The story of "Rhinoceros Racing"
Once a year, deep in the Serengeti plain there is a unique sporting event that few people of heard of. It's a raucous event pairing the thunderous power of the white rhinoceros with the recklessness of fearless human jockeys. It's the African version of the Kentucky Derby except that there are no horses, only rhinos! This automata celebrates this fictitious unusual event.
Lumbering Along, Entrant No. 6, was recently rounded up from the savannah and after a short training period is running in her first derby. Her Jockey, a Spanish fellow Juan Tuwin, is a veteran of the African race circuit riding horses frequently at the Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi, but a rookie rhino is a whole other challenge. Entrant No. 3 is Dainty Dancer, a rescue Rhino from a national wildlife park. She was found huddled under an aging giraffe near the edge of the reserve and raised by the camp cook. She ended up as a formidable contender and every year draws a massive amount of support from the crowd. This year she is ridden by Kunti Killem, a local tribesman.
One might think it is difficult to convince a rhino to run on demand, but rhinos are happy to chase a crowd of unarmed poachers on bicycles that are released on the track ahead of them. It's not unlike the rabbit at the greyhound races.
The real inspiration for this piece comes from Gary Larson who is masterful at putting the rhinoceros into ridiculous situations in his cartoons.
Lumbering Along, Entrant No. 6, was recently rounded up from the savannah and after a short training period is running in her first derby. Her Jockey, a Spanish fellow Juan Tuwin, is a veteran of the African race circuit riding horses frequently at the Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi, but a rookie rhino is a whole other challenge. Entrant No. 3 is Dainty Dancer, a rescue Rhino from a national wildlife park. She was found huddled under an aging giraffe near the edge of the reserve and raised by the camp cook. She ended up as a formidable contender and every year draws a massive amount of support from the crowd. This year she is ridden by Kunti Killem, a local tribesman.
One might think it is difficult to convince a rhino to run on demand, but rhinos are happy to chase a crowd of unarmed poachers on bicycles that are released on the track ahead of them. It's not unlike the rabbit at the greyhound races.
The real inspiration for this piece comes from Gary Larson who is masterful at putting the rhinoceros into ridiculous situations in his cartoons.
