Books and vidoes for xmas: Game on - but mind your elbows when you're jumping Becher's.

Byline: ed by Robin Gibson

Grand National

(Virtualturf Games, pounds 29.99.

Board game for 2-6 players)

BETTER to be king for a day than schmuck for a lifetime, I've always thought - and there's no better short-cut to the crown than booting half a ton of horse up the Elbow to land the world's most famous horserace.

At least, that's what we're led to believe - but racing fans who prefer to do their sitting on a bar stool rather than on a horse are unlikely ever to know for sure.

For those who want a cosier, altogether more indoor version of the National-winning buzz, help could be at hand with this game - in the tradition of Totopoly and the Really Nasty Horse Racing Game - which introduces novelty by being about 20,000 times smaller than the real thing, and lasting 20 times as long.

Don't actually play it in the pub, though - laminated the constituent parts may be, but just a half-pint of weak lager renders Becher's a quagmire even on firm going, and injudicious grabbing at your drink can have effects further reaching and more violent than any bomb scare.

All this we discovered on a trial run at the Racing Post's local. It also became apparent that the race can take a wee bit long to get going - you must auction between 16 and 24 horses, adjust handicap marks, price up the race and place bets.

After the off, however, it's all go and you might be surprised at your training prowess - even our fourth strings (Flying Tart, Bouncing Czech, Mr Pitiful - you get the idea) went surprisingly well and were only pulled up to hasten the finish at the business end.

A few more thrills and spills would improve it - fallers are rare - but, once the pace hots up, Grand National can get quite animated and the rush to the Elbow is exhilarating.

It's an attractive package with great attention to detail and should provide, if not four and a half miles of fun, at least several hours.

Just one gripe, though. In our sample, one of the horses from `Primrose Lodge' had already unseated before we opened the box - and the hapless rider had done a bunk! I'd swerve the yard completely if I were you.

ROBIN GIBSON

nTo win a copy of the Grand National game, e-mail the name of the 2000 Grand National winner to [e-mail]. The winner will be drawn at random and notified by December 3. Grand National is available to buy online at www.dazzlegames.co.uk

CAPTION(S):

Grand National competitors experience the rush of riding at Aintree. Some are clearly more experienced than others