Yesterday saw us down at the race course as we spent an afternoon at the races with my in-laws. It used to be an anual event in my family that every year (usually around Christmas) we all venture out to the race course to have a flutter on a few horses. We haven’t done this for a few years now due to one reason or another so I was actually looking forward to this quite a lot.

Studying the form

It was a little on the cold and miserable side weather wise but that didn’t really spoil the day as we persistently throw betting slips to the floor to the tune of “I don’t know why I bother!” but as the afternoon progressed I think our luck changed and we all came away with a few wins each with yours truely staggering back to the car with an extra £20.40 more than he arrived with.

The Lonely Tote

There was a moderately good turnout yesterday all made up of different people and I struggle to think where else you would get such a mixed gathering anywhere else. From my observations you could put the crowd in 4 categories:

1. The city slickers - These obviously have too much money to spend as they parade in their designer gear pretending to live the gangster lifestyle you see in the films. Their look is further completed by chuffing on a cigar and wearing their coat collars up whilst repeating the phrase “Fackin’ ell mate” as much as possible as they exchange stories of drunken antics the night before.
2. General - Just everyday people like you and I on a day out.
3. The great unwashed - There were quite a few of these folk milling around the bar area and gambling machines drinking beer by the bucket and smoking continuously. Ironically sporting the latest fake designer sportswear which is further complimented by the lashings and lashings of cheap gold dripping off them. These are my favourite kind, I could watch them for hours but I know if they caught me they’d cut me “ya slaaaaaag!”. So great care must be taken when observing the great unwashed in their natural habitat.
4. The jockies - Not really part of the crowd I know but I felt they deserved a mention. These guys scare me, its like they have the mind of men but the bodies of little boys! Its the stuff nightmares were made of.