A Day at the Races

I saw the Queen!  I feel like I have accomplished the top of my British “to-do” list.  I know it isn’t partying with Harry, but that was probably somewhat unlikely.

Where did I hang with the Queen, you ask?  I went to the first day of Royal Ascot.  Royal Ascot (or just “Ascot” as all the locals referred to it) is a horse-racing event that runs for 5 days every June.  It is a fancier version of the Kentucky Derby, so dresses, top hats and fascinators were everywhere.

I got invited along with a big group of people from work.  As one of only 2 Americans in our group (the other one being my friend Lisa), I was super-annoying asking all sorts of questions about dress code, rules, etiquette, etc.  I was panicked that I would be “that girl” that showed up in the wrong type of dress, wrong type of hat, etc.  Little did I know that I had nothing to worry about.  More on that later. 

I look tired, but check out my fascinator!

While it doesn’t start at 6am like Opening Day for the Cubs, it is a pretty long day.  We met at the train station at 9:30 in the morning to take a 9:50 train.  I had my fascinator in a bag because I felt stupid sitting on the bus with it on, but my attire pretty much gave away where I was going.  Some young girl stopped me in the middle of the station to take my photo.   Hilarious.  Anyway, first race wasn’t until 2:30, but it is customary to go somewhere beforehand to start celebrating.  We started celebrating on the train with some champagne.

Me, Lisa and Kate on the train

We stopped off in a town about 10 minutes from Ascot and went to a local pub to get some food and drink before heading to the grounds. There were probably about 10 of us that got off at this stop and some random people followed us off the train thinking that we were at Ascot.  They didn’t figure it out until the train pulled away.  Oops.  We invited them to the pub, but they didn’t come with us.  Their loss.

The pub was nice.  It was pretty rustic inside, but we sat outside and enjoyed many a bottle of wine and champagne.  

One of the many bottles we killed

I will say this about pubs in London ---- it could be the biggest dive bar and they will *always* have nice wine and/or champagne.  I’m not a champagne girl, but I did have quite a few glasses at Ascot.  Thankfully, I didn’t feel it the next day.  That could have been really bad.

Around 1:30, we jumped back on the train and headed to the grounds so we could get there before the Royal Procession at 2pm.  It is customary that on the first day of Ascot the Queen will come in and kick off the event. 

The procession kicks off from a ways out and there are a few horses in front and 4 horse drawn carriages after that.  The Duke of Edinburgh had just left the hospital, so he wasn’t able to attend, but the Queen was there with Prince Charles and Camilla.  

My buddy the Queen

So were Prince Andrew, Beatrice (of the bizarro fascinator at William & Kate’s wedding) and Eugenie.  There were a few other people in carriages after them, but I don’t know who they were.

Beatrice's hat was much more tame

After the procession, there is a short period of time before the first race.  It was enough time for us to find the group of people we were with, grab a glass of Pimm’s and place a bet.  Lisa had been studying at the pub, reading the racing pages, talking to the guy in our group who watches a lot of races, so she was sure she was going to win.  I, on the other hand, had been chatting at the pub and placed a bet based upon the name of the horse and/or the jockey.  You can guess who came out ahead.  While I didn’t win a lot of money (anyone who has seen me in Vegas when I close out after winning $30 on “Wheel of Fortune” knows that I don’t bet a lot), I did win at least few pounds in the first 4 races.  

We were in the “cheap” seats – the Grandstand.  Rumor has it that there were a level below our tickets, but I’m not sure how that was possible unless they were in the parking lot.  That isn’t to say that our tickets weren’t good ---- they were.  We were able to get right down next to the track.  The level above us was the Royal Enclosure.  Those tickets enabled you to get down to the track, but close to the finish line.  The Royal Enclosure also has a higher level of dress code, though.  They even put out a brochure with pictures to say what is/isn't appropriate.

I wish I had as cool as this, but it would have cost a fortune.

Ah, the dress code…as I said earlier, I was really worried about what to wear.  There are all these rules posted on the Royal Ascot website (these don't even include the rules for the men):

• A hat, headpiece or fascinator must be worn at all times.
• Dresses and tops should have straps of one inch or greater. 
• Strapless or sheer strap dresses are not permitted.
• Jackets and pashminas may be worn, but dresses and tops underneath should still comply with the dress code.

For the Royal Enclosure, it is even stricter: 

• Dresses and skirts should be of modest length defined as falling just above the knee or longer.
• Hats should be worn; a headpiece which has a base of 4 inches (10cm) or more in diameter is acceptable as an alternative to a hat.
• Fascinators are no longer permitted; neither are headpieces which do not have a base covering a sufficient area of the head (4 inches / 10cm).

I don’t know what I was so worried about.  While people in the Grandstand complied with the dress code, there were some people who looked like they never had dressed up before in their life and/or they were wearing things they should not have been wearing.  This made for *fabulous* people watching.

Lisa and I down by the racetrack with Grandstands behind us.

Try not to focus on how pale I look in comparison to Lisa.  I'm naturally pretty pasty, but she also just got back from Crete.

Anyway, after all the races were over and all the Pimm’s had been consumed, we left the racecourse and went to this car park by the train station.  It is apparently where everyone congregates after the races and hangs out.  It is literally a car park with a big tent set up for drinks (more wine, champagne, and Pimm’s).  There is also a band playing and everyone is dancing.  Out of respect for those I was with (since they are work friends), I’m not posting the incriminating photos.  Suffice it to say that there were clothes exchanged (don’t ask), a lot of alcohol consumed, and a ton of dancing done. 

Some of the crew at the car park.

Lisa and I pulled a Houdini and caught an earlier (9-ish) train.  We walked up to the platform and who do we run into?  The people who followed us off the train!  One of the guys looked at us and said “Hey, you’re the people that dragged us off the train!”  Small world!

I didn’t get home until after 10pm and I had a full day of meetings the next day.  Thankfully, Lisa and I were pretty tame, so we both felt OK in the morning.  My feet *hated* me for being in heels from 8:30-10pm, but other than that, I felt OK.

I highly recommend going to Ascot if you get the chance.  It is a great tidbit of British culture and it was FANTASTIC people watching.  Next year, I’m weaseling my way into the Royal Ascot.  The Queen and I are going to be likethis.