But fast forward a couple of hours and the scene was quite different, as dress hems¹ became dishevelled, heels were ditched and some thirsty ladies took to swigging directly from the bottle.

 

After a day of balmy weather, heavy drinking and cheering on their favourite horses, many of the once-glossy guests were certainly looking slightly worse for wear as the event drew to a close. 

 

While the official dress code insists that skirts are of a 'modest' length, defined as being no more than an inch above the knee, some women chose to openly defy the rules.

 

Exceedingly short hemlines and thin skirt material made for dangerously skimpy dresses, exacerbated² by towering heels and inopportune gusts³ of wind. 

 

It seems that a day of glugging champagne⁴ and parading around in needle-thin stilettos also took their toll⁵ on the feet of many of the female guests, who chose to discard their heels and shuffle⁶ out of the exit barefoot. 

 

The dress code also strictly⁷ stipulated⁸ 'no fancy dress', which many of the revellers blatantly⁹ ignored with gaudy¹⁰ fascinators on display, one woman's decorated with graphic¹¹ playing cards.

 

Caught up in the festivities, some of the guests carried on drinking, despite seemingly having lost their companions, and there's no doubt that more than a few men and women will be nursing sore heads tomorrow. 

 

It all got a little too much for some, with a few who had enjoyed a tipple¹² too many deciding to close their eyes on the grass rather than waiting until they got home. 

 

Other racegoers were still full of energy and paraded around in skimpy strappy get-ups with tiny hems, cheering, smoking, and gulping¹³ their drinks as they made their way out of the course.

点击收听单词发音