HISTORY TELLS that in the Great Depression year of 1929, the Irish Grand National was won by a six-year-old mare called Alike, owned and ridden by 5ft 4in man with a wooden leg and missing three fingers. His name was Frank Wise.
Those trying to make comparisons between the current difficulties and the Grand National of 80 years ago were cheered when it emerged that the Most Stylish Lady of the Festival had spent less than €150 on her outfit.
“You could certainly describe this as a recession outfit,” said the commentator as Tricia Moore from Navan described how she had purchased her coat off the internet for £74, her bag for €20 and she had dressed an old hat with flowers and butterflies.
Ms Moore was clearly equally as wise as the man who won the 1929 National as she walked away with the €10,000 prize sponsored by Carton House.
The media pack thought this news should be shared with a very relaxed Brian Cowen, who had made the trip to present the Powers Whiskey Irish Grand National Trophy to the 2009 winner.
“There is a lot of value around these days,” said the Taoiseach who admitted to having a couple of winners but not the 33-1 shot, Niche Market, in the big race. The outsider, which came home under Harry Skelton, did further damage to our balance of payments by taking the €143,500 prize off to Britain.
Mr Cowen admitted this was not a time for “big bets” and admitted he was very fond of race meetings, especially National Hunt.
He said he was very sorry that two horses had to be put down having been injured during the Grand National.
He promised he would sample a drop of 12-year-old Powers to celebrate the day out and left after reminding us that racing was “not all about winning”.
Mr Cowen confirmed he had met Irish EU commissioner Charlie McCreevy, who was at the races, but said he had not run into his predecessor, Bertie Ahern, who was also at the course.
Mr Ahern, who had presented the previous 12 winners of the Irish Grand National at the racecourse while taoiseach and previously lord mayor of Dublin, was also in good form yesterday resplendent in a light grey coat.
As for the big race itself, only the bookies were cheering when, in a tight finish, Niche Market hit the front and won the big prize of the day for Graham Regan and Bob Butler, the British raiders.
“I don’t think the crowd here knew that not only is the horse Irish-owned but it is Irish-bred as well,” said Mr Regan who was born and bred in Blackrock, Co Dublin, and moved to England 20 years ago.
He said the horse was bred in Ireland by a man called William Flood and he was delighted because up until last weekend he had only two horses, which proved winners do not all come from big stables.
And in keeping with the financial tone of the day, Mr Regan said he worked as a broker in the City of London but had not named the horse himself. It had come to him with the Niche Market tag.
“We are over the moon and we will be celebrating tonight anywhere they let us in,” he said.
In bitterly cold conditions, 15,076 punters made their way to the course yesterday, a drop of 700 on the attendance in 2008. There were fewer helicopters around, too, but there were four or five of them on the course.
But overall it appeared people were putting the recession aside for at least a day and although it was reported there was a drop in betting too, we seem to have moved some distance from the 1929 event.