Two of Australia's leading jockeys got to spend some quality time in the saddle during the 2008 spring racing carnival with Ford's thoroughbred FPV GT, GT-P and F6 models.

Corey Brown, who missed taking out this year's Melbourne Cup by a nose in one of the event's closest-ever finishes, was reportedly reluctant to hand back his GT-P loaner at the finish of the Spring racing carnival.

"Mate these things are amazing," he said, no doubt wondering what 422 horsepower (315kW), rather than the single unit produced by his mount Bauer, might have done for his chances at Flemington. "It's a shame I didn't have the same sort of power on tap during the Cup," he said later.

Fellow rider Nash Rawiller, who with Brown has ridden more than 20 winners in one month, was equally impressed with his experience in both a turbocharged six-cylinder F6 and a GT V8.

"I'd be stumped if I had to pick just one," he said.

Both Brown and Rawiller suggest potential new car buyers should hoof it into Ford dealers to get a taste of real animal grunt.

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