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I flew from Thailand to the UK to specifically bet Florida Pearl in the Martell Cup.
It ended up one of my best days racing ever. Jonjo had a horse in the first called Sudden Shock and thought he might run into a place. I backed him ew at 50/1 and 33/1.and I got a Sudden Shock when he actually won.
I lifted a right few quid which meant I could back Florida Perarl without care in the world………he trotted up by about 10 lengths.
Later Jonjo had another outsider but depite him fancying it a bit I thought no way can lightning strike in the same place twice. Big mistake the horse won at 16/1.
Had one more bet in the last though on a horse called Classified trained by Martin Pipe. Dean Gallagher was riding a horse called Eternal Spring who was strongly fancied but he had told a friend he didn’t think he had fuly recovered from a hard race at Chelters.
Classified had also been beaten at Cheltenham but he looked fantastic in the paddock and was ridden by Tony MCoy. He won around 5/1.
I din’t even bother staying for the National and was back in Thailand before it ran
Total Mileage there and back aver 12,000 miles icluding Lodon to Aintree and back
I’ve done the weekend trip for the Breeders’ Cup thing – but it was at Belmont; not sure I would have done the same to Santa Anita.
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More respect! Do I have any respect left to give?!
I did the 1987 Arc de Triomphe and back from West Yorkshire, by bus, train, ferry, train and foot, without having anywhere to rest my head (bar catching a half hour on a bench in the Bois de Boulogne) in about 60 hours. But then I had boundless enthusiasm and a good deal more stamina in those days…
Awesome mate I couldn’t handle that………I jumped on the plane and dropped two sleeping tablets so I was cheating
I’ve been lucky enough to attend loads of top American race meetings on business, including every Breeders’ Cup since 1986. However I’m still enthusiastic enough to go to a lot of trouble to go racing just to say I’ve been to that track for fun.
After racing at Arlington Park for the Million I’ve been to both Lone Star Park (Dallas) and Monmouth Park (New Jersey) for day trips at my own expense. Monmouth was a killer as I had to catch a late evening flight to Newark and then drive through the night down to Monmouth where I slept for a few hours before seeing 4 races and then rushing back, via Newark, to Chicago to catch my connecting flight home.
Although a good few of my annual trips to Germany contain an overnight stay in the nearest hotel I can find (usually Accor – I get them a bit cheaper), I do occasionally do what I call a 24 hour dash (usually about 4-5 times a year). My trip to Mannheim on March 22nd was a good example:
12:45 am: Get taxi from home to bus station in Leicester.
1:05 am: Leave on airport bus to Stansted Airport.
4:10 am: Arrive Stansted Airport.
7:15 am: Depart Stansted Airport.
9:25 am: Arrive Frankfurt Hahn Airport.
10:20 am: Board coach to Mannheim.
12:15 pm: Arrive Mannheim train station, and after a short stop for a bit to eat at the local ‘Nordsee’ (like a fish version of McDonalds), head to the racecourse via tube train and 2 buses.
1:30 pm: Arrive at racecourse. Watch my horse run (finishes well beaten), enjoy the corporate hospitality Christian has laid on, and take some photos for the website. Leave racecourse about 7:00 pm with winners trophy from the big chase of the day, and get dropped off at the bus station by my good friend Frank and his trusty Opel Corsa.
8:15 pm: Having stopped off at Nordsee once again, and having done some shopping at the local supermarket, it’s time to board the coach back to Frankfurt Hahn Airport.
10:15 pm: Arrive Frankfurt Hahn Airport.
11:20 pm: Leave Frankfurt Hahn Airport.
11:50 pm: Arrive Stansted Airport. Nervously look at watch whilst waiting in the passport control queue hoping I’ll get the bus home!
12:30 am: Get the bus with a few minutes to spare, and we leave Stansted Airport.
3:30 am: Arrive Leicester Bus Station.
3:40 am: Finally arrive home after taxi ride.
Well, there you have it. 27 hours on the go – and you know what? I LOVE IT!!!! Mind you, most of my friends think I’m a complete fruitcake!!
Darren – AngloGerman
________________________________________‘The Hungarian’s going hell for leather’ – Jim McGrath
Dubai Carnival this year – 7036 miles round trip, this was not a holiday. as i was there for 31 hours only to see the Dubai World Cup.
