Melbourne Cup - Cultural Cringe?

[imastawka]

The race that stops a nation may not be our classiest moment. Every year there is video and photo evidence of drunken debauchery, often engaged in by well-dressed Aussies in fascinators and smart suits.

Australians are accustomed to the aftermath shots, have a little bit of a giggle at the photo of the woman in smart racewear and net fascinator riding a bin.

But this year the US, the land of Trump, has discovered our annual day of anything goes, and an opinion piece which labels the event as “decadent and depraved” may well have served as a tourism ad for Australia.

© Provided by Australian Women's Weekly

The article which compares the US’s Kentucky Derby with the Melbourne Cup, believes Aussies come out on top when it comes to total debauchery.

http://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/photos-of-melbourne-cup-%E2%80%9Cdepravity%E2%80%9D-cause-a-...

I know Aussies look at it as 'a bit of fun', but I'm cringing

after looking at the photos in the article. 

I just never gave it a thought that overseas countries might see our 'bit of fun'

I just thought they'd see the race and maybe the fashions.

[collect247]

Why didn't she just get on that guys back and ride him lol

[serendipityricho]

Thoroughbred horses on the track--show ponies in the crowd.

[bright.ton42]

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I just thought they'd see the race and maybe the fashions.

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To be honest so did I.    This photo and many others I've seen make me want to throw up. 

[icyfroth]

How embarrassing!

[lyndal1838]

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@serendipityricho wrote:

Thoroughbred horses on the track--show ponies in the crowd.

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That is an insult to show ponies.  The true show pony is the aristocrat of the horse world and would not dream of acting like an idiot.

[ecar3483]

One year  I got to wondering about VB and whether they had a design team who designed the boxes that VB comes in to accommodate 24 cans, or whether they spent hours agonising over the best shape for a box, so that a head sized hole could be cut in it, and it could be worn as a hat.

Cringe? Nah. People have a few and they do silly things.

Ride a wheelie bin, have an impromptu limbo contest, okay, it's not stuff I'd do.

There are days when people do things like that.

One too many glasses of bubbly at the track leads to, excuse the pun, horseplay.

Green beer on St. Patrick's day, stodgy, Northern European inspired food in the middle of Summer - you might know it better as Christmas.

Shake my head at it, yes, cringe, well maybe a bit, but I'm not going to make a big deal of it.

If people get drunk at the races and fall over they're silly duffers, and if some Yank journo wants to write a tongue in cheek article about it then good for him for if it gets published.

I only had to read it once to see that he was having a bit of a lend, and I commend him for using "emotive words", because if it ruffled the feathers of the pearl clutching set, then it gave those of us who take a little more laid back view of life a laugh.

I'll tell you what, if, to paraphrase the article, bikini clad mud wrestling is allowed at the Cup, then I'll cringe.

🙂

[lionrose.7]

No way would I put my bottom on a dirty rubbish bin ewww

[freddie*rooster]

Thank goodness there were no mobile phones around after a few burbon and cokes

when I was young and carefree. 

[serendipityricho]

Lyndal -i refered to the Urban Dictionary.

Show Pony-----a person that shows off in the public eye------

Richo//.