听播客学英语 64 Royal Ascot

 　　Today we go horse racing¹, and we meet people with lots of money and no dress-sense!

　　Ascot is a small town, south-west of London, and close to the royal castle at Windsor.

　　In 1711, Queen Anne went horse-riding from Windsor, and “discovered” Ascot. She decided² that it was exactly the right place for horse races. So the poor folk who grazed³ their cows or their pigs on the land had to move, and there has been a race-course at Ascot ever since.

　　There are race meetings at Ascot throughout the year. In the summer, the races are “on the flat”, which means that the horses simply run round the race course. But in the winter, the racing is “over the fences”, which means that the poor horses have to jump over fences as well as race round the course.

　　The greatest race meeting of the year is called Royal Ascot, and it is one of the grandest social occasions of the year, at least for people who care about grand social occasions. Royal Ascot is taking place this very week, from Tuesday to Saturday, and I see from the Royal Ascot website that there are still a few tickets left. Before you rush off to buy a ticket, however, here are a few things which you should know about Royal Ascot:

　　One, it is expensive. You will pay about ?60 per person per day for a grandstand ticket. You cannot actually buy a ticket for the poshest area, the Royal Enclosure⁴. To get a ticket for the Royal Enclosure, you have to know the right people.

　　Two, the Queen will be there, and lots of other royals and celebrities⁵, and if you are lucky you may see some of them.

　　Three, Ascot racecourse is very concerned that people should wear the right clothes. Morning coats and top hats are good. Jeans, t-shirts and trainers are bad – very bad. (If you do not actually own a morning coat or a top hat, you can hire them from a company called Moss⁶ Brothers. In other countries, do you have to hire clothes in order to watch a horse race?)

　　Four, the hats are more important than the horses. Ascot is famous for the extraordinary hats that the ladies wear. Many of these hats are masterpieces of structural⁷ engineering. There is a link on the website to photos of some of this year’s finest hats.

　　Five, eating and drinking is almost as important as the hats. Last year, race-goers at Royal Ascot drank 60,000 bottles of champagne⁸ and ate 11,500 boxes of strawberries.

　　Six, the horse racing does not really matter, but if you are interested an Irish horse called Yeats won the Ascot Gold Cup yesterday. Second was another Irish horse, and third was a French horse. English horses don’t win at Ascot, just as English tennis players don’t win at Wimbledon.

　　But I had forgotten. Our economy is in recession⁹. People are feeling poorer. Many people have lost their jobs. Surely, this year people will not spend lots of money on champagne and silly hats?

　　And, yes, there are fewer people at Ascot this year than last year. Champagne sales are down. And one newspaper reports that the Queen’s granddaughter, Princess Beatrice, was seen at Ascot wearing a ?90 jacket from Topshop and a pair of shoes which cost only ?65. Oh, horror! Times are definitely hard!

1 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 grazed   

v.（让动物）吃草( graze的过去式和过去分词 )；轻擦，擦破；擦过；掠过

参考例句：

• I grazed my knee when I fell. 我摔了一跤，把膝盖擦破了。
• The calves are grazed intensively during their first season. 小牛在生长的第一季里集中喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 enclosure   

n.围绕，圈地，围场，围墙，附件，封入物

参考例句：

• We were led to a fenced enclosure.我们被带到一处用篱笆围住的场地。
• I received your enclosure with gratitude.附件收到，十分感谢。

5 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

6 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

7 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

8 champagne   

n.香槟酒；微黄色

参考例句：

• There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。
• They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

9 recession   

n.（工商业的）衷退（期），萧条（期）

参考例句：

• Manufacturing fell sharply under the impact of the recession.受到经济萧条的影响，制造业急剧衰退。
• A rise in interest rates plunged Britain deeper into recession.利率的提高导致英国经济更加萧条。