''I have wonderful memories of riding at Randwick for Tom,'' she said last week regarding her six-year stint there. De Gonneville had been the leading lady jockey before they became fashionable, and was allowed to compete against the men. Both ankles have been pinned, nothing to do with racing, and a hip replacement put her out of the saddle. De Gonneville is still training ''two or three for a bit of fun'' at Port Macquarie. Of ''Maggie'' she said: ''It kicks up such a fuss when a stranger comes into the stable it would be impossible for anyone to get near the horses.''Īround that period, nobblers found it easier to get into stables than women.īetty Lane broke the gender barrier, receiving a Randwick trainer's licence, but Margaret De Gonneville was my first sighting of one at headquarters, riding trackwork for Tommy Smith, about 1960. ''He's bodgie.''Īt this stage, a girl in the office seemed less welcome than a tattooed Hell's Angel with dangling bike chains.Īnyway, Powell and ''Maggie'' survived the Sydney visit, basically for information on choosing yearlings from Maurice McCarten, a leading trainer, and hoped to get an owner-trainer's licence in Melbourne. ''I got a double-page spread and Norman Von Nida only got half a page,'' Simons said.įinally Charles pointed to Bill Mordey, later punter, rugby league writer and fight promoter, with disdain. A gentleman, Simons once appeared in The Truth due to a divorce action he wore as a badge of honour. Not so Jim McAuley, a former ballroom-dancing instructor and wrestling referee, but then an all-sport expert prone to airing his many dislikes in language unbecoming, particularly regarding ''Ten Pound Poms''.Ĭharles gesticulated to Vic Simons, who produced 10 races of greyhound form, handwritten, and covered the golf. The second-most popular response with 30 percent of our votes was "none," perhaps indicating that those respondents take saving energy especially seriously.Īs always, remember that our Twitter polls are unscientific, because of our low sample size and because our Twitter respondents are self-selected.Nearby, Ernie Christensen, a great sporting reporter, was making the typewriter hum like no other before or after. In all, 70 percent of our poll respondents expressed an interest in some type of electric car racing. READ MORE: New York race closes out Formula E season and multi-car strategy (Updated)Īfter VW's performance at Pikes Peak a surprising 17 percent of our Twitter followers expressed an interest in hill climbs or other types of electric car racing, perhaps some that organizers have yet to consider. Only 7 percent said they had any interest in electric drag racing, although if the popularity of YouTube videos showing Teslas dusting Dodge Challengers and Lamborghinis is any indication, this might not be indicative of the broader American public. Specifically, our question last week asked: "What type of electric-car racing interests you?"Īlmost half of our respondents, 46 percent, expressed some interest in Formula E. With all that activity, we thought it was time to ask our Twitter followers what kind of electric car racing would interest them. What type of electric car racing interests you? The National Hot Rod Association, which sanctions drag races, may add a new electric racing class.Īnd FIA, which hosts Formula E street races around the world is preparing to start its fifth season-for the first time with batteries big enough to last the whole race. Volkswagen tackled Pikes Peak with an electric hill-climb car last month and shattered the course record. DON'T MISS: Volkswagen's ID R Pikes Peak race car shows why you should care about electric car racingĪs electric cars have gained a foothold in public consciousness-and as automakers try to strengthen that foothold-we've seen more electric cars involved in racing.
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