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(Issue 3: April 2009) Ten prize goats hurtling at terminal velocity down a 100-metre track loosely attached to a trailing man may sound like a joke but, apparently, it’s not, says James Fuller.
Goats are traditionally kept for their milk and meat and renowned for
their indiscriminate palate, but not in Buccoo, Tobago. For 75 years
local goats have been pampered and primed for battle at the Easter
Tuesday Buccoo Goat Race Festival. The event, watched by thousands
annually, kicks off at 10.30am with a street parade featuring moko
jumbies, dancers, singers and steelbands, and the first bleating
bovines burst from the racing stalls at 11am. The ‘jockeys’, dressed in
the owners’ colours, sprint behind attached by a rope no longer than
9ft. Collisions, falls and dastardly underhandedness are commonplace
and hence strict rules govern the sport. Goats are trained on the
Tobagonian sands and seas and spend as much pre-race time with their
jockey as is decent to form that winning connection. To add to the
interest, if needed, you can also gamble on whichever blistering Billy
or nimble-hoofed Nanny takes your fancy. Can you afford to miss it?
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