock.
Tuesday Nov. 7, Delta Blues won the 146th running of the A$5.1 million Melbourne Cup, giving Japan its first victory in Australia's richest horse race.
Trained by Katsuhiko Sumii, Delta Blues beat stablemate Pop Rock by a head at Flemington Racecourse to claim the A$3 million first prize. Maybe Better ran third.
Run on the first Tuesday of November, a public holiday in Melbourne, the race is seen or heard on television or radio by about 85 percent of Australia's 20 million people, according to the Victoria Racing Club. It attracts about A$150 million in wagers as once-a-year bettors join more experienced gamblers.
A humpy ride in Gympie.
Around Australia, people are celebrating the race that stops the nation in their own ways.
In Queensland, Gympie residents are gearing up for their annual camel race. Up to 1500 people are expected to pack Turf Club for the event, which is being held for the fourth time this year to raise money for a local cancer charity.
Among the day's events is a "celebrity race", in which local politicians and media personalities act as jockeys.
"It's our biggest day of the year, but it's not a day for the serious racegoer," said club president Spencer Slatter.
The Inaugural TK Derby Carnival Donkey Race.
They may be 11,000 kilometres from Flemington, but that hasn't stopped Australian troops in Afghanistan from getting into the spirit of the spring carnival.
Australian Defence Force personnel serving in Tarin Kawt, southern Afghanistan, as part of a NATO reconstruction taskforce, have honoured the day with the inaugural TK Derby carnival donkey race.
The 600-metre race, which kicked off at 3.15pm local time yesterday, covered one lap of the ring road at Camp Russell, within Camp Holland, the toops' heavily fortified desert base.
Soldiers donned brightly-coloured wigs and fluorescent silks for the race, while uniformed troops watched from the tops of what appeared to be shipping containers positioned along the edge of the dusty track .
The eventual winner was a donkey ridden by Darwin-based second cavalry regiment trooper Tim Brusch, who was hoisted on the shoulders of his mates and presented with a small silver cup trophy.
About 400 Australian personnel are serving in Oruzgan province as part of the Netherlands-led Provincial Reconstruction Team.
7 comments:
Ever been to the Birdsville Races, Peter? Now there's a race meeting!
At the Story Bridge Hotel, they have cockroach races, in Darwin they have crab races. That's Aussie ingenuity for you!
You gotta love the troops! There is no substitute for GI ingenuity.
For a moment I thought the donkey race photo was going to be about the politicians and media personalities. tee hee.
In the USA we have a different tradition on the second Tuesday of November. It's called voting. Selecting which asses will lead us into a future that is sure to be uncertain given their growing penchant for getting a bad case of the dumb-ass. tee hee.
It's a similar kind of race, but the stakes are much larger. I know, you all have a similar time.
I suppose our equivalent to the Melbourne Cup would be the Kentucky Derby. Thank goodness we live in countries that afford us the opportunity for such diversions.
btw, the type appears to be OK in this posting. Go figure.
Oh, that camel race sounds like such a hoot! I'd love to see that.
Had a great day Melbourne Cup Day, weather could have been a bit better though. Have a great week
p.s. that is a payback for Gary knew I would get him back.. just patience and waiting for the right moment.
Yeah and on Hinchinbrook Island I held 'cane toad' races! ;)
What a great day, Melbourne Cup Day is! I love it!
Hear! Hear! Jack K...us Aussies love our Melbourne Cup...and next year we're going to grab it back off the Japanese....we were only spreading diplomatic relations this year! ;)
Hi Peter, Some one told me that we won the Japanese version of our Melbourne cup. Could there possibly be one? It was a very busy day at work with the cup celebrations, I won a sweep no fortune but I was chuffed. Cheers Margaret
Hi Peter
Watched the Melbourne Cup on telly.
But Have been to The Darwin Cup,
and the famous Darwin Crab races now that was a bit of fun.
Look forward to your visit Peter
Take Care,Jan
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