Another day of non News down at the races at Chuchle, brings you the sports pages in colors. Since you weren't there, there had to be a Special NonCorrespondent to cover the Event for World NonNews coverage.
Most folks go to the races or watch the Kentucky Derby and its sisters not only for entertainment value, but for financial investments. Hose-betting is not a sure thing, but something that attracts a great deal of interest about the world. No different in Europe than across the Big Pond.
However, being short on cash and far more interested in watching the horses and people at the event, I'd like to share a photo essay on the course of events. The entrance fee is halved if you have a metro passs. So who can beat that?
Chuchle was established s a racetrack around the turn of the century-- 1906 or so. The neighborhood is an area filled with stables and easily accessible from Prague by local train or bus. It's not so isolated that it can't be reached by bike, but it's a relatively long walk from my house, say about 14km.
It's an intimate track where most of the jockeys, owners and bettors all know each other. They sit together, yell for each other and congratulate each other. A nice place for a Lazy Sunday afternoon with the kids with a picnic on the grass.
The horses are walked in a ring
walking the horses
before the race where the jockeys and owners meet to receive last minute instructions or encouragement.
jockeys and owners
The stable hands walk the horses until the jockey are mounted.
mounting
mounting
Another three rounds about the small ring and the horses enter the gate for the field.
last minute words
The track is so intimate that you can stand next to the horse as it is being prepared and entering the field.
entering the field
The race goes by in a blur.
They also ran.
After the race, the jockeys dismount on the field while the hands take care of the horses. The jockey pass through the winner's circle and re-enter the building to prepare for the next race.
They have about 10-15minutes between races to change their silks and prepare for the next race. Then the cycle begins again.
joy of being a jockey
winning horse enters the winner's circle
The winner though, sometimes gets caught on his way to the shower for an on the job interview or before his prize is presented in the winner's ring.
winner on way to shower
stopped by the media
winning satisfaction
And the cycle begins again with the horses racing to the gate.
behind the gate, waiting to load
loading the gate
in the gate
START!!
a close finish
winning horse gets a shower
only one winner, but he won three races yesterday
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Comments: 19
I'm so sorry about your back. I hope you'll feel better later today...
Kris here:
ast year 11 of `3 jockey trainees were women--or so I think I counted, so about 80percent overall at th track are women. they are smaller and beautifl. I think they have definite advantage over the menfolk, although the ladies did not win a race yesterday. they placed second and dominate the field for most part.
sorry guys, the pressure on my back is like a nuclear explosion.
the camera used was the Canon A530--it's definitely not made for what i do with it and I had never used it on a horse before. They keep the gate on the far side of field normally, but yesterday they were running Belmont length races and so the gate gets pullled over to this side and it is exactly across the fence as in you cvan reach over the fence and touch it. In one picture you see the person standing at the hedge and the horse racing by--that's how close the gate is. there is only that narrow ash path for the horses to get behind the gate.
So they ran three races with the gate on this side. The first start I missed because I was on the backside taking the pictures of loading the gate. The second one, I climbed up on the tv platform early on--and some ladies brought their horrible little toddlers up into it. normally i wouldn't care, but the camera makes only a single shot so not possible to catch a sequence coming out of the gate-- because I don't know the camera and did not have a media card in it.
and I also would not have cared had the two women controlled the little brats, but they were knocking into me an shoving me about and I was there nearly a half hour before she was and the kids had zit interest in the horses and one kid was puking on my bag. And it was only a camera platform meant for one person not 10 and very, very flimsy so every time the brats knocked against me the whole platform shook... so i was incredibly lucky to get that shot of the horse coming out fo the gate.
I was really pissed because I couldn't even get down out of the platform because her kids were puking on my bag and and blocking the ladder. I was so angry that I used some choice English vocab, but actually Mir gave me a few choice Czech words for such occassion.
really, one of the kids was puking on my bag--upchucking something orange.
oh Mary that is so gross - even when it is my kids puking - it is just so gross.... but thanks for the extra info on the non-puking part :)
The only thing I can think to do is attempt to rectify things by leaving a comment (and some stars).
thanks for sharing.
and I'm not crazy about trolls either. do you smel;l one too? they carry a unique scent
thankk-you for posting Karolyn Q