I just finished re-reading a book I loved while I was growing up - "National Velvet" by Enid Bagnold 😊
First published in 1935, it tells the story of Velvet Brown, a fourteen year old, horse-obsessed butcher's daughter. Velvet wins a crazy piebald horse for a shilling in a raffle, and sets her sights on riding him in the Grand National - and winning it! She has to pretend to be a man (because it was 1935), and use faked documentation, to ride in the race. She and the horse win the race, but Velvet falls off him in a faint after passing the finishing post (not because she is a girl, but because she is delicate), her sex is discovered and she is disqualified. The story sets the world on fire for a short time, but then fizzles away. Velvet is left content that her dream for The Piebald to win the National was fulfilled, and with the rest of her life adventures still to unfold before her.
When I was a kid I loved the descriptive power of this book - and of course the horses 😊 Reading it as an adult it captivated me again, but this time I was struck by the sheer ambition and drive of Velvet Brown.
It made me think about setting that proverbial bar a bit higher for myself, so...
... how about the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc* in a couple of years time???😀
Would have given you a full cake but emojis are sadly lacking at times!
On you’re special day, I hate to say I Told You So but I kind of did a few days ago - well I said “watch this space” when you were mentioning long distance challenges. That is a good one and if anyone can you can. Is this one for ju-ju- too? You could panther along together 😀
ARG I wanted to be Velvet Brown so much, and used to enter my haphazard horse into events as 'The Pie' just for my own amusement for many years after reading. It backfired when I somehow won the East Kent intermediate cross country trophy aged 15 (go me! But full disclosure, the three day eventing was rained off and downgraded to just cross country so barely anyone else turned up) and poor Dylan the horse was immortalised as The Pie for his greatest achievement.
Anyway, I don't have a running one really, at least not that I can think of. But I always have a copy of Candide in my bag to remind me to get a grip. You can open that book on any single page and get a one liner on why you are an idiot, and as the queen of ludicrous reasoning I often need a third party to point that out.
(Should also point out that Dylan was a farm horse and I was neither rich nor posh, hence why I enjoyed upsetting the very snooty Pony Club apple cart with The Pie!)
Yes, three qualifying races, at least 15 points, and THEN a lottery!!! I think the London 2 Brighton I did earlier this year only gets me 3 or 4 points - seems pretty impossible 😂
ZX Spectrum, awesome. Safer than riding a horse too!
Oh I would so love to do that too.... I am going to be 48 next week so a good opportunity to push our limits!! I must get that book for my daughter. She is totally horse mad and is lucky enough to have her own horse called Princess ( she didnt choose the name!!)
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