Horse Power
‘SUCH is the cost of petrol that like William Shakespeares king we are now looking for a horse.
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| Willie Carson was later banned for use of the whip |
And the signs are encouraging that we will soon find one, since weve just spotted a huge, festering Richard The Third sat in the middle of the Kempton Park racetrack.
But we wont bother picking it up to spread on our rose bush because it was laid not by a horse but by a dog, and not just any dog, either, but Simply Fabulous, a pedigree greyhound.
To find out why a racing dog came to be on horseracing track we turn to the Guardian and read news of yesterdays race between the aforementioned pooch and a racehorse called Tiny Tim.
In a bid to find out which is the faster greyhound or horse William Hill bookmakers staged an event.
At the off, Simply Fabulous (not raced competitively since November 2002) was at 6-5, while Tiny Tim (six-year-old bay gelding and runner-up in its last two starts) was the punters favourite at 8-13.
But which would win the contest, held over two furlongs on good to firm ground, with a prevailing wind from the east and not a stuffed hare in sight?
It was the big question – and it has now been answered.
Simply Fabulous lived up its name, upset the odds and romped past the winning post in 22.39 seconds, a full seven lengths (horse or dog unspecified) ahead of Tiny Tim.
Fergus Sweeney, Tiny Tims jockey, says he was a little disappointed to have lost.
It was a good race and I think I would probably have caught the dog if there had been another furlong, he opined.
Pah! Not in a million years, said Simply Fabulous jockey…’
Posted: 3rd, June 2004 | In: Broadsheets Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
