Australians take their sports very seriously.
That is why you will always see sports ahead of weather during an Australian newscast.
And because of a certain horse race, it is also why there is a public holiday in
Melbourne.
That horse race is the Melbourne Cup.
I could certainly swamp you with a complete history of the Melbourne Cup. However, that won’t be the focus of this blog. Having said that, I will give a brief history on Australia’s greatest horse race, and if you’d like to read more, I’ve provided a great link below.
http://www.melbournecup.com/melbourne-cup-carnival/history-of-melbourne-cup.asp
The Melbourne Cup dates back to 1861, which to me is quite remarkable considering that America’s greatest horse race, the Kentucky Derby, dates back to 1875. Not bad for a country that’s 100+ years younger than the US.
See what I mean about the Aussies taking their sports seriously!
The Melbourne Cup is the world’s most prestigious two mile (3200 meters) race held on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria on the first Tuesday in November. Horses aged 3 years old and up are eligible to run for the 5.5 million (AUD) purse and $125,000 trophy. After an initial 300+ applicants, the field gets reduced to 24 horses (after running four races before early November) and by post time, each applicant has paid fees of $50,805 to run.
Like any big-time horse race, it draws quite the crowd. For example, last year 107,000 people attended the race. And like any big-time horse race, everybody wears their Sunday best…and what would a national horse race be without the hats.
As noted earlier, the first Tuesday in November is a public holiday in the metro Melbourne area. Imagine that, an actual official holiday for a horse race.
Nice.
Naturally, not everybody can attend the race. However, that never stopped Australians from throwing a party, even on a weekday and at work. I mean after all, the Melbourne Cup isn’t billed as the race that stops a nation for no reason. Literally, just about everybody at work in Australia will celebrate the occasion.
Here’s how it’s done:
The celebration at my office starts with a two hour lunch or brunch late in the morning or during the afternoon (the race is around 3 pm Eastern Daylight Time). Since WA is in the western time zone (remember, no more daylight saving), that puts the start of festivities around 11 am or so local time.
You can count on a sweepstakes, or “sweeps”. In short, it’s betting. Ten dollars per entry in not uncommon and you’re given a random number that corresponds to a horse. Winnings are paid out for first, second, third, and last places.
It wouldn’t be an Aussie party without a food and beverage. So typically chooks (chicken) and champagne will be enjoyed, amongst other finger food.
Not a bad way to spend a couple hours at work, eh?
Don’t worry if you can’t make it to Australia for the Melbourne Cup…odds are you should be able to watch it live here:
http://www.tvn.com.au/tvnlive/v1/system/modules/org.tvn.website/jsptemplates/tvn_main_menu.jsp?TVNSESSION=0E4A26C86F18DD743C7EB10C1F79D0AE.tvnEngine2
Though, you’ll have to be up at 2 am on Tuesday November 3.
Here’s hoping I win!
http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/history/timeline/1874-1899
