![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oGbiu4c1wc65xPT4SkgBDKP_GC0BSQYh15tjAgCeVDwt4iNUPTQFkEftCBDzYBIM32B1Bj2rdl1Ky-yZK0WYv_Svr9aTVG3oq-rdaCG56xhvFpCqihwGIIrq5GExCCb5XJnr7ngN7Sy9/s400/AddRaceDay+397.jpg)
Yesterday's
New Zealand Trotting Cup Meeting at Addington Raceway was a first for me and I have to confess I was MUCH more interested in the crowds than I was in the horses. I never went near a betting slip, I hardly saw a race; but I am pleased with this shot from the first race - horses flying through the air, all hooves off the ground.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgju_St05fmCeTes_IHqYyVpNlcCTPNfm7R9Sl9LlBR2XSEsXQD3Fn_okpzeBXTK5vUXsw06drrQ_nH0j34UCuBtQom11oxE6jrQDyX2_zbvJmTMrPevlUErXeefivh-LK_1jB63EACzBCt/s400/AddRaceDay+092.jpg)
And this shot of
one of the earlier winners, with the television cameraman studiously photographing something entirely different. (A man after my own heart I think)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0vKNAF1105PE9n5Oy6x-AXWisKMxX3hj1IPYlM-sePvdXQjFR0e_toDC1olcmvg1A0bZXDrkYL9h-602KowBSESCd-wYTmM5SrsKHJ7QMCj0CTC73E4O_MWx6LKx96PL9k5vihlzDMeF5/s400/AddRaceDay+465.jpg)
And then the main race -
the NZ$1-million New Zealand Cup Race, which was ultimately won by the favourite, North Canterbury-trained
Monkey King - that's him nearest left...his rider, Methven's Ricky May with the bright blue striped sleeve....charging down the final straight. I know virtually nothing about horse racing but I have to say, there's quite an adrenalin buzz when the crowds start screaming and cheering and jumping up and down. I really needed another set of hands to photograph the crowd, especially during the final race. In winning the race,
Monkey King set the second-fastest winning time in cup history - no wonder I couldn't keep up with him! And no offence to the horses and their owners, trainers, riders but I still think the crowds are more interesting. With strict drinking rules in place for this year's meeting, the mood was a little less'exuberant' and drunken that I had anticipated but nonetheless,
dress people up, gather them in huge numbers and give them alcohol and you're guaranteed a priceless show of human behaviour. That's what I was there for and I wasn't disappointed.
www.addington.co.nz www.nzcupandshow.co.nz
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