
The doors opened at 11am and by 12 everyone had their bets in and the room feel silent for the race that stops the nation! Winner of the 2018 Melbourne Cup was Cross Counter, followed by Marmelo and A Prince of Arran in third. There were numerous sweeps at the event, door prizes and fashion on the field – congratulations to all winners and in particular best dressed Lola Hannah and best fascinator Tracey Angwin.
Following the race and after enjoying a delicious array of homemade goods for lunch Francesca took the floor and shared with us her journey of becoming a Channel 7 sport presenter and the face of spring racing. After sharing stories of her early childhood in England, winning her weight in champagne at the York Cup in 2005, Francesca went on to share with us the three categories and horse characteristics needed for distances within horse racing. (Note that Francesca referred to a good filly always having a good chest and butt).
- The sprinter – A more compact, alert/ready for action horse, solid frame with a reasonable muscly body, solid thighs and girth (lung capacity) and a big chest and butt. Famous sprinter examples include; Black Cavier, Nigella Lawson, Beyoncé and local Dumbleyung Bowling Club lady, Justine Hughes.
- The middle distance – A taller, shiny conditioned coat, a loose walk and strong should/deep girth (even great lung capacity), a defined second thigh and a moderate chest and round elongated butt. Famous middle-distance examples include; Winx, Olivia Newton-John, Pippa Middleton and local Dumbleyung Bowling Club lady, Helen Gooding.
- The stayer – Leggy! With a long fluid walk, calm demeanour, long body and finer arched neck, finer chest and girth with a nice strong fine butt. Famous stayer examples include; Makybe Diva, Elle MacPherson, Cindy Crawford and local Dumbleyung Bowling Club President, Karen Ward.
We thank our special guest, flying in from Melbourne especially for the Dumbleyung event, Francesca Cumani – what a pleasure to hear your story! Further thanks to ‘Sand N Salt’ for attending the event and their door prize donation, Katanning Butcher for their door prize donation, Shire of Dumbleyung and Dumbleyung CRC for use of equipment and the Dumbleyung District Club for the use of your great venue.
A massive thank you to the Dumbleyung Bowling Club for organising this year’s Ladies luncheon Melbourne Cup event. A lovely social event for woman across the Shire and surrounding towns was also made possible with thanks to a crèche service by Helen Bairstow and Barbara Atkins – thank you!