TROTTING.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 25, 31 January 1928, Page 13

TROTTING.

WHEEL AND TRACK NOTES. (By ORION.) T —— FIXTURES. February I—Nelson Trotting Club. February 4—Chevoit Trotting Club. February 11 —N.Z. Metropolitan T.C. FeDruary 18, 22 —Otahuhu Trotting Club. February 25—Kaikoura Trotting Club. March 2—Marlborough Trotting Club. March 2, 3—lnvercargill Trotting Club. March 3 —Waikato Trotting Club. March 7 —Manawatu Trotting Club. March 8, 10 —Timaru Trotting Club. March 14—Wyndham Trotting Club. March 1">, IT —New Brighton T.C. March 24—Thames Trotting Club. March 24—Wellington Trotting Club. March 29, 31 —Wanganui Trotting Club. April 7, 11— N.Z. Metropolitan T.C. April 7. 9 —Hawera Trotting Club. April 14—Taranaki Trotting Club. April 21 —Te Aroha Trotting Club. April 21 —Ashburton Trotting Club. May 3, o—Forbury Park Trotting Club. M uy s—Cambridge Trotting Club. May 19 —Oamaru Trotting Club. June 2, 4—Canterbury Park T.C. June 9 —Ashburton Trotting Club. June 23, 27—Auckland Trotting Club.

The Auckland trainers who had horses racing at the Hawke's Bay meeting returned to Auckland this morning.

A. Cameron at Mangere is working Gaza and Hauroa. They are not good horses, but will be found racing at the Wanganui and Hawera meetings.

J. Shaw's useful team continue to do all Tequired of them, although none of the horses are being unduly taxed. All bear a bright appearance, and will be ready to go after the money at the Otahuhu meeting.

Gold Jacket looks a picture, and the steady jogging he is being given apparently agrees with the speedy but somewhat disappointing son of Gold Bell. He may make amends next meeting for his failures up to the present this season.

Matters are still quiet at Alexandra Park, but with nominations closing for the Otahuhu meeting on Friday of this week, no doubt there will soon be a livening up of track work. The majority of horses have done plenty of racing, and onjy need a couple of sharp sprints to put them right.

Dundas Boy was thought unbeatable on the opening day of the Forbury Park meeting, but he let his backers down and failed to get in the money. How-

ever, they mustered round him again on the second day, and this time R. Berry's 1 pacer made no mistake, and duly landed the stake.

It was expected that Mr. J. R. Corrigan would win a pood portion of the stake money at the Hawke's Bay meeting, but the only one of his team to win was Hostess. She started a good favourite. The defeats of Mokanna, Queen Elizabeth and Dillbn Huon would be costly to followers of the stable.

W. Clifton would be satisfied with his trip to Hastings with Halgana, as the brown mare won a race and ran second itt another. Clifton will have Master Councillor and Dad's Hope to battle for the. stable at the Otahuhu meeting, and though recent form would not point to them being anything in the nature of surje winners they are liable to get money.

Concliff has a good turn of speed, and this enabled Tomkinson to grasp a chance in the Dunedin Cup to take charge at the end of a little more than a lap from home in a slow-run race, of which the first mile occupied 2.22. They clapped the pace on over the final circuit, and covered the final mile in 2.7 4-5, and the winner broke 1.3 for the final half-mile.

•The Hawke's Bay meeting saw a decrease in the totaiisator returns compared with the fixture of twelve months ago, and it would seem that the club is going to have a hard task to make any headway. No doubt it would be much better if the gathering took place somewhere about the time the Wanga-nui-v and Hawera meetings are held. If these three meetings followed close upon each other, it would be a big attraction to owners.

. Although he has no real money-getters in his team, G. Robertson is putting in a lot of time with his horses. Horizon is looking particularly well, and will be on hand at Otahuhu. This gelding won a race at Te Aroha last season, and promised to win further money, but he lias not fulfilled the promise he gave then. He was backed for good money at the Northland meeting, but would do nothing right, and apparently could not handle the track.

Bonny Logan is proving herself a mucli better stayer than it was thought she would be, and the bay mare is racing well over two miles. Up till recently the daughter of Logan Pointer did all her racing over sprint courses, and she showed herself to be one of the best in the Dominion, being one of the few to go a mile in a race in better than 2.10. In December last she was stepped out at New Brighton in the principal handicaps, and won the big race on the second day, beating Concliff. At Forbury Park last Friday Concliff evened matters up by beating F. Holmes' mare m the Dunedin Cup, and on the second day of the meeting Terence Dillon beat her into sccond place in the Metropolitan Handicap. Bonny Logan is the sort who would be hard to beat in a race like the Otahuhu Cup if brought to Auckland for such a race.

According to Southern writers there was a fine race for the Dunedin Cup, as all the horses began well, and the field raced in pairs till the real trial came over the last furlong. William the Great and Harry Audubon were the early leaders, with Silk Thread, Loganholme, and St. Maura in close attendance. Coming up the straight with a round to go, Tomkinson set Coneliff at it, and he raced past the field. He went out of the straight with a good lead, and when St. Maura tackled him in the back stretch he drew further away. Staying out the journey satisfactorily, the Australianbred pacer won comfortably from Bonny Logan, who went a fine race. Machine Gun came on fast over the last quarter of a mile, and was third, with St. Maura fourth. One of the disappointments of the race was Terence Dillon. Dalnahine showed a lot of speed in patches, and had to cover a good deal of extra ground. Golden Devon did not stay, and Silk Thread seemed very sore, and put no energy into his work. Downcast paced v ery badly, and Harry Audubon soon •topped.

Mr. G. McMillan's pacer, Machine Gun, is racing rather unluckily, and third in the principal handicap each day of the Forbury Park meeting was his portion of the prize. It would seem that the handicappers have just got him ou a mark which is sufficient to prevent him winning.

Peter Fashion, who won the Vauxhall Handicap at Forbury Park, is a fourj ear-old by First Fashion, and when he is thoroughly finished, will make a fine trotter. He is owned by A. Cox, the Aldington trainer, but is trained by V. Alborn, who seems to have practically joined forces, and lie drove Peter r asliion with good judgment.

Lady Ena is rapidly fining down as the result of the long steadv work being allotted her by her trainer at Epsom. The daughter of First Voyage has not raced this season, and apparently she is being got ready to do the Wanganui and Hawera meetings, at which she succeeded in winning a race last season. