Nevin Truesdale of the Jockey Club said last week the GN has to remain acceptable to society... which I'm sure means, more tinkering and watering down of the race. Am beginning to wonder what elements of society the sport is now looking for...it will be dire for the race if the Jockey Club is trying to apply a standard expected by people who have no tolerance of risk.
One of my favourite chasers, Oscar time, put in another super round of jumping at Aintree. I don't think he knew how to run a bad race. I also backed him when Sam Waley-Cohen rode him to win the Becher Chase at 28/l. Thank you brave, tough little horse, enjoy a long happy retirement, you more than earned it ❤
The last time we had sir Peter o Sullivan, John hamner and Julian Wilson as commentators! 20yrs they called the national together from 1972-1992! Best commentary
Looked like Voler La Vadette's jockey saw Ruby coming across on Big Bucks so he switched. Looking at the run-in, Voler would have caught Big Bucks if he was good enough...but he wasn't.
I think the whole code of steeplechasing has lost its way. Courses like Haydock and Wetherby used to be perfect schooling grounds for Aintree. Their fences were made softer around the same time as the GN course.
@@theracingdemon3141 I agree I have owned a number of Horses in the past ,I am 88 and I rememeber how great Steeplechasing was as a spectacle, I can tell you I backed Red Rum to win at Aintree, not in the Grand National but a seller ridden by Piggott, I never backed the GREAT horse in the National once, why, I did not want any bad omens, I saw him win the race twice and cheered like everyone else, those were the days, my First National was Oxo in 1958 I believe, he was a big rugged Horse a Typical Steeplechaser, I concur about Haydock , ithas become a shame. I believe that the National has been taken over by people who only love Money! Horses die day in and out in the fields, . It is only a memory now for me. Diolch yn fawr, Prynhawn da.
Ben Nevis, from last place at canal turn one, to second place turning out onto the second circuit, then to win by 20L sprinting away from proven GN horses in 2nd & 3rd. Probably best heavy ground GN performance ever!! 34 secs quicker than Earth Summit in 1998!
There was a RU-vid video of the head-on film from RTS. It did show Proud Tarquin wandering into The Dikler. The ITV footage wasn't very helpful because it zoomed-in on Oaksey just when the key interference happened. When it changes to the long shot, you see that Dikler is much further wide of Tarquin.
Spanish Steps has to be one of the unluckiest horses...3 successive nationals where basically the only horses that beat him were Crisp, Red Rum and L'escargot 😂 Charles Dickens the one exception in '74. Most underrated National horse ever?
I've watched this all the way through now, and I think what stands out most to me is the sudden shift to colour in 1969! Even just after an hour and a half of watching the black and white races it was very striking and exciting...and that's from someone who's spent his entire life with colour TVs. Can't imagine how mind-blowing that must have been for people in the late 60s.
Its interesting how the audio is clearer too. At that time, most people would still have been watching on their black and white set. They would have been mind-blown once they got their colour set.
