Carnage: People really enjoyed themselves at Derby Day 2017

NZ Herald

4 Nov, 2017 07:46 PM2 mins to read

This fan wades through a sea of carnage at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne yesterday. Photo / Getty Images.

Australia has proven yet again that when it comes to the races, they're the most brash and bogan of them all.

People may have arrived at Flemington in style but they certainly didn't leave that way.

Pictures from today's Spring Carnival favourite shows just how much racegoers enjoyed their Derby Day at Flemington; which saw a dress disaster, people talking to statues and a strange game called "goanna pull". It has been described to this writer as "where you try to pull a belt apart by your neck". Interesting.

"From the look of it, people have enjoyed themselves here at Derby Day, perhaps a little too much," news.com.au's Andrew Bucklow reported from the scene.

Generally, around 90,000 racegoers arrive in the most elegant of outfits to enjoy some trackside bubbles in the sun. Fast forward a few hours later, and here's where we are at.

Craig Lovett, who is responsible for the massive clean-up, told news.com.au last year his team clears an estimated 250 tonnes of rubbish from Derby Day, which is more than the other three days of the Spring Carnival combined.

"Sometimes we'll find the odd person who has left themselves in a car park or a marquee," he said.

They also discover "lots and lots" of underwear as well as "stacks" of shoes and hundreds of pairs of sunglasses.

"One year we found an entire suit - the shirt, tie, shoes, socks. I have no idea what happened to the guy".

The good news? At least we stick with tradition. Last year, one man collapsed trying to do a headstand, as his mates egged him on. Another lay down among the rubbish, nursing his head. One guy even found a cricket bat, and started playing with the rubbish and some impromptu wickets made from sticks.

Here's what happened this year.