By Hugh Pearson
The Melbourne Cup stopped into Pakenham during its illustrious cup tour.
The cup for the race that stops the nation made its way to Cardinia Waters Retirement Village as one of its stops on the 45-destination tour.
Residents of the village arrived in their best racewear and were treated to a mimosa and nibbles upon arrival.
After attendees were settled, the event proceeded with a formal welcome to thank everyone for attending, followed by a Welcome to Country.
Cardinia Waters resident and former jockey Gordon “Bluey” Mather was dressed up for the occasion and donned a full jockey outfit for the day.
Gordon was chosen to present the cup at the beginning of the proceeding and was met with a thunderous applause when he walked in with the coveted prize.
Gordon famously rode a horse named Alcatraz between 1966 and 1969 and Alsop in 1969 who finished second to Rain Lover in the Melbourne Cup that year.
There were also prizes awarded for those in attendance.
Some prizes on the day included best dressed, best effort and most fascinating.
After watching a video on the making and the history of the cup and a Q&A with the tour’s organisers, residents had the opportunity to take a photo with the 18-carat gold prize.
