DURBAN JULY THRILL IN THE AIR

In winter – the place to be for the greatest horse race in the country, the Vodacom Durban July. Liz Clarke gives us a preview F

ORGET politics, forget the drought, forget state capture. It’s party time. That’s the clarion call from Greyville as the countdown begins for the country’s biggest racing extravaganza, the Vodacom Durban July on Saturday, July 1.

Tent town is sparkling ready, the flags are flying and the weatherman is whispering that plenty of sunshine is forecast for the big day. But don’t bet on it. Like the race forecasters, he could be wrong.

The Colour of Magic – the evocative theme for this year’s July – is all about inspiration. What does that entail? Everything and anything that is imaginative and captures the spirit of enchantment, says Tiffany Prior, the fashion programme director.

Which horse will win? Could it be a back-to-back win for last year’s Conglomerate, or the much-fancied Edict of Nantes. Could it be the unpronounceable Krambambuli at long odds or the quirkily named It’s my Turn? Then again Nightingale and Black Arthur look in fine form.

And who knows it might be a rank outsider that outwits them all! But that is just half the fun and half the story. The dignitaries, the jockeys lining