Arrived early at the course and what a sight, I was expecting to go into the inner course and had dressed accordingly in jeans and a t-shirt. When we got to the course we decided to pay the very reasonable 20 Euros to go into the main enclosure and I felt the most under dressed I ever have in my life. After a little walk round and a glass of Champagne (when in Rome) we headed to the parade ring to catch a glimpse of the runners for the first. I quick stop at the PMU stand to place our bets and then into the stand for the first race. My first action at Longchamp and I must say I was very disappointed, they may as well have ran the race at a different course, I didnât see much of the action apart from Mr Hughes pulling his mount and the horse carrying my Euros as he got no run. One race done and 30 Euros spent. Onto the second race and after a quick look at the form my dart once again fell on a Hughes mount in Malabar, we decided to take this race in from against the rails and the atmosphere was great. Unfortunately once again my mount found a little trouble but would never have beaten the very impressive winner. Further enhancing the form of Tiggy Wiggy. Another 10 Euros lost. Onto the third race and into the stands we went to watch this, the view as they turn in up the long straight is superb. I had selected The Wow Signal and he ran no sort of race. However the decision of the stewards was ridiculous, yes Gleneagles drifted right but he didnât make any sort of contact with Full Mast and was by far the best horse in the race. Call my cynical but if it was the other way round Iâm not sure Full Mast would have been thrown out. One thing did make me smile and maybe it shouldnât as a guy next to my was shouting from the roof tops how he had won 300 Euros and promptly ran off returning with a bottle of Champagne, his face when Gleneagles was thrown out was a picture. 20 Euros lost and a total of 60 Euros down. Having enjoyed our view from the stands we decided this is where we would stay, close to where the runners entered and departed the track. I decided I was going to look deeply into this race and my dart landed on Ribbons, she came there to win the race and was just out gunned late on by We Are whoâs day was about to get a whole lot better. Another filly coming back from a op but given a superb ride. 20 Euros lost 80 Euros down On to the main event, the build up was like nothing I have seen at a racecourse. All the jockeys where given profiles on the big screen, like when football teams are announced on Sky with the players walking towards the camera. I was and still am a big fan of Taghrooda and wasnât deserting her today. The atmosphere intensified as the runners came out onto the track and a roar of approval went up as they runners left the stalls. Treve was as scintillating as she was 12 months earlier, she was tanking along and got a lovely split up the inside. That devastating burst of acceleration was back and the race was soon put to bed. If someone would have told me last year that Treve would go off at 144/10 I would have sent them to the nearest psychiatric unit. What a wonderful training performance and it was a delight to see how happy both trainer and jockey where as well as the Parisian crowd. Another 20 euros down and 100 in total. With a plane to catch that was our time at Longchamp done, it is a wonderful course and I actually liked the fact there were no on course bookmakers. I would recommend to anyone who hasnât attended an Arc Sunday to get it on their to do list.
Glad you enjoyed your day CH. It is indeed a great day out, having been there just the once myself. Says a lot when you can lose 100 Euros and still enjoy the day. Thanks for the report.
It was interesting to read your perception of how the course enclosures would be set up, with you expecting it to be like many a British course with a cheaper “course enclosure”. At Longchamp, the tented village area is hospitality not the cheap seats and there is only one enclosure because they despise the class system. There are a couple of reserved areas for folks travelling with the likes of Horse Racing Abroad. Myself I am quite happy that 20 Euros is the most expensive day in French racing and for that you can stand at the winning posts (all three of them), in the stands and around the parade ring. The five furlong (1000m) straight course is annoying just like Sandown. I went to the winning post as I do every year, but very few punters go over there as you have to climb over a rail-high fence as all the gates are locked and then queue to show your ticket and get back in. I noticed at both days of this year’s meeting there were a lot more security people about and I got odd looks from a couple of them presumably because of my long lens camera; and I got my ear chewed at the Abbaye winning post. Glad you had a good day, even though you contributed substantially to next year’s prize money.
