Picture of the Day: Putting Bets on the Horses

Our stack of bets that didn't amount to much in the end!

A good friend took me and another girlfriend to the races tonight at Happy Valley. We had a delicious meal of baked cod with Malaysian spices (ie spicy soy sauce), and an appetizer and dessert buffet, but when it came to horse racing we weren't very good punters.

I tried to do my homework and study the racing section of the newspaper ahead of time, but only managed to glean some picks from the racing journalists.

In the first race I picked two horses to place and they both came in! For a HK$40 bet I made HK$58!

After that it was all downhill -- lost the next four races. Thank goodness we left after the fifth one and cut our losses. My friends fared worse than me -- they didn't win at all!

Nevertheless it is fun to sit in the member's area, enjoy some dinner and drinks, catch up and then go place some bets every half hour.

In the end we have a pile of HK$10 and HK$20 bets that amounted nothing, but we had a fun evening anyway.

Taking a Chance on Hainan

Tourists in Hainan will soon have horse racing to play along with surf and sand

The Chinese government is keen on developing Hainan into more than just "China's Hawaii" -- it's going to add horse racing and lotteries to the mix of entertainment that seems to be welcome news in the region.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club said in a statement that while "there has not been any discussion" so far with the Hainan authorities, but it would be pleased to exchange views on the promotion of equine sports there, if invited.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club welcomed the latest news

"The club is aware of the news reports that... the State Council... supports Hainan province developing equine sports," the club said.

Late on Saturday night the guidelines were released, a day after Xi Jinping announced plans to develop Hainan to have more economic freedom and greater market access.

While Beijing bans all kinds of gambling, it allows two types of lotteries, including one where punters predict the outcomes of international football [soccer] matches. It also allows horse racing but not betting. Sounds like an oxymoron, but that may change soon.

Since the 1990s there were attempts to get horse racing off the ground in China, with proposals in Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Nanjing. In 1992 a race course opened in Guangzhou, but was closed seven years later as an "unsatisfactory experiment".

Hainan's development will not impact Macau too much

Meanwhile analysts in Hong Kong believe this latest development will not impact Macau much, as the former Portuguese enclave has a fully developed industry that includes entertainment, conventions and exhibitions.

Hong Kong legislator Yiu Si-wing from the tourism sector believes the city can benefit from tourists who get a resort atmosphere from Hainan, and then the international city experience from Hong Kong.

With the central government's blessing, horse racing will happen soon -- but can you bet on it? Hard to say.

A Horse of Hope

Brian and Jan Vokes with their race horse Dream Alliance

I was completely disorganized this year about watching films from the Hong Kong International Film Festival, but managed to catch one this afternoon.

Called Dark Horse, it's a documentary about a horse from a small Welsh town that manages to beat the odds.

Jan Vokes is a middle-aged barmaid who in 2000 decided to breed a racehorse. It turns out she knows a bit about breeding racing pigeons and whippets. But horses?

Dream Alliance didn't come from an impressive pedigree

While she's the driving force of the project, she rounds up 22 more people to chip in £10 a week for a year to train the horse and house it in proper stables.

But bear in mind this horse doesn't have a particularly impressive pedigree at all -- and his owners are working class people from a town where the coal mines shut down, and so economic prospects are poor.

And because it is a syndicate that put in money for the horse, Jan calls it Dream Alliance, a beautiful chestnut coloured horse. He's spindly at first and the trainers aren't sure he's built for speed.

However, in his first race he came in fourth, then third, second...

Everyone in the documentary recalls the events with such clarity and colour, though they themselves are interesting characters. Jan's husband Brian has lost some teeth and has many tattoos, another, Tony Kerby whips off his shirt when Dream Alliance wins a big race, while the other members of the syndicate are just chuffed to watch the horse run because he's become part of the family, representing the town.

The documentary by Louise Osmond also talks about the culture behind horse racing, that it is an aristocratic privilege mostly because it is such an expensive sport.

However the Dream Alliance syndicate breaks through these barriers and together with the horse with a scrappy personality, they make a name for themselves for about eight years and win £137,000 in prize money.

Jan was thrilled to accomplish something in her life

Along the way, viewers learn more about race horses, how they are trained, and how you have to completely trust an animal to do what you hope it will do.

Dark Horse is a beautiful story with so many twists and turns that you can hardly believe Dream Alliance and the syndicate went through all of those peaks and valleys.

Osmond tells the story wonderfully -- the cast of characters really tell the story so well, while there are a few reenactments of the early days. It's too bad some of the older footage is too blurry on the big screen, but you get the idea.

Nevertheless Dream Alliance is a metaphor for life -- as Howard Davies, one of the syndicate members says, "It's elation when you can do something when no one gives you a chance."

Dream Alliance member Tony Kerby enjoyed the ride

Heck if an animal with a dodgy background can come from behind and win big, why can't we humans do that too?

Dark Horse (2015)

Directed by Louise Osmond

Audience Award Winner at the Sundance Film Festival 2015

Don't Look Down, Look Up

Praying for good luck at Che Kung Temple may not necessarily come true...

Yesterday over 50,000 people went to Che Kung Temple in Sha Tin to pray for good luck and prosperity in the Year of the Monkey.

However it seems that all that praying isn't going to help much this year.

Today the Hang Seng Index fell to its lowest point since 1994 on the first day of trading after Chinese New Year, dropping 3.9 percent or 742.37 points to end the day at 18,545.80.

Analysts predicted a red start to the year, with declining commodity prices, capital outflows due to currency fluctuations and the impact of China's economic slowdown.

Even the first race day at Sha Tin had a betting turnover of HK$1.47 billion, down from last year's record HK$1.7 billion.

But sentiment was bad probably due to the added downer of the "riots" in Mongkok added to the pessimism.

Over 60 people were arrested, with ages ranging from 15 to 70. Thirty-seven of them appeared in court today, some charged with inciting riots.

It's not a good start and signs of a challenging year ahead economically.

But hopefully instead of radical localists, there should be grassroots movements to actively create a better Hong Kong, whether it be helping groups of underprivileged people, preserving the environment, or lobbying lawmakers to create change.

There are already many groups that do these things, but perhaps now is time to create a groundswell of support for them.

If we can't make gobs of money, can we at least establish the foundations for a better place for the next generation?

Making Hong Kong better doesn't start with government. It starts with us.

And since the government won't listen to us, we should take ownership of the city, creating a civil society that takes the high road. Not the ugly one down to violence.