Perth’s weather turned on the sunshine, encouraging almost 17,000 eager racegoers to head out to Ascot
Whilst Melbourne received a thorough drenching, Perth’s weather turned on the sunshine, encouraging almost 17,000 eager racegoers to head out to Ascot Racecourse to celebrate the running of the 2018 Melbourne Cup.
With all ticketed hospitality sold-out well ahead of the day, Ascot also welcomed thousands of general admission patrons into the venue, creating a truly vibrant atmosphere.
“We always offer a wide range of ticketed function areas however this year also wanted to focus on those racegoers who purchased GA tickets” said Perth Racing’s Managing Director John Yovich. “The new Flametree Garden provided the perfect spot and saw thousands of racegoers enjoy free all-day entertainment, whilst large screens broadcast all the action from both Ascot and Flemington.”
Pop-up frozen cocktail bars, a range of food trucks and the popular silent disco, added to the energy surrounding Flametree Garden, which will become a regular fixture this season, returning on Kirin Railway Stakes Day, 24 November.
While partying was certainly a priority, fashion was also a key focus for the day with ladies embracing pops of bright colours and gents donning trousers and jackets, suiting the mild spring weather. With loads of new photo opportunities on course, as well as the on-trend new Gin Parlour bar shaking up the action, crowds had plenty of Insta-worthy memories to make.
The feature race of the day at Ascot, the Listed TABtouch-Burgess Queen Stakes was taken out by Lady Cosmology, ridden by seasoned jockey Paul Harvey, who had a one-ride one-win day! Harvey first won the Burgess Queen Stakes more than 20 years ago, winning on four separate occasions on Achtung Baby (1995), Kalatiara (2000), O’Flirty (2004) and Clueless Angel in 2009.
With crowds still pouring through the gates well into the afternoon, Ascot Racecourse again proved to be a popular location to celebrate the Melbourne Cup in Perth. “With so many other functions on offer we are really pleased to continue to attract a great crowd each year. We still have some of the Carnival finest racedays ahead of us, offering racegoers the opportunity to witness million dollar Group 1 thoroughbred talent from across the nation” said Yovich.
Ascot’s Racing Carnival continues with Champion Fillies Day on Saturday 17 November before the TABtouch Masters takes off on Saturday 24 November, offering 3 consecutive weekends of Group 1 million dollar races.