Another hot day near the end of the 4th (or 5th?) heatwave this summer found 17 sitting down for lunch at the Grandstand restaurant at the Hippodrome in Divonne. Seventeen old nags and a few horses. Trotters and Traiteur.
A Toast : “To Lord de Brion, who had the good sense to win — and to the seventeen of us who had the even better sense to come for lunch.”
Here was Mark 2rs’s flyer of 21 July:-
“Gentlemen,
During a recent walk/lunch, Gary Vanatter stated that he had never been to the races at Divonne. So we decided to rectify it.
Our next lunch will therefore take place at 12:15 on Tuesday 18 August at the Hippodrome of Divonne. We shall be in the Restaurant Panoramique des Tribunes, catering by Daniel Gobet of So Good Traiteur, who prices his menu at €35.
Please let us know asap of your intention to join us, or otherwise. Parking is plentiful and free; no obligation to bet.
Very best regards
Mark and Gary”
and his follow up note:-
“Dear all,
It’s the first day of the races in Divonne today and I have reserved a table for noon on Tuesday 18 August provisionally for fifteen. I shall be confirming numbers on Tuesday 11 August, so there is a possibility for others.
As of now, I have thirteen confirmed:
Mike Müller, Richard Saynor, Robert O’Riordan, Nicolas Ulmer, Ken Forrester, Brian Allardyce, Trevor Davies, Rudolf Staehelin, John Broadbridge, John Burley, Peter Taylor, Gary Vanatter and myself.
And three apologies: Ralph Wares, Stephen Long and David Humphries.
Whereas the menu, now priced €36, has not been finalised, it will not be a cheese fondue. I show below today’s menu. The restaurant uses Daniel Gobet as traiteur and it was full today with contented looking people.
If anyone else wishes to come, or if there are any changes to my understanding of who is coming, please let me know by tomorrow night, 10 August.
Very best regards
Mark”
The seventeen gentlemen attending had one lunch, plently of beer and wine, but absolutely no useful tips. As one member was heard to say “we may be past our prime but we are still in the running (or this this case trotting)”.
The following were there:
Brian Allardyce
John Broadbridge
John Burley
Trevor Davies
Norman Eatough
Ken Forrester
Mike Muller
Mike Price
Robert O’Riordan
Richard Saynor
Rudolf Staehelin
Peter Taylor
Nicolas Ulmer
Gary Vannatter
Mark Warren
Mark Watts
Bill Westermeyer
True to form the main GINriders had jockeyed for table position by the time I arrived (by bike) but I was left with perhaps the best seat, next to Trevor and Brian with a commanding view of both the assembled company and the amazing racetrack and very beautiful backdrop of the forested line of the Jura. For many of us this was our first day at the Divonne races, for Trevor the first since he arrived in 1972.
Eight races were on the card, albeit the first had finished before noon. The 2nd race, the first for me, was “monté” (rider on horse), all the rest were “attelé” (rider in a chariot), and all were trotting. Gallopers seemed to become disqualified and were pulled up. Lunch was served pretty swiftly as the 2nd race started and it was clear that we had a superb vantage point high up in the stands, close to the start and finish line. We galloped into the salad supplied by our friendly waiter who also despatched beers and wines efficiently.
The main course was roast chicken in mushroom sauce and rice, the dessert a small sweet thing I cannot name.
“Maturity is knowing when to bet and when to order another bottle.”
I’m not sure if anyone actually placed a bet, Mark2rs seemed to operate by picking a winner and betting hypothetically. The only thing we were racing was the waiter. The horses trotted at great spped which seemed to increase with our wine intake. I know Number 4 won one of the races (Lord de Brion – see below) but apart from that I cannot relate any concrete race result information. Instead I asked ChatGPT to find out what actually transpired – see below.
It was a fine lunch and good to chat again with fellow Gints, certainly a novel location and a very interesting day out at the Trots.
It was soon time to trot off home. At our age every day at the races is a winning day. Thanks to Mark for such an innovative GIN lunch. I’m betting that there may be others to come.
Herewith what transpired out on the track from my AI chum :-
“I searched the French racing press and results for Tuesday 18 August 2026 at the Hippodrome de Divonne-les-Bains.
The interesting point is that the coverage is quite positive about the meeting, but it is mostly specialist French trotting/racing press rather than general newspapers.
🏇 The main story: Lord de Brion
The standout result was Lord de Brion, driven and trained by Matthieu Abrivard, who won the Prix du Conseil Départemental de l’Ain – Zenitude, the seventh race.
Lord de Brion won over 2,600 metres in 1’14”0, (Surely some mistake here as that is 126 kmph PT) beating Lagon des Brouets and Kronos du Klau. He had been a very strong favourite, starting around 1.4/1.
The specialist publication Le Trot gave the result particular attention, with the headline:
“Mardi à Divonne : Lord de Brion justifie la confiance de Matthieu Abrivard”
— essentially, “Tuesday at Divonne: Lord de Brion justifies Matthieu Abrivard’s confidence.”
The report notes that this was Abrivard’s first visit to Divonne-les-Bains, and that he left with a victory both as trainer and driver.
There was also some drama earlier in the afternoon
Abrivard had another horse, Néléa Mip, in the third race. Néléa Mip was initially first past the post but was relegated to second after an inquiry. So Abrivard’s later victory with Lord de Brion was particularly welcome.
What the racing press thought beforehand
Lord de Brion had been regarded as the obvious horse to beat. The specialist previews noted his recent form and the confidence of Abrivard, and he went off at approximately 1.4, so his victory was not a shock — he delivered exactly what the punters expected.
The final order in the key race was:
- Lord de Brion — Matthieu Abrivard
- Lagon des Brouets — Pierre Callier
- Kronos du Klau — Corentin Parys
- Kama Highland — Franck Peltier
- Kinder Seven
☀️ And your lunch group has good timing!
The 18 August meeting was one of the major days of Divonne’s 2026 summer meeting. The town’s own programme lists the 18 August meeting as a trotting meeting starting at 11:30, between the special “Race & Care” day on 16 August and the “Hippodrome en fête” day on 21 August.
So if you’re looking for something amusing to say to your 17 gentlemen at lunch, you could legitimately toast:
“To Lord de Brion, who had the good sense to win — and to the seventeen of us who had the even better sense to come for lunch.”
Or, given that Abrivard had one horse demoted after an inquiry before winning later:
“A day at Divonne: even when you’re not first past the post, there’s always another bottle to win.” 🥂🏇
If you’d like, I can also dig out the full results of all seven races on 18 August, including the winning horses, jockeys/drivers and betting odds, which could make a rather good little “Divonne Race Day” briefing for your 17-man lunch.
I chose not to have this overinformation dug out (PT)