Somebody thought that starting Saturday’s racing at 2:30 was a good idea but it meant that I had three hours to kill after my Eurostar arrived, so I walked down to St Lazare then down Boulevard Haussmann to a big marble arch in the middle of a busy roundabout – I think you know the one. From there I took the Avenue Foch to Porte Dauphine and followed a couple of paths across the Bois De Boulogne to the Allee De Longchamp. I know that the sponsors have put in a lot of effort promoting this year’s meeting, which was probably necessary given the huge hike in the prices in the last couple of years in a country of peasants. I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived to find that there was a substantially bigger crowd than in previous years, perhaps aided by the glorious warm sunshine that is not characteristic of the meeting. I did the whole Weekend, so I was able to take advantage of the 26 Euro Weekend pass rather than pay the 10 Euros for Saturday and 20 Euros for Sunday. Concessions could have got in for 21 Euros. After the first race on Saturday, I should have figured it was not going to be my weekend. On form the Prix Chaudenay looked a three-horse race and I was on the favourite Baino Hope at 11/5 just ahead of Vazira at 12/5; but the spoils went to third choice Auvray, in the colours of Ectot’s breeder. After the Prix Daniel Wildenstein went to Solow, winning his fifth race from six starts this term, I saved my money in the Prix De Royallieu because Zarshana was coupled with Valdiyana and only managed third to Frine. I am sure somebody will eventually explain what went on after the Prix Dollar. We know how fastidious the French are when it comes to their rules and Cirrus Des Aigles and Fractional did come together, but how did the winner get demoted to fifth? Looking at the way he drifted from 30/100 to 1/2 whilst the Godolphin horse shortened, the punters may not have been too unhappy to see Andre Fabre’s charge complete his four-timer at the veteran’s expense. The weather forecast went totally pear-shaped on Sunday. There had been barely a sprinkling of rain (my hotel was a mile from the track) and the French TV weather girl was insistent that it would be sunny and 17 degrees on Sunday. So when I opened the curtains in the morning to leaden skies I put the TV on to find the forecast was now cloudy and 9 degrees. They are as useless as ours at weather but the girl was worth watching. I think the Irish had a worse day than me. The Brits took home the first race while the favourite disappeared in action and then the wrong one won the Marcel Boussac – although Red Evie’s daughter Found looks an Oaks prospect after having the race set up for her. After the Lagardère, I was expecting to see a lynch mob forming as Gleneagles got demoted. Was that their interpretation of taking the Mick? No complaints about Taghrooda running third. Ironic that had Treve not been running, Flintshire – last year’s ante post bet – would have beaten this year’s. She was not helped by the outside draw but she had a good position through the race and the winner was the best horse on the day. Like everybody else, I have no idea what the Japanese were doing and it did look like Avenir Certain did not stay. After the Arc, a third of the crowd disappeared – most of the natives – as usual. If they were at the Stade de France and the home team was winning 1-0 at half-time, would they go home even though they had paid for the second half? Great ride by the “best jockey in the world” in the Prix Du Cadran, reversing Gladiateur form with Bathyrhon thanks to a canny ride on High Jinx. I fancied the Irish there with Pale Mimosa but it just was not their day.
Speaking of “best jockey in the world” tag QM, we had a bit of a light hearted, but forceful discussion on the subject, last Saturday. One of the Freedman brothers, Richard was most effusive when it came to the talents of the "Magic Man" Joao Moreira, and in the process, called him the best rider in the world. Franchesca Cumani, here as a talking head for the Autumn Carnival, raised her voice in utter shock. She jumped straight to the defence of Ryan Moore, but Freedman was having nothing of it. Good tv.
Back in March 2007 when I was training for the Berlin Half-marathon, I was in Paris on a business trip and staying in a hotel in La Defense. Did a late-afternoon training run which took me across the Seine, through the Bois Du Boulonge and around the outside of Longchamp racecourse. Lovely stuff, about 16km and thoroughly enjoyed it (although it started pissing down as I approached the false straight). That's the nearest I've been to the Arc.
