Each stable consists of an imprinted ACD Society/Wessex Cup box containing:

• One lead horse with jockey, attired in unique, genuine silks (and decorated in other distinctive, tasteful ways) by equestrian outfitter extraordinaire Peggy MacFarlane. The horse, which is about four fingers tall, is made of colorful plastic and runs on wheels powered by a manually engaged mechanism. (In other words, it is a wind-up toy, customized for the Wessex Cup.)

• One backup horse with jockey, just in case your lead horse is injured or out of sorts.

• A numbered, limited-edition print version of the first issue of The Doylean Sporting Times.

• A numbered, limited-edition print version of the second issue of The Doylean Sporting Times.

• Your first Wessex Cup cup. (It is possible to win up to five more cups, each slightly different, depending on how many rounds of the Wessex Cup your horse runs in, and wins.)

A Few Simple Purchase and Participation Rules

ACD Society members get first dibs on purchasing stables until November 30.

One stable per purchaser.

The purchaser of a stable is its Owner.

An Owner may at any time designate one Trainer as their collaborator by emailing notice of the designation to us at acdsocy@gmail.com.

Each stable must be claimed in person by its Owner or Trainer at the ACD Society’s Doylean Honors ceremony at Otto Penzler’s The Mysterious Bookshop (58 Warren Street in NYC), on January 5, 2023, by 11:15 a.m.

A stable that is not claimed on time will be transferred to some worthy person at the Doylean Honors ceremony — probably a friendly on-the-spot purchaser — with no refund to the original purchaser. (So, if you purchase a stable, please make sure to show up on time, or designate a Trainer who will!)

How the Wessex Cup Will Be Run

The Wessex Cup races will be run in Otto Penzler’s The Mysterious Bookshop (58 Warren Street in NYC) as part of the ACD Society’s Doylean Honors ceremony on January 5, 2023, beginning at 11:15 a.m.

There will be a total of 15 two-horse races, with the final race being for the championship:

• Round 1: Horses from the 16 stables will compete in pairs — 8 races resulting in 8 winners.

• Round 2: The 8 winners of round 1 will compete in pairs — 4 races resulting in 4 winners.

• Round 3: The 4 winners of round 2 will compete in pairs — 2 races resulting in 2 winners.

• Round 4: The 2 winners of round 3 will compete to determine the champion of the Wessex Cup.

All races will be run on the same course — a straight, 3-foot-long, Victorian-era track with a green felt surface. So, the total time to run all 15 races will probably be only about 20 minutes!

The champion will receive a trophy, as well as bragging rights until the next running of the Wessex Cup.

N.B. Owners who want to get in a little practice ahead of time may have an opportunity to do so on January 4, at a civilized hour after the ASH Dinner. They will receive more information about this in due course.

Interested? We hope so!

Please select and purchase one of the available stables below.

Each stable is designated by the name of its lead horse, and will be properly labeled for pick-up at the Doylean Honors on January 5. Your backup horse’s name is the lead horse’s name with “II” added to the end.

We hope to see you there, and may the best horse-jockey team win!

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Boadicea

SOLD

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Bulldog

SOLD

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Counterfeit Cow

SOLD

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Leah

SOLD

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Mavis

SOLD

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Murray’s Pack-Horse

SOLD

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Polestar

SOLD

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Shoscombe Prince

SOLD

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Silver Blaze

SOLD

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Spider

SOLD

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Stark Munro

SOLD

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The Game is Ahoof!

SOLD

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The Lion's Mare

SOLD

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The Old Horse

SOLD

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Unfortunate Pony

SOLD

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Violette

SOLD

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Questions? Please feel free to email us at acdsocy@gmail.com.

P.S. Curious about some of the names? We recommended ACD's charming poem, The Farnshire Cup.

a row of wind-up toy horses