And they're off - Galway's annual 'big bash' begins

Torrential rain, late evening sun, a very happy hotelier and some unhappy bookmakers marked the first day of Galway Race week yesterday as the city geared up for its annual spending splurge.

Yesterday was "Big Bash" day, when oysters, Guinness and hitherto unknown celebrity tipsters cheered up those wrestling with umbrellas and inclement conditions.

Wellies may indeed prove to be essential over the next day or so, with bright west to northwest breezes and showers forecast - in between sunny spells.

Much patience will also be required for those commuting to Ballybrit by car; like the first cuckoo, the occasional helicopter was spotted over the city skyscape last night.

However, all flight records for the week are expected to be broken on Ladies Day, and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, who is anticipated this evening, may break with tradition and stay the extra 24 hours for the Thursday event.

If his mind isn't totally on outfits, or horses, it will be due to pressure to fit out the third Fianna Fáil runner in the Galway West constituency.

Perhaps he could take some advice from trainer Dermot Weld, who isn't called the "Galway specialist" for nothing.

Weld holds the record for Ballybrit - 10 wins per festival on four occasions - but no one anticipated that his steeds would snatch the first three races of the evening.

However, the big local win - and grin - was for Mike de Haast of the House Hotel near Spanish Arch, who witnessed his Raspberry Beret taking the GPT Cork Handicap.

Fellow hoteliers, guesthouse owners and even campsite proprietors have multiple reasons to be cheerful, as every bed, bunk and groundsheet spot is booked between Craughwell and Clifden. Camper vans were also bumper to bumper in Salthill last night.

"You might get a room in Clifden itself, and we did have reports of some vacancies in Ballinasloe and Tuam," John Concannon, Fáilte Ireland's Galway-based director of regional development, told The Irish Times.

Those city hotels charging €400 to €500 a night this week aren't technically breaking any rules, Concannon explains.

Under the Tourism Traffic Act, all hotels and guesthouses are obliged to give the tourist board their maximum and minimum rates - with the upper rate being tailored for that last lucrative week in July.

As in previous years, some Galway families will also quit their homes for a not insubstantial fee, while "hot bunking" is an option in self-catering accommodation.

Concannon reports that publicans are expected to keep within limits, thanks to a successful "Galway price promise" run in conjunction with Ireland-West Tourism last year.

However, the rate of pints pulled at Ballybrit will be of some interest to Paddy Power bookmakers on Thursday, as it is offering odds of 1,000/1 against the course running out of Guinness.

For those interested in other bets that have nothing to do with form, one can also guess attendance at Ladies Day and set the highest temperature for the 2006 meeting.

First Government representative in town to monitor such activities, and perhaps risk a few euro, will be Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism John O'Donoghue.

He is also listed to perform a number of engagements - including a visit today to the set of a new teenage soap as Gaeilge, Aifric, made for TG4 by Telegael.

Gridlock traffic on routes out of the city from lunchtime yesterday suggested not so much an escape by harassed citizens as an exodus of festival goers.

The Galway Arts Festival and complementary Project 06 proved a successful combination over the past fortnight, earning congratulations in a statement issued last night by the city's mayor, Cllr Niall Ó Brolcháin (Greens).

John Concannon added: "Project 06 added a new dimension to the city streets, allowing people to come and perform at an uncurated event, and it certainly demonstrated the need for a fringe."

"Fringe" is a sensitive word for the Project 06 organisers, but either way their voluntary efforts and endless energy appear to have proved a point.