- This topic has 34 replies, 17 voices, and was last updated 18 years ago by
.
-
Posts
-
That’s seems to me the point, Sir Harry.
Cataldi was placed in a show of heads in the Champion Stakes, I believe, which was covered in a time faster than the record set by Brigadier Gerard not so many years before.
Incredibly, he figured about a quarter or even a third of the way down the long handicap in the Cambridgeshire, I think it was, ended up favourite with 9.10 on his back -the bottom weight then being 7.7, and duly won easily.
But surely nobody in their right minds would have put any of the principles in that Champions Stakes in the same league as the Brig.
As regards El Gran Senor (aka The Man from Del Monte), I remember chuckling as I read , I think it was the morning of the Derby, that when his connections saw the time he was purported to have returned, I think in the Guineas, they thought there had to have been something wrong with the camera film speed. Until they checked it.
The queen once had a mare called Escorial, who showed glimpses of serious talent, but turned out to be thorough Jade. I don’t mean my wife’s a jade – anything but – but reflecting on it now, Escorial reminds me of my wife, who has to be the least competitive person in the world, yet has the physical attributes of an outstanding athlete: very low blood pressure, long arms (great for boxing of course), terrific hand-eye coordination, brilliant visual awareness (e.g. of the smallest and least significant object in a room – eyes like a sh**tehawk), and well, if you can think of anything else, part from competitiveness, she’d have it.
Her father and brothers were the opposite, very good sportsmen all right, but also highly competitive. Anyway, every now and again they’d press her into playing darts or carpet bowls or some such, and much to their annoyance, she’d wipe the floor with them!
Not exactly your Babe Didricksen Zaharaias, probably the greatest female all-round athlete and sportswoman ever, but good enough.
When Babe (some Babe!) was asked by a journalist if there was any game she hadn’t like to play as a young girl, she growled, "Dolls"!
But I digress…
(Edited by Grimes at 5:57 pm on Oct. 24, 2006)
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.