Bookies are the election winners
For many punters the jump racing season ended on Saturday at Sandown with AP McCoy taking the last ride of his career.
But the real grand finale of the national hunt season is the Race to Number 10 on May 7.
Ed Miliband's Labour horse is favourite to make it to Number 10 first at 4/7 with David Cameron second favourite at 11/8.
But the Tories have proved they can last the trip, even though they did not quite win the race back in 2010. Cameron might well get the most seats, even if Labour pip him to Number 10.
Nigel Farage is at 50/1 to become the next PM, with Nick Clegg at 80/1.
The race, starting and finishing at the prestigious Westminster fence, has been taking the political horses all around the UK course including the daunting Scotland.
But perhaps the trickiest section of the whole course will be the Black Country, Staffordshire and Wyre Forest.
With its 19 seats, how well Labour and the Conservatives navigate this part of the course could give a clear indication as to who is going to win the race to Number 10.
According to the bookmakers, the sector is a dead heat with Labour and the Conservatives expected to win nine seats each with one currently too close to call.
Paddy Power, which provided the odds, said it expects as much as £100 million could be gambled on the election – three times more than in 2010. So far 95 per cent of bets have been placed online, although the firm expects more money to be placed in betting shops as polling day nears.
Nick O'Malley, spokesman for Paddy Power said: "We're expecting this to be the biggest non sporting market ever, bigger than the Pope's retirement and the last royal baby."
No-one should probably have a flutter on rock solidly Labour Warley, where incumbent John Spellar has odds of 1/100.
His competitors don't really come close with UKIP on 20/1 and the Conservatives on 66/1.
But the pivotal Cannock Chase is a prime example of how tight the race could be. In the 2010 election Aidan Burley gave the Conservatives their biggest swing of anywhere in the country with a 3,195 vote majority. He's since stood down and Amanda Milling will be hoping to keep the Tories firmly in the saddle.
But the bookies put her only at second favourite with odds of 15/8. Labour's Janos Toth is far from a certainty to win at 11/10.
UKIP, which is now the second largest party on the district council, fancies Grahame Wiggin chances at 11/4.
Labour will also be under pressure in Dudley North despite Ian Austin coming in as a 2/7 favourite. He won it by a nose for Labour with a majority of 649 votes in 2010.
UKIP is expected to do well with candidate Bill Etheridge attracting odds of 11/4.
Halesowen and Rowley Regis is the one seat across the Black Country where the bookmakers cannot split between the incumbent Tories and Labour, joint favourites at 10/11.
The Conservatives won in 2010 with more than 2,000 votes to spare, but if they hold on it will be with a substantially reduced majority.
Where the odds appear more favourable to the Tories are in other parts of the Dudley borough where they took seats from Labour last time out. Dudley South has new Conservative candidate Mike Wood, selected by a US-style open primary, on 1/2 to hold the seat vacated by retiring MP Chris Kelly, compared to Labour challenger Natasha Millward on 6/4.
Stourbridge also looks likely to stay blue with Margot James odds on at 1/4. Her challenger is Pete Lowe, the Labour leader of Dudley Council, currently at 5/2.
Walsall North veteran David Winnick will be hoping to hold on for Labour, just a month shy of his 82nd birthday but has been facing a big challenge from Conservative Douglas Hansen-Luke, while UKIP candidate Liz Hazell also has the advantage of being on the borough council.
It is going to be a very tight race.
And it might yet come down to a photo finish.
(Monster Raving
Loony) – 200/1
Martyn Curzey
(Green) – 200/1
John Fisher
(Lab) – 66/1
Ian Garrett
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Wendy Morton
(Con)* (Sir Richard
Shepherd retiring) – 1/50
Anthony Thompson
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Amanda Milling
(Con)* (Aidan
Burley standing
down) – 15/8
Janos Toth
(Lab) -11/10
Grahame Wiggin
(UKIP) – 11/4
Paul Woodhead
(Apni) – Available
on request
Ian Austin
(Lab)* – 2/7
Will Duckworth
(Green) – 100/1
Bill Etheridge
(UKIP) – 11/4
Mike Collins
(Lib Dem) - 100/1
Les Jones
(UKIP) – 16/1
Vicky Duckworth
(Green) – 100/1
Natasha Millward
(Lab) – 6/4
Martin Turner
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Mike Wood
(Con)* – (
Chris
Kelly standing
(Con)* - 10/11
John Payne
(Green) – 100/1
Stephanie Peacock
(Lab) – 10/11
Dean Perks
(UKIP) – 25/1
Peter Tyzack
(Class War) 200/1
Michael Fabricant
(Con)* – 1/100
Rob Pass
(Green)–Available
on request
John Rackham
(UKIP) – 16/1
Paul Ray
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Chris Worsey
(UKIP) – 16/1
Kevin McElduff
(Lab) – 100/1
Claire McIlvenna
(Green) – 100/1
Gavin Williamson
(Con)* - 1/100
Robert Woodthorpe
Browne
(Lab) – 10/3
Karen Howell
(NHA) – Available
on request
Jeremy Lefroy
(Con)* - 1/5
Keith Miller
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Mike Shone
(Green) – 100/1
Edward Whitfield
(Con)* - 1/100
John Coutouvidis
(Independent) –
Available on request
Sam Hale
(Labour) – 50/1
Andrew Illsley
(UKIP) – 16/1
Martin Lewis
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Wenslie Naylon
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
James Carver
(UKIP) – 16/1
Margot James
(Con)* - 1/4
Christian Kiever
(Green) – 100/1
Pete Lowe
(Con) – 4/1
Mike Harrison
(Green) – 100/1
Liz Hazell
(UKIP) – 7/1
Nigel Jones
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Pete Smith
(Trade Unionist and
Socialist Coalition)
– Available on request
David Winnick
(Con) – 8/1
Derek Bennett
(UKIP) – 10/1
Charlie Fletcher
(Green) – 100/1
Joel Kenrick
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Valerie Vaz
(Green) – 100/1
Pete Durnell
(UKIP) – 20/1
Cath Smith
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
John Spellar
(Lab)* - 1/100
Tom Williams
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Steve Latham
(UKIP) – 16/1
Barry Lim
(Green) – 100/1
Olivia Seccombe
(Con) – 40/1
Tom Watson
(Lab)* - 1/100
Garham Eardley
(UKIP) – 16/1
Paul Ratner
(Con) – 40/1
Mark Redding
(Green) – 100/1
Karen Trench
(Green) – 100/1
Simon Ellis
(UKIP) – 25/1
Darren Henry
(Con) – 12/1
Ian Jenkins
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Emma Reynolds
(Lib Dem) – 100/1
Barry Hodgson
(UKIP) – 16/1
Geeta Kauldhar
(Green) – 100/1
Pat McFadden
(Lab)* - 1/100
Suria Photay
(Independent) –
available on request
Andrea Cantrill
(Green) – 100/1
Dave Everett
(UKIP) – 25/1
Rob Marris
(Lab) – 1/4
Paul Uppal
(Con)* - 11/4
Neale Upstone