Grand National *mentions betting*
 

Anyone else going to be watching the race/picking a winner this afternoon? In our house we each pick 2 horses and put £5 on each, either to win or each way. I've gone for 'Organisedconfusion' and either 'Black Apalachi' or 'Midnight Haze' - haven't quite decided. The Wicked Stepmother has picked 2 complete long shots in 'Tharawaat' and 'Swing Bill'. None of us know anything about racing or the horses, we just pick the ones we like the names of and have a bit of fun watching, having never won a penny. There are some cool names this year, I also like 'Shakalakaboomboom' but I only allow myself 2 horses so mustn't get carried away :tongue2: So you guys, who've you picked/who're you going to be cheering for?


*If you have an issue with horse-racing, could I respectfully ask that you discuss it in the debating room and let those of us who enjoy it have a little fun in this thread? Thank you.

I'm not really into the racing but I do hear Shakalakboomboom is a good one.

just bet on shakalakaboomboom and organisedconfusion

our family have half the field covered! got to have a winner, surely!?
im quite a racing fan, being a horsey girl and have a friend who is a jockey.
real shame one of my fave jockeys has just been injured and wont be racing in the national :(

i will be watching but through fingers, i love the national but always worry for the horses. hope they all come home safe and sound!

and my fave is shakalakaboomboom just because of his name :D

Ive bet on organisedconfusion and treacle!
I usually pick the winner so i hope its the same today!x

Ooo, some bad falls :/

I didnt win anything in the family sweepstake. Le woe.

I had Junior and Weird Al, which I was glad to get because of my love for Weird Al Yankovic.

I heard 2 horses died :( according to pete and synchronised....maybe thats why he did a runner at the start D: x

According to Pete and Synchronised both suffered fatal injuries and had to be put down, and Weird Al and Killyglen are being treated by vets.

'Tis sad.

It's very sad that this stuff happens :/

Wow :( Synchronised was fine and healthy on the news yesterday morning :( How tragic

I went with Organisedconfusion and Black Apalachi in the end; both fell at the 8th fence *tuts* Gutted for Sunnyhillboy - imagine being beaten by a nostril. At the end I was cheering for Seabass, it would've been cool for a female jockey to win. There did seem to be a lot of bad falls this year, I thought I saw all the horses that fell get up, but then I saw the black screens and my heart sank. A real shame to lose 2 beautiful animals, and one of whom just won the Cheltenham Gold Cup :sad:

i won £82 as i got seabass and In Compliance in (betted with paddy power so got 5th place aswell) at 150-1.

feel so sad. i said to my dad as soon as i heard syncronised had been entered, that he shouldnt run. and when he unseated Mccoy before the start i thought he would have been pulled out.

and According to Pete had alot of coverage in the build up, i fell in love with him and his owners were lovely. i feel so so sorry for them.

this part of racing i hate, but racing brings so much to the equine industry.
and i know that racehorses are treated like royalty, many more horses die daily in fields due to cruelty and neglect and at least these guys would have had a quick end and felt no pain.

Sad day, although it was a brilliant and thrilling finish.

Terrible that horses should die steeplechasing, what a waste of beautiful animals - but of course they probably wouldn't exist at all if they hadn't been bred for it in the first place.

And spare a thought for the jockeys. 40 mph, 10 feet up in the air and your horse gets it wrong. You're going to hit the ground big time and then be trampled by all the horses following behind. Though they did volunteer!

All that said, I still believe that the National is one of the great spectacles of all time ... the intensity and the utter chance of 4 1/2 miles and all those fences - wow!

Tony.

I didn't win anything, but I was so, so happy for Kate Walsh ^_^

If there's one thing I love about the National, it's seeing the horses who are unseated still running and having a whale of a time. I know it's what they're bred and trained for, but if a horse doesn't want to run then it won't; you see horses who refuse to run time and time again. It is incredibly sad when horses are injured or have to be put to sleep, but they live a life of beautiful treatment and health and do not suffer when they have to be put down.