I flew with Air France from Manchester to Paris – Paris to Dubai
Just under 20 hours of flying round trip including the change at Paris – i arrived in Dubai at 05.20am the day of the World Cup and flew back out at 11.45am the following morning. the flight was just over 10 hours home.
Totally jet lagged but was an experience i will never forget
Due to not being able to drive (medical condition) have not travelled very far for racing but have had some epics on the point to point circuit.
On the day Party Politics won the Grand National, I travelled to Thorpe Lodge from Grantham via Newark. When we got to Newark, my mate, Woody, insisted that we walk it. Not happy about this as there is a bus along the A46 to within a mile of the track, I had used it on my previous visit.
However off we went and we kept wandering down country lanes and the Nottinghamshire high ways and byways until we turned off a metalled road onto a farm track (I was told it was a short cut). Shortly afterwards a police car drew up and the Sargeant got out and offered us a lift. So there we were, Lord Muck and his mate, in the panda car, right up to the parade ring at the Point to Point.
Unfortunately, he was missing when we set off home and I can still feel the sore feet when ever I see Thorpe in the fixture list. I’ve never been back.
We also used to walk from Habisburgh station to Brocklesby Park and Woody always walks from Waltham on The Wolds to Garthorpe having got the bus from Grantham and got off at what is the nearest bus stop to the track (must be at least three miles each way and not straight or flat). He’s been doing it for years. One day a horsebox drew up and the driver gave him a lift. It was Peter Greenall, now Lord Daresbury, proper man that.
I had a friend called Peter who I met through a racing club.He took me under his wing and, a couple of times a year we would do a big meeting somewhere down south; my driving is awful and he didn’t drive, so we always used to take the train to London and then catch a train to Ascot, Sandown or Newbury. He always planned it so that we would do something in London; one year we went to the Tate so he could show me the William Blake stuff, another time the National so I could sit and gaze at Whistlejacket, and another year we walked via Bloomsbury Square so I could sit and have my sandwiches where all the famous poets lived. On the way back we would go to a greasy spoon cafe in Soho that cooked the best omelettes I have ever tasted, and made the best cup of tea. We used to wander past Raymonds Revue Bar so I could have a quick peek [there was a series on the BBC called Soho stories that I was watching at the time]. They were wonderful times; I hadn’t been to many race meetings, and I think he got a lot of pleasure from showing me a world that had been part of his life for so long. I’m so grateful to him. Happy days.
In my younger days I used to get a train from Euston to Holyhead-then empty the quiz machines on the ferry-go to the Curragh-and the machines were pretty much full up again for the return trip the same day or a day later
This Summer. The moment the European election is over-i will fly to the Belmont Stakes and then take a 6 week Amtrak pass before ending up in Saratoga.
Travelled from Southern Spain to Paris for the big weekend of racing last November though that wasn’t solely for racing (mainly my OH’s birthday in fact lol).
Going to Paris on Sunday for the Grand Steeplechase though – that’s all about the racing
I find it difficult to believe that anyone could have gone to Melbourne and back
solely
for the purpose of a horse race, without being on business or dallying for a while. Unless they lived in, say, Sydney at the time!
I can believe it and can relate to it.
People do strange things sometimes when it comes to travel – we have actually considered a similar trip to the Melbourne Cup.
We are also considering a weekend break for the Breeders Cup.
My wife and I actually flew a day trip to Tel Aviv from London just to have a curry on my birthday.
If you think that is odd – then just try and imagine the reaction from the Israeli security services – they took some convincing.
The reason – in old Jaffa Town is what is (sadly was), undoubtedly the best Indian restaurant we have ever visited.
Oh yes – we also once did a weekend break in Beijing.
What was the name of the Indian in Jaffa Paul?. I was once incredibly ill after going to one place there and my mate was ambulanced off the plane at Heathrow. Can`t be the same one.?
Sorry Roddy – only just seen this post, can’t recall the name off the top of my head – it was a good few years ago.
Will check when I get home and let you know.
I can describe where it is – as you walk down the sea wall from Tel Aviv you go up some steps to enter a square as you enter Jaffa. As you pass into the square it is on your right hand side.
Inside there was a main dining room, with booths round the side, but at the far end there was a smaller room with windows overlooking the Med.
The owner was called Shareef.
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