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Picking Your Colours: A Guide to the Colourful World of Racing Silks
Like picking out a name for your horse, selecting its racing colours (also known as racing silks) might seem like a simple and straightforward task. Yet there’s so much to consider with regard not just to having your horse visibly recognised on the track, but also in colours that best represent you as its owner. Picking racing colours for a horse is a race tradition that dates back centuries past, with riders and horses adorned in representation of the houses or nations they fought for in battlefields from long before.
To wax a bit lyrical, the race track offers its own spectacle of ‘battle’, with every jockey and racehorse vying to take the lead in a race. In that regard, visibility offers the functional reason why racing colours are crucial for the observance of any race event. Additionally, a winning combination of racing silks will easily have your horse recognised by attentive enthusiasts. Apart from selecting from your choice of over 20,000 combinations of colourways, your racing silks can come just as adorned with your preference of patterns and motifs to stand out from others.
Fancy your jockey and horse blazing down the track in bright blue with orange polka dots? What about setting bright yellow stars against a black background? No matter what you think would look best on your jockey and horse, it’s always best to think about what would help them stand out the most. Finding a combination of patterns and colours could also go quite a ways in highlighting any distinctive features of your horse — or even represent a prominent name.
Sole Owner, or Owning As Part of a Syndicate?
Authorised syndicators readily keep their own racing colours, as do training stables. Whether you own a horse as part of a syndicate, or like the colours used by your horse’s trainer, you can freely choose these to be used at no cost.
However, plenty of sole owners would prefer to design their own racing silks. This would involve selecting different background and accent colours for your jockey’s jacket, sleeves, and cap. Of course, you can also choose to have these colours reflected on your race horse’s gear. Whether you prefer these colours to present with its saddle blanket and bridle, it’s entirely up to you how your chosen colours will adorn your horse.
What if You’re the Owner of More than Just One Horse?
Horse owners will generally strive to pick a combination of racing silks that presents the most unique and recognisable combination possible. Of course, should you be the fortunate owner of more than one horse, you can always opt to have your horses ride the track in the same colours and patterns.
This is a practice that’s common especially when it concerns syndicates and stables with a prominent reputation. As part of conveying this prestige, the unique colours of their racing silks will easily have race commentators giving their undivided attention in commentary, especially as these horses inch forward to the finish. Of course, the same benefit goes to show for spectators in the audience, as they try to make out the progression of any race. Similarly, race fans in the audience might also be inclined to place their bets based on racing silks they recognise.
So How Do You Register Your Colours, and What Are the Rules?
Every Australian state will have a set of guidelines by which racehorse owners must adhere to, when picking their racing silks. Of course, registration forms are easily filled-out, and help owners to clearly demarcate where colours should present on jackets, and what motifs should be used.
Of course, and similarly to choosing your horse’s name, there will be a set of guidelines to follow when registering your racing silks. While every state’s racing authority may feature a distinct set of rules, most will feature typical guidelines like disallowing the use of offensive patterns or motifs. Additionally, and to aid in visibility during a race, the use of patterns and initials on a jacket will be guided according to certain placement requirements. For instance, Racing Victoria maintains that any spots used in a pattern may not be less than 20cm in diameter.
Why There’s More Luck Involved to It Than Just Picking A Bright Colour
Plenty of jockeys and stables keep their own beliefs when it comes to tradition, and luck during a race. Of course, all race horse owners would be inclined towards picking a good set of patterns or colours that look great on their horses and riders. But who could blame you for choosing a colour or design that you consider lucky? It is a race after all, and if your horse is in it to win it, you’ll probably want to see it decked out in a flashy colourway that signals good luck, every time you see it blazing down the track.
Lucky combinations and traditions intriguingly go far beyond just a good pick of colours and patterns. For instance, have you ever heard of this tradition among Jockeys? When receiving a new jacket or uniform, superstitious jockeys might practice stomping on their jackets before putting them on. The reason for this being to ward off any bad luck that might cause them falling off their horses on a track.
Colours can also be symbolic of cultural beliefs to do with luck and superstition. Unsurprisingly, a green shamrock will no doubt represent fortune to those with a relevant cultural appreciation for the symbol. Bright red can also be symbolic of great fortune and luck to cultures in the East. Depending on the history of a syndicate and stable, you may even be able to pick out these distinct stories of luck and superstition when appreciating all the different colours and designs on show during a race.
Luck of course, is contagious in many wonderful ways. Picking out a great set of racing silks with a distinct design could easily magnify your horse’s racing successes in more ways than through its trackside visibility. Everyone loves a winner, and you can definitely bet on race audiences recognising your racing colours the next time they see your horse cross the finish line.
Nakeeta by half a length
Nakeeta
Ebor winner 2017
Nakeeta
The Ebor winner for 2017 makes this horse ideal to win the Melbourne Cup.
A nose
2leghths
Nakeeta by 3/4 of a length
0.75 lengths
1/2 length first Scottish horse to win
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1.5 lengths
I think by a photo finish
.4 length
Will win by 1.25Lengths
3 Lengths
Its a guess
Nakeeta will win by 1.75 lengths
3/4 length
A head
Nose
0.5L
1 length
Half a head
Neck