I grew up in New Zealand. Every year, my father listened to the Melbourne Cup race on radio. Finally the day came when television came to NZ. We were able to gather around the black and white set and watch the race.

When I was four years old, sitting on my father’s knee, with a pencil I marked a horse in his racing paper.

That horse was Delta and the jockey was Neville Sellwood. Dad thought that was a good omen, because his name was Neville. Delta won and Dad won. I had picked my first winner.

Dad told us the story of Archer who won the first Melbourne Cup in 1861. We were amazed that a young lad called Dave Power walked 550 miles with Archer, so Archer could race in the cup. He then had to walk home. He did it all again the next year and Archer won again.

The great Phar Lap won in 1930. What an amazing week he had. Phar Lap won the VRC Melbourne Stakes on 1st November, the Melbourne Cup on 4th November, Linlithgow Stakes on 6th November, and the C.B. Fisher Plate on 8th November.

In 1983, I was living in Sydney with my husband and children. I received a letter from my father in New Zealand. He wrote that a horse called Kiwi, which had won the Wellington Cup, was a sure thing to win the Melbourne Cup.  Snowy Lupton, a sheep farmer, was the owner/trainer. He bought the horse for NZ$1000. Dad wrote that Snowy, as part of the conditioning of the horse, used Kiwi to round up the sheep on his farm.  I followed his advice and backed Kiwi and was happy to have a win.

One of the most popular wins was in 2002, when Media Puzzle won. One week before the cup jockey Jason Oliver tragically died, after a track accident, when his mount fell at Belmont Racecourse in Perth. His grieving brother, Damien Oliver, rode the Dermot Weld trained Media Puzzle to victory. After Damien passed the winning post he raised his arm in the air, looked up to the heavens, and said, “This is for you Jason.” I don’t think I was the only person, in Australia, crying at that moment.

In 2003, 2004 and 2005, Makybe Diva, with champion jockey Glen Boss aboard, entered Australian horse racing records to become the only horse to win the cup in three successive years.

For me, my best bet was in 1986 when I backed At Talaq  and won $300. That was a lot of money in those days.

Now on Melbourne Cup Eve, I have to find a winner for tomorrow. Where’s the form guide?