By Hans Ebert Visit Hans-Ebert.com
Good for racing. It’s an expression bandied about sometimes almost too liberally. That something or another is “good for racing”. Most times, it rarely is.
Yesterday at Moonee Valley, everything and everyone came together. Even those who weren’t privy to have been there. That international audience. Like many in Hong Kong who were seeing the magic of Winx for the first time. It really was good for racing.
Social media, especially Twitter, where often bile spills over into a feeding frenzy of negativity, was filled with positivity. No one tried to crash the party and dampen the mood with the usual handwringing. None of that now tiresome self righteous indignation. Those sour grapes of wrath. There was no bringing up of the usual cornflakes of personal agendas. No trolls allowed. Only positivity.
Winx made it all happen. Winning her fourth Cox Plate. Her 29th consecutive win. Making her one of very few greats of the turf. Perhaps the greatest.
The lead up to the main event was fantastic. It didn’t need tabloid fodder type “promotions”. When the product is good, nothing else is needed. It speaks for itself. Word of mouth advertising is the best.
Winx, Hugh Bowman, Chris Waller, the connections and those behind the scenes in cameos and co-starring roles did the rest.
.@cwallerracing's staff put in countless hours behind the scenes. @aresleo This result is for you. #Winx pic.twitter.com/GmVLlIc8DG — Racing.com (@Racing) October 27, 2018
A day @MCYeeehaaa will never forget.#Winx pic.twitter.com/JBzSZYRRdh — 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) October 27, 2018
Matt Chapman from the UK threw the cat and the stats amongst the pigeons, and- not but- it added an extra ingredient of spice. And goofiness and showbiz and showboating to the icing on the Winx cake.
By the time bolter Star Of Carrum brought the curtain down on Cox Plate Day, the electricity in the air was still abuzz.
We are very very fortunate to have been there. Even if watching from a million miles away. We were part of history. It doesn’t happen every day.
This really was going international. That Cox Plate Day was good for racing. Only the most churlish would argue that it wasn’t.
Cox Plate Day at Moonee Valley raised the bar. The only fireworks needed was that on course experience. An on course experience which managed to travel and be felt through the streaming. On smartphones. Television. Through sharing. Engaging. Through a sense of purpose and belonging.
Horse racing was in a better place. And a good space. It was good for horse racing. It truly was. And high time.
Thanks, Winx. Hugh Bowman. Chris Waller. The connections. And let’s give ourselves a little pat on the back. We all deserve it.
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