So here we are. Australia’s greatest day of racing.
But there’s a more pressing issue than finding the winner of the Derby. Which, by the way, will be Savvy Nature. Money for jam.
Unless we do something, the one and only Bart Cummings might be missing on Cup Day.
Mike Colman has been fighting this all week in the Courier Mail. And I’m with him.
Have you seen the great man lately? Bart, not Mike. Father time is within a length of him. In our mind, we still see him as he once was, tall and proud in the winner’s circle. It’s no longer the case.
It could be, that there won’t be too many more visits to Flemington on the first Tuesday of the month. So we need to act now.
His one and only hope is Precedence. He’s decided not to run him today, even though he could have qualified with a win. No, Bart won’t do that. He wants the committee to help him. And they should.
If they don’t, there’s every chance our great race will go around without the living legend. And that’s simply not acceptable.
Punters, it’s time for us to act. We need to band together, across the nation, and take things into our own hands.
The campaign must start right now, to have the rules changed. Just this once. There’s still time. Precedence must run. Sacrifices can be made.
Yes, it means connections of another horse will miss out. If they are genuine racing lovers, they’ll cop that.
It might be one of the lesser internationals. Boo hoo. Who would you rather see, a Canadian camel, or the famous Cummings colours?
Can you imagine the roar, when Bart shuffles out to the mounting yard? It will be deafening. There won’t be a dry eye in the house.
I can’t begin to think what would happen if the horse actually won. Cup chaos. The only thing guaranteed is that The Master would deliver one of the great one-liners.
Racing has a long and proud history of bending rules. Never has there been a more important time to do it.
It will send a message, that the Cup is about more than money. It’s bigger than that. It’s a part of who we are.
We owe it to Bart. It’s our race, and we want him there.
Start sending messages now. Hit Facebook and Twitter. Ring your radio station. We have until the last race this afternoon.
If they listen to us, it could be the most memorable Cup ever. The day Bart stole the show. Again.
Hold All Tickets 