Scottish holiday, ‘Auld Hansel’s Monday’ and mine host at the Flemington Inn was a brawny Scot, James Dunbar. Dunbar commissioned the silver cup from Charles Brentani. Its 15 guineas value represented several weeks wages for most labourers. Lesser races on the day had prizes of saddles and riding whips. Notes in today’s race book give more detail about this event, and the ways in which the history of the long-forgotten Flemington Inn is connected to Flemington Racecourse. History, the present and future always come together at Flemington. Today’s meeting celebrates the rising stars, along with the trainers and stable staff who keep the sport powering ahead, especially in difficult times. And the VRC honours the retirement from training of the champion Pat Hyland who first rode as a jockey at Flemington more than sixty years ago. Sixty out of our 180 years equals one third of the total history of Flemington! The ‘Flemington Cup’ of 1849 was actually run on a course 2 kilometres away, on open land adjacent to the newly-built Flemington Inn on Mount Alexander Road
This race is being commemorated today at the suggestion of Deane Lester
4
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software