The leaders falter

THE LEADERS FALTER

Three more predictions decided in the last few weeks, all long running Quiz questions which should have caused Quiz veterans no problems. But they did with only one quizzer, Alfie Goodyer, solving all three. The early leaders faltered and in horse racing parlance, the field closed in with a new leader ,David Mulhern, proving that Spring really does arrive early in Cornwall.The biggest cheers in Quiz HQ are always when the last quizzers scores their first points.and glory be, at 4.20 p.m. on the 26^th March, the last quizzers were off the mark’

9)Why does the Quiz always ask about the Women’s Boat Race? Because our Gender Correspondent rightly insists that female sport gets its share of the spotlight. In 2023 the answer in all six races(Lightweight, Reserves and First boat)was CAMBRIDGE. For the women, it was their sixth win in a row, a juggernaut that seems on an unstoppable roll.

Pundits tried to make the tricky conditions, a brisk North wind and tide against, into a potential leveller. One analyst thought these conditions made the Middlesex shore the best choice so a raised eyebrow when the Cambridge captain won the toss and chose Surrey. The underdogs, Oxford, made a spirited start. For four minutes, there was a race, Oxford even ahead.Then Cambridge took over and, always the most crucial moment-when does the leading boat move across into the middle of the stream?”Cambridge”,roared the umpire,”Cambridge” again like a supply teacher with a raucous Year 9.(I know, I’ve got that T shirt.)as the Cambridge cox made his aggressive move with barely feet to spare. Rowing the ultimate team sport where eight try to act as identical cogs in a machine but the ninth, the cox, sits ready to make an inspired individual decision. So close that the Oxford team appealed at the finish but, ruled the umpire, no contact so no foul. With seven new rowers in the Cambridge boat, the juggernaut shows no sign of slowing. Perhaps it’s time for the Quiz to inquire about the winning distance.

10)Jon Rahm became the fourth Spaniard to win the Masters at Augusta. It was the 40^th anniversary of Seve’s second Masters win on what would have been the legendary Seve’s 66^th birthday. Rahm won by FOUR strokes despite having four putted the very first hole. So there were plenty of feel good stories as the Augusta weather finally settled after horrendous rain and high winds which flooded greens and brought monster pine trees crashing down among spectators. But as always in current pro golf, the elephants in the room were the eighteen LIV golfers(Saudi mercenaries)in the field. Rahm’s playing partner, Koepka, was one and he led the field through the second and third days, once by as much as five shots. Koepka faltered on the final day with a 75 and oh, how we LIV haters laughed for LIV play only 54 holes in their tournaments. We didn’t laugh too long for the low round of the day came from Phil Mickelson, LIV’s recruiting sergeant, enough to see Phil finish equal second with Koepka. Only scraps of comfort apart from Rahm for European hopes in the Ryder Cup for the Stars and Stripes dominated the leader board. LIV hostilities resume at the British Open in July and the Hoylake Scousers may be less polite that the Southern gents of Augusta.

11)Corach Rambler, the winner of the Grand National, is a NINE year old which as usual was the most frequent age(13) among the 40 runners, Many quizzers had spotted that there are now more runners aged seven(6)and eight(11)than ever before, encouraged by the success of a seven year old in 2022.The next three home all came from this bunch of relative youngsters closing fast as the leader faltered, deciding his job was done.

Many of you may feel the main story was the arrest of a hundred plus animal rights protesters which delayed the race and the death of three horses during the meeting. As a National Hunt racing fan,I can only mutter with no hope of persuading the protesters, that if they watched the race, they would have seen loose horses racing round at the head of the field, loving to jump the fences for fun with no jockey to persuade them. If they had listened after the race to the trainer and her family, they might realise the depth of the emotion that the vast majority of the trainers and owners feel feel for the horses. It’s what the horses are bred for, trained for during several patient years.which might all come to nothing after a trivial accident in the paddock.