As punters don their finest frocks and fascinators and descend on Flemington for the Melbourne Cup, the heavens are forecast to dampen the festivities.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has forecast up to 10 millimetres of rain to fall in the lead-up to Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup.
It adds to the 20 to 30mm of rain that drenched the city on Monday, creating soggy conditions along the rails and around the stands at Flemington.
“Today, we’re expecting hit and miss showers to affect the Melbourne area,” BOM meteorologist Stephanie Miles said.
“Probably from around 11am they will get a little bit heavier and then once again from about 5pm.”
Soggy conditions like those seen in 2022 are again expected track-side with Melbourne expecting showers throughout the day. (ABC News: Darryl Torpy)
Ms Miles said heavier falls were expected in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, potentially spoiling Melbourne Cup picnics and backyard BBQs.
Racegoers may have to bring a spare layer, with a top of 16 degrees Celsius expected, and they may have to hold onto their hats with winds expected to reach up to 40 kilometres per hour in the middle of the day.Â
“Not a great day to be outside, I imagine,” Ms Miles said.
It is not the only time in recent history that Melbourne Cup punters have had to battle the elements.
2022 was the coldest Cup day in more than a century, with temperatures failing to get over 13C and rain sending racegoers running for cover.
The 2018 Melbourne Cup was even wetter, seeing 35mm dumped onto the area throughout the course of the morning.
The tracks at Flemington Racecourse station were flooded, causing delays for racegoers. (ABC News: Danielle Bonica)
For those with a ticket to the members enclosure at Flemington, the Victoria Racing Club has strict dress rules, rain or no rain.
It forbids “gumboots, Parkas, duffle coats, windbreakers, tracksuit tops, golf and yachting weatherproof jackets, denim jackets, casual or untailored leather jackets, anoraks, and Driza-Bone (oilskin) jackets”.
The Melbourne Cup is set to go ahead with its full field of 24 despite the wet weather.
The rain is expected to have softened the course at Flemington to a Soft 7 or Heavy 8 for the Cup.
But Hall of Fame trainer Chris Waller said the weather should not affect the enjoyment of the race.
“We’ve seen rain before, but it’s just the best surface to race on, horses love it,” he said.
“The beauty of Flemington is it’s a world-class track.”