George Bernard Shaw once asked a female acquaintance on a cruise ship, ‘Will you sleep with me for £10,000?’, and received an affirmative answer. When he followed up by asking her, ‘Would you sleep with me for £10’, the lady took considerable umbrage, demanding furiously, ‘What do you think I am?’
‘That,’ said the playwright, ‘has already been established. Now we are merely negotiating the price.’
We are all after a price for something. Having been deeply impressed by his prep run on the Polytrack, I have been trying to find a bookmaker willing to offer me an ante post price on Blue Bajan for Lingfield’s Winter Derby. But the four I tried all limply insisted that they wouldn’t be quoting prices until the day. Considering how much in racing is done to keep their cashflow going, it is often a poor service we receive from the layers in return. The slide-rule men long ago took over from the cavaliers.
It can be a frustration writing a fortnightly Turf column for a weekly magazine. The calendar ensures that by the time you read this the Cheltenham Festival will be all but over. If by then David Pipe, who I hope will also have won the Queen Mother Champion Chase with Well Chief, has picked up a handicap hurdle prize with Gaspara, then you can be sure that the old enemy will be hurting. At Sandown last Saturday, Gaspara’s victory in the Sunderlands Imperial Cup, as 11–4 favourite, underlined how little has changed at Nicolashayne since David Pipe, who has already clocked up more than 100 winners in his first season, took over from father Martin this season.
The Imperial carries a bonus prize of £75,000 for any horse which goes on to win at the Cheltenham Festival.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in