Mad hats can bring peace to the world

21 June 2013 - 03:14 By Mike Moon
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Mike Moon.
Mike Moon.
Image: SUPPLIED

Royal Ascot isn't only enjoyed by punters - picture editors of newspapers and magazines around the world revel in the bounty that the five-day race meeting in England brings.

Even this esteemed, sober-minded, highly discriminating publication saw fit this week to adorn its front page with a photo of an Ascot racegoer resplendent in a scrumptious outfit made out of chocolate nibbles.

It's mainly ladies' hats that lift the hearts of those brave people at the picture desks, those whose eyes and hearts have grown weary of sad images from global trouble-spots. A flighty bird - or indeed a cheery chap - poncing about on a racecourse in a silly hat lightens the mood considerably.

I suddenly had the crazy thought that somehow the key to world peace and harmony might lie hidden among all those colourful bobbing heads at Ascot, as they carried extravagant bows, feathers, flower arrangements and a cornucopia of edibles (a fully balanced diet, and more, could be had right there, from fruit and veg to steak and eggs to our choccie organza).

But that's what a colourful race day does to one - makes you light-headed, light-hearted and given to notions. Like extracting lots of money from bookies on the next race, eh?

Seeing how much people seem to enjoy stepping out with a flourish in dressy gear on occasions, it's surprising that the world remains determinedly fixed on the merits of the sartorial "casual". I'm told there is a whole "designer casual" factor that sets one apart and delineates class . but I steer clear of such unfamiliar territory.

Suffice it to say: a day at the races is a good excuse to doll up, doll.

We can do just that in a fortnight's time, at South Africa's greatest race, the Durban July.

Of course, Greyville doesn't have anything like the strict dress code of Ascot. However, you might be required to make an effort in certain areas. And down the years people have needed little prompting to chuck on the glad rags on the first Saturday of the seventh month of each year.

The July isn't noted as a smart, classy, high-fashion gig - in the way Cape Town's Queen's Plate meeting is - and it veers more towards exaggeration, quirkiness and the bizarre.

In my salad days, ladies' fashion was all about less fabric, more skin. In old racing books, it's not just pix of horses that are nostalgic; those shots of lasses in mini-skirts, hot pants and carelessly buttoned blouses get me equally choked up. Nowadays women cover up more but they're decidedly more unladylike, and I know which I prefer.

If you're about to dig out the old double-breasted three-piece from mothballs for a Greyville visit, or you're planning the casual ensemble for July-watching from the sofa, remember, the far more important task is compiling a short-list of likely July winners. Get to it!

Mine? Pomodoro (5/1), Capetown Noir (6/1), Wylie Hall (12/1), No Worries (16/1), Heavy Metal (25/1), Tellina (25/1) and Wild One (28/1).

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