Ricky May - Trotting Cup Day

It's Cup Day! Luke caught up with 7-time cup winner Ricky May who is hoping to drive Mid Canterbury entry "American Me" to victory

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The battlefield Today is Eddington Raceway, It's Cup Day and
somebody who's certainly no stranger to it is Methan's Ricky
May Morning.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
Here you going.

Speaker 1 (00:10):
Look, we haven't kept counts. You're not too sure how
many of this is for you?

Speaker 2 (00:15):
No, no, I don't really know, but there'll be quite
a few by now around the studio. I would say, is.

Speaker 1 (00:20):
The feeling still special? What is it about Cup Day
for you?

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah? No, it's a big day out for all harness people.
I guess you know. It's the biggest day of the
year and the hardest day to win a race.

Speaker 1 (00:33):
Do you have any special traditions or rituals good luck charms?

Speaker 2 (00:38):
No, not really no, just turn up, be there on time.

Speaker 1 (00:43):
Surely you'd have a special reserved parking spot or something
by now, No.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
No, no, no, no, definitely not.

Speaker 1 (00:51):
Well, by my count, you've won the race seven times.
How much does it come down to the driver and
how much is on the horse?

Speaker 2 (01:00):
Ah, I would say, yeah, the horse is number one
and there's no doubt about that. You know, he's got
to have a really good horse, a really good stayer,
and I mean yeah, probably a bit of luck as
well to be fear, but the ones I have when
the cut have sort of been very very good performances
most of them.

Speaker 1 (01:21):
So today you're behind number fourteen American Me, which is
our only mid Canterbury entry trained by Brent and Tim White,
paying four hundred and one bucks. So I mean, if
you get the job done, we're burning the house down. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:36):
Well, I mean he's he's a good two mile to
be fear. Just a shame he's got a bit of
a rough draw.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
I was going to ask about this, what do you
mean by rough draw?

Speaker 2 (01:47):
Well, we draw one in the second row, you know,
so he's actually a really good beginner and he probably
needed to draw real good to be in the race.
He would be in the faysshie all the way and
you know he's face in the Cup two years ago.
So he can go two mile?

Speaker 1 (02:03):
All right? Well you get my hopes up Matt Smith
from the tab Reckons that they've got this option where
you can place in the top eight. That's got to
be safe money.

Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yeah, I guess I guess it is, because there's no
doubt he'll go to two mile. It's just what sort
of run you yet?

Speaker 1 (02:18):
Not well to be slightly ignorant, heres is the casual
observing DJ. On the surface, it looks cruisy, this whole
trotting thing. You know, you're riding around on the sulky
that we buggy behind the horse. What where's the skill?
Where's the you know, where's the discipline here? Ricky?

Speaker 2 (02:39):
Oh, I think everyone's a bit nervous about it. It's
just like every sport. I guess if you've got out
of it, you've got to give it your hundred percent,
don't you. So, you know, just it's just knowing how
the horses and drivers basically is a big thing, you know,
having a pretty good idea what everyone's going to do.

Speaker 1 (02:58):
But is it true that you've got to be an
exact weight like boxing?

Speaker 2 (03:05):
Well, I think most of the drivers, even though some
of them pretty tall, very light like you know, they're not,
don't weigh very heavy. So I think I think it
must help in the long run to see it.

Speaker 1 (03:16):
But there's no way in as such.

Speaker 2 (03:18):
No, not enhances racing.

Speaker 1 (03:20):
No, okay, so you could smash the dirty bird as
a bit of a a way to allay the nerves
on you on your way in.

Speaker 2 (03:30):
Yeah, you know, I think it must.

Speaker 1 (03:32):
Help being lighter, Hey, super Final question here. The colors
that you get to wear are they called the silks?

Speaker 2 (03:41):
They're right?

Speaker 1 (03:42):
Yeah, do you get to choose that?

Speaker 2 (03:45):
No, well all the trainers have got their own, so
you wear them. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
Okay, So is there any fun story behind what you'll
be wearing today?

Speaker 2 (03:54):
No, not really, just the white colors, which are you know, like,
you know, the whites do a hell and good job.
The horses go well, so you know, it's a good
stable and you just got to hope for the best.

Speaker 1 (04:08):
Wishing you all the best to right and looking forward
to getting behind American Me in the trotting carpets round
ten to six this afternoon. Certainly no stranger to it
is our Ricky mayet is