November has rolled around, which means it’s once again time for the controversial Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. On the first weekend of the month, the same scene unfolds: men dressed in suits and women donning fascinators, wearing all colours of the rainbow, flock to Flemington Racecourse for a day filled with drinking, gambling, and horse racing.
It’s marketed as a celebration of spring, fashion, and socialising — a chance to indulge in a national ritual.
And it’s a pretty sad ritual at that.
I’m not gonna go into the details of how race horses are mistreated their whole lives for human entertainment. We know that already, because we hear it every single year (yet a bunch of people choose to ignore it). Just know that at least 174 racehorses died in the past 12 months either on the track or due to injuries sustained while they were training or racing, according to a report from the Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses.
If you go to the races because you don’t care about animal abuse and enjoy watching horses be whipped and run the risk of dying, that’s on you. You’re part of the problem.
But you’re not the only contributor.
I was getting dinner with a friend the other night, and when I asked her what she was doing on the weekend, she responded with “I’m going to Derby Day with my mates”.
When I asked her why, she responded: “Oh, I don’t support the races. I just go because I want to dress up and get drunk with my friends”.
I was gagged.
Unfortunately, she’s not the only person who’s said this. Multiple friends, acquaintances, colleagues and strangers on the internet have proudly admitted the same thing, completely unaware that “I’m just there for the fashion” is still complicity, it’s just dressed up in sequins.
We’ve heard that less Gen Z’s are watching the Melbourne Cup, and that it’s not the race that “stops the nation” anymore. However, attendance numbers are up. While just over 244,000 people attended the Spring Racing Carnival in 2022, that number increased by over 41,000 in 2024 — and across the four-day event, 45 per cent of general admission ticket buyers were under the age of 35.
Now, the races aren’t just about the horses — it’s become more of a social event than a sporting one. It’s about the photos, the Instagram Stories, and the excuse to day-drink in something designer. The Spring Racing Carnival knows this too, which is why they’ve started recruiting Gen Z influencers as ambassadors to make the whole thing look trendy and harmless.
You’re not committing an act of defiance by going to the races for the fashion, not the horses. By buying a ticket, you’re literally funding the whole fiasco. You’re fuelling the event’s popularity.
I’m sick of the fashion girlie spring racing apologists. Labelling the races as a reason to dress nice and fancy doesn’t cut it. It isn’t a valid excuse; you can wear a formal dress or a suit and drink champagne literally anywhere else.
You can love dressing up, socialising, and spring energy without endorsing horse racing. Go for a long lunch with the girlies. If you wanna get a little bit silly, why not do one of the million bottomless brunches that happen every weekend in Melbourne? If it’s a sunny day, you can head to a park and throw a picnic. Hey, even a themed house party would be worlds better than supporting the mistreatment of animals.
There’s no law stating it’s forbidden to wear pastel dresses and fascinators on any other occasion. You just want a valid excuse to be part of a cultural phenomenon. But let me tell you, it’s not working.
Image credit: @racingvictoria / @hannahdalsasso / @chrissydorephotography
The post No, ‘Dressing Up And Getting Drunk’ Isn’t A Valid Excuse To Go To The Races appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
