This is the eating disorder definition of flipping where they eat a full meal before heading to the toilets and forcing themselves to vomit it all back up again. It is pretty much bulimia by another name.
Back in those days Prince Khaled didnlt speak much English. Apparently they were up in the stands and Guy Harwood was screaming "what the eff is Pat doing" The Prince turned round to his intepreter and said "what is Mr Harwood saying?"
Two hours trawling through old photos looking for the three-way photo in the 1998 International Stakes at York, that Pat won on One So Wonderful, and I should have guessed – Pat was on the far side and all you can see is the white cap! You can see it is him on the other one a few yards earlier. I did dig out Pat winning the 1991 Nunthorpe Stakes on Sheikh Albadou, who subsequently won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
I can remember Terry Biddlecombe relating a tale of how he and Josh Gifford had been drinking before riding in the Mackeson Gold Cup. It was hardly common practice but far from unusual in those days.
Has any other jockey won three Arcs in a row? And if QM says the answer is yes can he put photos up please
I listened to Willie Carson talking about the great loss of his friend. He said Pat used to give out a "giggle" as he passed Willie when he knew he had him and would win the race (similar to the bookie that took my bet each time I backed the afore mentioned Mr Eddery) sure Pat partook of a wee brandy. But you cannot compare the times of afore to now! Bit like removing your central heating and complaining its cold or removing your t'interweb and complaining you dont know whats going on in the world! Different times different circumstances lets not judge!
Drink was a huge problem in the old days, at least it was here in Oz, so I suppose it was all over the place. One of the true legends of the game down here was a gent named Darby Munro who won everything including multiple Melbourne Cups. He had one hell of a drinking problem. On the evening before he won his last MC in 1946 on Russia, he and his wife went to a function. He was a good boy, he abstained from the demon drink. (His nick name was Demon by the way.) After a minor car accident on the way home, he needed the use of a phone, so he knocked on the door of a nearby home where a party just happened to be in full flight. Everybody knows him, a drink it pushed into the hand of an alcoholic and Darby is off and racing. His wife goes back to the hotel. 6 am, Tuesday, Cup day, the great George Moore runs into Darb who's three sheets to the wind. He's shocked at what he sees, but the drunk is nonplussed and tells Moore. "The trouble with you, George, is that you're over-trained." He staggers inside. It's said by a well known owner that according to Darby Munro's wife Shirley, the smashed rider had several cold showers. He also had the occasional ginger ale spiked with a dash if brandy. So ill was he, that he spent the trip to Flemington, throwing up like a mongrel dog. Demon Darb rode a masterful race to win the Cup by a country mile, setting a race record in the process. His drinking problems were so bad that he'd often show up on race day, pissed as a fart. Once while being heaved into the saddle in Sydney, he fell off the other side of the horse. An argument broke out about whether he should be allowed to take the ride. I can't remember who it was was, but someone said Darby could ride better drunk, than most who were sober. I don't know why he was allowed to take the mount, but he did and won the race. From what I gather, Darby Munro was not alone when it came to riders who took to the course inebriated.
No one is judging Pat Eddery, or anyone that drinks to that extent, Gazboy, it's a mental illness after all. There's a world of difference between having a couple of drinks here and there and being an alcoholic, I hadn't realised that Pat's father was an alcoholic and also died from the disease. There is a further interview with his daughter Natasha in today's Racing Post and she talks about how her family, with the help of Kieren Fallon and John Magnier got him into a rehab clinic in Ireland in 2009, but that as soon as he got home he started drinking again and never asked for help again. She said if he had ever asked everyone would have rallied round him, but he never did. It is an awful situation, but you can't help someone that doesn't want to be helped.
If only children could be taught from an early age how to develop a strong will power they would find ways to deal with problems other than turning to things that are addictive that will, eventually, render them helpless. Will power is the only lasting solution but unfortunately most, if not all, won't/can't accept that.
True Cyc. It's those that are only part way there that won't. And the sad/annoying thing is, they won't accept that the won't may eventually become a can't.
Pat’s daughter Natasha was on Nicky Campbell’s Radio 5 Live show this morning participating in a discussion about alcoholism with three other contributors. Reading between the comments that she made, I do not think that her father actually had a serious drinking problem when he was riding but did hit the bottle once he had hung up the saddle. She did say that she had given up trying to get him to help himself and had not seen him for five years. Unfortunately alcoholism is much more common than many of us think. A friend of mine lost his wife a couple of years ago to drink. When she was made redundant, she started drinking at home whilst he was at work, spending her redundancy money and using credit cards to buy bottles of vodka and wine from the local off license. Once the problem had become noticeable to him he was powerless to stop her spending her own money and he was unsuccessful in his attempts to get the authorities to section her because they were only prepared to intervene in cases where the victim was willing to help themselves. She drank herself to death in a year, leaving a teenage daughter. I know somebody who is currently in hospital and prospects are not looking good. This guy had mouth cancer – for which he was operated upon – after a lifetime (in his 50s) of smoking and drinking. Despite being told not to smoke or drink, he resumed both after a short interval and is now in hospital with suspected pneumonia plus complications.
I do think that, by their nature, many top sportsmen/women have addictive personalities. The adrenaline rush of competition fills that gap whilst they are active and competing, but after that short career is over it all boils down to how they choose to channel their energies. Look at John Francome, constantly moving from one new challenge to another, then there's Victoria Pendleton focusing all her energy on learning to ride. Gazza is another example of how badly wrong it can all go if they don't find an appropriate outlet for their drive and will to be the best at everything they do.
Agreed Princess but it's not just sports people. In our company we had retirement preparation courses for those approaching retirement. It was recognised that, post retirement, the first few months were no different to a holiday and is an enjoyable break. However, after a while, if alternative activities aren't take up, boredom/depression can set in. Had never given it a thought when younger but those courses are invaluable.
This is very insightful Princess. I also think very few people understand the nature of attention and when this is not understood we seek external things to concentrate attention. For many all is well when something is concentrating their attention but when there is a loss of that thing the gap can be filled with substances which do the same thing. One of the greatest insights is that of understanding what attention is, how it works.
I worked for a govt agency many moons ago and they had a retirement preparation course of sorts. A colleague of mine was sent to a seminar as he approached retirement and started getting a newsletter for apprentice coffin dodgers. He let me have a look at one of these publications which along with investment advice contained adverts for incontinence pants and stannah stair lifts. Charming! No wonder the poor buggers start drinking. RIP Pat Eddery. His great days took place before I got interested in racing but he was a favourite of my dear ol gran who made a fair few quid by sticking his mounts in multiples. She had her head turned for a while when Cauthen came over here but she wasn't the first female of her vintage to fall for the charms of a yank.
