Cut to the chase

Barry Geraghty rides Monty's Pass to victory in the 2003 National

Spring comes to consciousness
and sets the pulses racing
across the good to firm of these thrilling fields
where plot twists extend beyond the mortal realm
and moistened palms crease betting slips
between fingers crossed

With rhythm and speed kings
the mythical flying horse
the progressive chasers
the par for the course
the hard to fancy
the run-of-the-mill
its all about taking a punt
'cos that's the thrill
of the tension and intensity
from explosion to chase
you've got to have a flutter
on this emotionally-fuelled race
it stirs the blood, stiffens the sinew
and could tease out that latent Clare Balding within you

Outlined against a blue April sky, the splendour falls
times present and times past are simultaneously inhaled
memories and impressions collide and distort
those with loftier pretensions
when course becomes kingdom
and saddle becomes throne

The curious, the quirky, the beautifully named
the natural born thrillers, the well-campaigned
the against all odds, the lightly-raced
the progressive chaser, the ever well-placed
the emerging dark horse, the top class stayer
the overweight alert, the dead cert player
the rookie and the bookie talking monkeys and ponies
the top ride form guide, believable and phonies

The commotion of emotion, the first to show
the electric sprinters, the ready, steady, go
the sheepskin noseband, the blinkered view
the four-footed tackles, the too-good-to-be-true
the ripple of muscle, the pound of flesh
the old, the young, the tired, the fresh
owners, trainers, runners, riders
dead certs, favourites, fancied outsiders

Binoculars, monoculars, telescopes and glasses
trilby's and camel coats and corporate passes
pursed lips, dodgy tips, the full SP
and tactile tic-tac tactics with no guarantee

I musn't go down to the bookies again ...