| The Melbourne Cup is Australia's most famous horse race, and is truly the "race, that stops a nation". It is now the richest handicap in the world, worth some $5.5 million and attracts around 100,000 people to the Flemington racecourse. The Melbourne Cup continues to have an increasingly popular international appeal since the breakthrough win of Irish-trained Vintage Crop in 1993. To put this into perspective, winning the Melbourne Cup automatically propels the horse, trainer, owners into a part of Australian racing history - the 'holy grail' of all horse racing
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Melbourne Cup
First Tuesday in November
In places all round Oz
There’s hardly any work gets done
The reason is because
Way over there in Melbourne
There’s horses in a race
And ladies wearing silly hats
Decked out with flowers and lace
Now all across Australia
In every outback pub
In towns and cities everywhere
In every sporting club
As well as at the racetracks
With monster sized TV
There’s people wait with bated breath
All hoping they will be
Among the folk who put their dough
Upon the nag that wins
You’ll know them when the race is done
They’ll all have stupid grins
But ask them in a week or so
What horse was it that won
There’s few who will remember but
They’ll tell you he could run
But it really doesn’t matter
They’ll tell you with a smirk
It’s just a great excuse to take
Some time away from work.
© Brian Langley - October 23 2006