Horse racing is a big thing in Mauritius. The race track is reputed to be the second oldest in the world, or in the southern hemisphere, depending on who you are listening to. The Turf Club of Mauritius runs weekly meetings from April to December - which must make the track one of the most heavily used.
The Turf Club also makes foreign visitors most welcome.
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| The group gathers - jackets and ties preferred for men |
As the first race was at 1230 our group of 12 met on the dockside at 1100. A minibus had been organised by Laurie (
Apogee) and the group was made up by the crews of
Apogee, Felix, Minnie B, Traveller, Xenix, Tigger and
Sea Bunny.
As the preferred dress code for men is jackets and ties Richard had borrowed a jacket for the occasion and lent out two of the 3 ties he has on board - one borrower became a very temporary member of Channel Sailing Club and another had Richards "bunny" tie (lots of rabbits - not the Playboy variety).
On arrival at the course we were met by Mr Lalah, a guest services agent.. He apologised that there was not a free box available but saw us comfortably installed in the stand, with bar, food service and Tote to hand.
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| Potential winner in the photofinish box |
We had to accept that the view of the mountains in the background over the course is marginally more impressive than our familiar view of the Surrey Hills from the Epsom Grandstand. The crowds in the centre where access is free, as at Epsom, possibly rival those on the Hill on a non-Derby race day.
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| Max Rapax is led in |
In race 3 a horse called Max Rapax was running. With a grandson called Max one of us had to back it - Susan did. It duly won the race while Richard's horse - Why Worry - was declared an non-starter after problems at the start.
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| Max Rapax wins - photofinish image from the Turf Club website |
View full race reports of the whole meeting
here.
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| The paddock |
Mr Lalah returned on several occasions to ensure we were enjoying the visit and to escort us to places normally off limits to the general public. We watched the horses in the paddock and watched Max Rapax's victory from the management box.
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| Original photofinish camera - no longer in use! |
We went to the visitors' area beside the photofinish/commentary box, following which we were invited inside and given an explanation of the process
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| The present photofinish set up |
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We probably just about broke even on our wagers but were a bit down when minibus, entrance, food and drink were taken into account - obviously out of practice.
This visit can be classified as a Mauritian highlight.
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