Ok Rush , and everybody else , here are the 24 runners for the $5 million Melbourne Cup of 2006 .


1 Yeats . ( Ireland )

2 Delta Blues ( Japan )

3 Railings

4 Tawqeet

5 Geordieland

6 Headturner

7 Short Pause

8 Activation

9 Land 'n Stars

10 Mahtoum

11 On a Jeune

12 Pop Rock

13 Zipping

14 Dixelle

15 Ice Chariot

16 Kerry O'Reilly

17 Zabeat

18 Art Sucess

19 Demerger

20 Glistening

21 Mandela

22 Dolphin Jo

23 Maybe Better

24 Efficient

Crowd at the track should be 110,000 . Worldwide TV audience about 500 million . Weather drizzle in the morning , sunshine for the big race ,about 75 degrees.

See ya all online ,
STEVE

Thanks, Steve!

I don't know which will be more fun: Watching CC at the Race Track, picking our horses to cheer on, or visiting with Steve!

I have also started adding to The Old Movie Maven's section at http://theoldmoviemaven.tripod.com/id87.html that includes a link to a sports websidte in Australia at www.aport927.com.au that very kindly came from Steve!

I will also be sure to have plenty of Mint Juleps in the beverage cart tonight!

Virginia

I do know how to spell "website"!--VA

Put down that julip , it's www.sport927.com.au .
I'm busy cutting out the horses names from the newspaper . You see this idea of getting a horse to root for in the Melbourne Cup is a long tradition . Every factory , office , old peoples home ...everywhere in Australia people run a fun "Cup Sweep" with a small prize for the winner . It has been so for generations . Also today is a public holiday because of the race , must be the only place in the world that has a horse race as the reason for a holiday ! By the way the cup the winner gets is solid gold and is made by hand each year . The track is lined with 30,000 rose bushes which the gardeners tend so they will flower their best on Cup day . It is always run on the first Tuesday in November except for 1942 when they had to run it on a Saturday because they could spare the holiday from war production .
So this is the tradition you take part in , as did Charlie back then .
See ya soon , STEVE

Dear Steve,

I see that latest reports have EFFICIENT as having been scratched. 23 horses in the final field.

See you very soon...

Sincerely,
Rush