I’m like a broken record. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Derby Day, the greatest day of racing on earth. But today, there’s a problem, apart from the weather. There’s an icy wind which requires deployment of my heavy duty winter coat to prevent hypothermia, and a blazing sun which requires the simultaneous deployment of my straw hat to prevent sunburn. Oh how I love my Melbourne!
My mission today, should I decide to accept it, is to work out a way to follow a horse from the stalls and/or parade ring to the mounting yard. And of course that’s the problem. There is a building site in between. I try two strategies – an inside run and an outside run.
I go first for the outside run up the public lawn. It works well for the Wakeful Stakes and I manage to spot a relaxed Luva Luva in both stall and yard. It should be a strong chance in the Oaks. The inside run is harder and involves battling through the betting ring and finding a hidden pathway next to the building site which leads to a pop-up bar area cluttered with stools and tables, but good mounting yard views. I try the inside run for the Lexus, but fail dismally. For the Myer Classic I go outside again but the crowd has built up to more than 80,000 and it’s virtually impossible to weave a way through. I’m going to blame the crowd for picking a disappointing loser in Heavens Above. I give up for the Derby and just pick the winner Ace High based on his good appearance in the stall.
Cup Day will be difficult. I hope I don’t self-destruct.
Sambro in M1 looked the most relaxed, head down, like most Waller horses and ran 2nd, similar circumstances to his 3rd two weeks earlier in Sydney. Which begs the question: how often does good behaviour repeat like this? I think it’s the first time I’ve noticed it. Cismontane, the winner in M4, looked fairly relaxed, head down most of the time, and alert. This was unusual for a Waterhouse horse, most of whom present head up, ears pricked and ‘stickybeaking’. Strange how these two opposite behaviours produce good performances.