John McCain's wife escapes presidential campaign pressure with a trip to Ayr races

SHE has brought elegance and glamour to the race for the White House, helping her husband secure the Republican nomination for the election.

But Cindy McCain, 53, the would-be first lady of the United States, yesterday found herself watching a race of a different kind when she paid a flying visit to Ayr Racecourse.

She jetted in from Kosovo, where she had been witnessing the work of Halo Trust, the Scottish landmine charity of which she is a trustee.

She had been accompanying the charity's director, Guy Willoughby, an amateur jockey, and is due to attend a meeting today at the charity's headquarters in Dumfries. Mrs McCain, who is known to been keen on horses, took the opportunity during her visit to watch Mr Willoughby ride Oliverjohn.

The former beauty queen even had time for a flutter before the race.

"We flew to Scotland for lunchtime and I was riding in the 4:50pm race. It was really an opportunity to have an afternoon off from work," Mr Willoughby explained. "She thought it was great, she had a lot of fun."

Dressed casually, Mrs McCain arrived without fanfare alongside Mr Willoughby, his wife Fiona, Lucinda Russell, a leading horse trainer, and Marilyn Burke, a fellow trustee of the charity, and mingled with the punters.

Prior to the race meeting, Mrs McCain joined her party at the four-star Western House Hotel for lunch, where haggis, neeps and tatties were on offer.

Iain Ferguson, a spokesman for Ayr Racecourse, said of Mrs McCain:

"We weren't aware that she was arriving – she obviously didn't want any special treatment. Having said that, when we realised she was here, I did ask our head of security to keep an eye on here.

"When a few discovered who she was, they went over and wished her and her husband well. People were really surprised to see her here."

Choosing to stand down at the trackside, it is understood that she had a bet on Mr Willoughby's horse, but turned out to have backed a loser, as man and beast came apart at the third jump.

Fortunately, the jockey's tumble did not cause her too much upset, as Ms Russell explained: "Guy knows that he has to be up on his feet straightaway so he doesn't upset Fiona, so there was no time for concern."

She said that Mrs McCain "took a lot of interest in the horses, but most of all I think she just enjoyed the fact that she could relax and not be on duty".

After Mr Willoughby had returned to the paddock, Mrs McCain took a tour of the jockeys' quarters with Keith Mercer – who was nursing a bruised collar-bone and leg following a fall. He took her through the various stages of preparation that riders have to go through for a race.

Mrs McCain's father established several racecourses in her home state of Arizona and she is known to take a keen interest in the pursuit.

She departed the Ayr course with her group at 6pm. She stayed at the Halo Trust headquarters in Thornhill and is due to travel back to Arizona this weekend.

It is not the first time that Mrs McCain has visited Scotland, having travelled here in her capacity as a trustee several times.

It is understood that Mr McCain's mother also has close connections with the country, staying in Edinburgh often.