Speed was most important of all in the Roman races. Therefore, the wagons were constructed of lightweight materials and weighed only 25–35 kg. The basket itself was braided by thin wooden mouldings and reinforced with leather straps.
The low weight of the wagon gave maximum speed, but on the other hand, the risk of severe accidents became so much greater. On the long sides, the equipage could reach 70 km / h. At that speed, a small pile of sand on the track could overturn the wagon – with devastating consequences. Mosaics show, among other things, how wagons are crushed on the track and cows are trampled to death by the horses after being thrown out of the cart.
The sole rider’s sole protection consisted of a simple leather helmet, knee protection and a kind of corset that sat around the chest. In the end, it was the skill of the individual driver that was his primary protection.
Rome was divided into colours
When Diocles won a race, three-quarters of Circus glowed with rage, while the last quarter’s cheering screamed over the stands. The victory ceremony barely ended until the fanatical spectators demanded that the next race begin, and so it continued all day until the last race was run at the break of darkness.
Then the supporters usually went out celebrating the victories all night long. During the beverage orgies, the various support groups mocked each other, and this, of course, led to fights. One day in Circus, therefore, usually ended in chaos, and the emperor was sometimes forced to put in the guard to restore calm.
Which team the fans cheered on was almost always related to where they lived. Rome was divided into white, red, green and blue neighbourhoods. In many families, racing tipsters used to be the only topic of conversation the days before a big race. Many of Rome’s intellectuals were angry with this fanaticism.
Author Pliny the Younger wrote in a letter: “It amazes me to see a thousand and a thousand adults behaving like children. All they want is to see the horses galloping and to see the men standing in the race carts, and they do this time and time again.
It could have been understood if it was the speed of the horses or the characteristics of the cows that attracted them, but all they are interested in is colour. The all-too-shady influence of a cheap tunic is so enormous, and not only for the vulgar mob ¬ without too many respectable men.”
Pliny simply did not understand the passion or pain experienced by the fans when the favorite team won or lost.favouritery effort was made to secure the victory.
Some supporters even resorted to magic and allowed astrologers to call out curses over competitors.
On a cursed board found in the North African city of Hadrumetum says: “I beg you, demon, whoever you are, to torture and kill the green and white horses of this hour, this day, and that you a collision kills their cousins Clarus, Felix, Primulus® and Romanus and does not leave a sigh in their bodies. “
Poor economy put a stop to the races at Circus Maximus
When Diocles 42 years old retired in 146, he had earned about 36 million sester tier. For that amount, the cousin could have paid all the grain that the inhabitants of the city of Rome disposed of for a whole year. Historians do not know what happened to Diocles since, but it is clear that the races in Rome went on for another 350 years.
As a result of the increasingly poor economy of the Western Roman Empire, the races from the city disappeared during the 500s. After that lay the mighty Circus Maximus, which for more than 500 years had been the scene of some of Rome’s greatest dramas, completely deserted and abandoned.
Win And Play 