Emirates Stakes Day, Flemington Racecourse, Nov 5

With Kim Kardashian ditching Flemington for the bright lights of Westfield, this year's Stakes Day left us with little else to gawp at besides the actual race track. But at least the horses didn't disappoint: Black Caviar winning her sixteenth straight race got even the most clueless of us excited, at least until we discovered that the $5 bet on our sure-fire winner won us the princely sum of 25 cents.

And without A-, B- and C-listers there to validate our existence, we learned to appreciate our own company on a day far less frenetic than Derby, Cup and Oaks Day. Hats were floppier, dresses floatier and ties a little looser, setting scenes more like a big picnic than a four-to-the-floor race day.

The only people upping the ante were those not yet fully grown. Traditionally a family day, Stakes Day brought kids out in force, dressed to the nines (even if they couldn't quite count that far). Little tikes strutted around the course in tuxedos and twin-sets, with one little Fashionista on the Field wearing 'vintage' - or at least that's what mums and dads are calling hand-me-downs these days.

Disturbingly, those kids seemed far more switched on than the grown-ups sprawled out on the lawn around them, draining the last of their beers and ciders in the thirty degree heat. Thankfully, the invading army of mini-mes were kept at bay with PSPs and other child-friendly activities, but next time, we'd best keep a close watch so that things don't go down all Lord of the Flies like they did on MasterChef. Come next year’s Stakes Day, they could totally own us.