Racecourse Games & Sports

Frank Dunshea: Recollections of Acton between 1926-1946
[Excerpts on racecourse games and sports]

"The race course was used for a lot of different activities. The Highland Gathering was held there annually with the pipe bands competing and the highland dancing taking place on a temporary stage. There was racing and other athletic events for all ages in which we used to participate and the traditional Scottish sports such as tossing the caber and novelty events such as getting apples out of a barrel with your teeth.

Other events such as wood chopping, sheaf tossing etc. and there was also an event called the greasy pig race in which anyone could take part. A young pig was covered in grease so that it was almost impossible to hold and was chased about the area by lots of young boys and men all trying to grab the pig. Who ever finally caught the pig could keep it as a prize. It was quite a scramble with lots of pushing and tripping etc. going on.

The light horse brigade used to regularly put on a Gymkhana at the race course where these magnificent horsemen and their equally magnificent horses would display their skills. With events such as tent pegging where rows of sharpened wooden pegs about 10 inches (25cm) long and 4 inches (9cm) wide would be shoved into the ground and the horsemen would hang down the side of his galloping horse and spear the pegs from out of the ground with sword.

Another event included the rescue race where one light horseman in each team of two would stand at one end of the race course straight and then the other men mounted on their horses would gallop to them where the unmounted man would grab the saddle and leap up behind the rider at full pace then they would wheel around and gallop back to the winning post.

Races where the contestants would weave their horses through a line of poles stuck in the ground then pull out the last pole and race back and place it in a 44 gallon drum then go back and repeat the performance until all the poles were in the drum. There were also displays with horses jumping through rings of fire etc.

They also had mock battles where they would charge through fire and smoke, leap from the horses and fire their rifles while the horses were all marshalled away by a mounted horseman. Our next door neighbour, Charlie Seton, was a member of the light horse and was killed while training with the brigade leaving his wife, two sons (Herb and Roy), and a daughter (Gwen).