And the beard has it

I dread to think how many race meetings I have been to in my life. At least 500 and maybe 700 plus. In all that time I have never witnessed what I did today at Lingfield.
The 4.10 race was a maiden (i.e. for horses which had never won before). It was worth just shy of £3k to the winner (so pretty low grade in reality). Victory went to Justice Lady, a previously unraced filly trained by 'grumpy' David Elsworth.
There had been money for her in the morning but on course she drifted a bit (but not like a barge sadly). She won a touch cosily, beating Hot Stuff, a gelding who had run pretty well 5 times previously.
Justice Lady was ridden by Martin Lane, and this is where my new experience comes in, for Mr Lane has a beard. Not a goatee, not a bit of bum fluff, but a proper full set and I do not think that since I first set foot on a racecourse in 1968 (it was Newton Abbott by the way on a family holiday in Torquay) have I ever before today seen a jockey on a British racetrack with a beard.
My other favourite sport, cricket, is full of facial hair. Indeed for the England cricket team it's almost compulsory. Even poor old Joe Root felt obliged to try to grow a beard, although his latest effort did blow off in the somewhat breezy final test on the Highveld.
I must admit that I had supposed that beards were probably not good for streamlining, hence the up till now absence of them on jockeys. It was a stroke of luck that I did not visit the paddock before today's hirsute triumph, as I am pretty sure my beardist prejudices would have stopped me backing Mr Lane's mount. As it was my 'pony' at 6/4 made for my shrewdest investment so far this year.

NB - Going to Lingfield on a quiet winter Friday provides other opportunities as well. I was at 'Earwig Corner' after Justice Lady's victory, and clearly heard the trainer of the runner up (Hot Stuff) say to connections 'we were beaten by a good'un there. Ours runs better at Wolverhampton anyway'. Keep an eye out for Hot Stuff - next time it runs at Wolverhampton it might be worth following.