- Forget Tokyo Joe - It’s Detlef san at the Cup
- 27 November 05
- Travel
- 3 Comments
My first day in Tokyo after the flight from Sydney. I got in at 6:00AM and had a troubled sleep, I can't sleep on planes at the best of times but it was hindered by having to fly through a few storms.
Nothing left to do but get to the hotel, have a freshen up and head off to the track to Tokyo Racecourse for the Japan Cup. One has to get their priority's right after all!
Thankfully, I had a work colleague who was able to guide me through the subway system, and get me to the Shinjuku Station to catch a connecting train to the racecourse. Shinjuku Station has 1 million passengers pass through it virtually every day. No wonder I was feeling apprehensive - thankfully I got to the track and importantly back through the subway system in one piece.
The first thing I noticed about Tokyo racecourse is that it doesn't have a crowded feel to it, it's pretty spacious and welcoming.
I got there about 2 hours before the Japan Cup, and while the crowd grew appreciably up until the big race, it was relatively comfortable. The track has a great grandstand running from about 200 metres out and then right through to the finishing line.
The crowd was mainly youngish and male, a bit different to Australia where there is a more even spread of demographic. There would've 100,000+ there for the running of the Japan Cup, akin to our Melbourne Cup, or the Kentucky Derby, as the biggest race day in Japan.
Surprisingly cheap to get into 200 Yen or about $3, and a free race program as well......pity it was useless for a non-Japanese speaking punter. Aside from the horses names in English everything else was indecipherable - it was all a blur.
Like Moonee Valley in Australia they have the mounting yard at the rear of the grandstand, but it is the best mounting yard I have seen with tiered standing areas, and large decks out the back of the grandstands.
There's a touch more ceremony at the Japanese races, a few touches like the waving of red handkerchief by the starter before he releases the horses, as well as jockeys lining up in the mounting yard and on cue almost sprinting to get on their respective mounts.
This shot of the actual Japan Cup runners in the mounting yard shows how the crowd slowly built up during the day.
Given the lack of an English form guide, I only had a bet on the Japan Cup, a box quinella that costed 3000 Yen or $36. Nonetheless, I wanted to be part of it, so I had to quickly scarper from the mounting yard to the track side of the stand and view the race, just in time to see more (very) minor pomp and paegentry beofre they loaded them in the barriers.
It was an exciting race at least, with a tearaway leader setting an electrifying pace to the turn.
And then the favourite Zenno Rob Roy making a move to hauled in by Alkaseed and Heart's Cry in a photo. Despite the big crowd the atmosphere is nothing compared to Melbourne Cup or Cox Plate. The punters over here are still a tad too polite. I did bring back probably 100 Japanese betting slips, which will come in handy for drawing purposes down the track. <<Older Main Newer>>
comments
Thank you for the mini trip. How I envy you. And everything looks so expansive and clean! Can I come next year?
Posted by andrea on 28.11.05 at 02.47pm
Konnichiwa (afternoon here still, only a couple of hours ahead). Very glad to read that last line because was about to write in regards to your “pity it was useless for a non-Japanese speaking punter” comment; I will be expecting to see the race program used by a non-Japanese speaking artist to draw on
Would love to see some large prints along with your multi-purpose Keno forms! Glad to see you are missing our non-politeness. Sayoonara.
Posted by Anonymous on 28.11.05 at 04.11pm
My money was on the guy in pink.
Posted by Pink Fifi on 18.12.05 at 01.33am