Dear Lorraine

I read your horse riding mother and daughter letter with interest.

When I was a young girl, fifteen, I used to work in a racehorse stable as a so-called trainee jockey - mucker-out on low pay and a promise more like.

We were issued with old-style not-very-white rubberised mackintoshes to wear. The boss was old Public School, and to him we girls were just scum. He tried to have us in the horse stalls, the hayloft or anywhere else. Wherever - he always wanted us wearing our mackintoshes and he was always threatening to use his crop on our backsides.

In fact he was a silly old twit rather than a menace as when it came to it he couldn't really carry through! He used to give out fifty pound notes so we didn't tell his wife.

However, myself I did make traditional use of the hayloft with two boy friends (on different occasions!) who worked at the stables, in both cases wearing my stable-girl's mackintosh uniform. I still get excited when I smell the rubber of these mackintoshes and to this day I wear one.

Alas, I never became a jockey! - I ended up working as train driver instead.

Kay

Dear Kay

Your letter is so interesting to me because it highlights what I think myself is so important about the mackintosh experience, and that is aroma.

All my men correspondants - yes I think there are just no exceptions to this - who say they are enthusiastic about mackintoshes say the aroma is a key part of the appeal, but so often their complaint is that women are turned off by it. But now one or two women are getting in touch to explain that the smell is important for them too ... I would love to hear from others. Absolutely intriguing!

I'm also very interested in the oldness of the mac you were given to wear. Was this significant, do you think? Some correspondants say it is really important for them that a riding mac should be worn and grubby. Is this any part of it for you I wonder?

Anyway, I'm sure British Rail used to give their drivers navy blue double-texture mackintoshes? So no great difference between driving a train and driving a horse from the true enthusiast's point of view...

Thanks again for such a lovely letter.

Lorraine

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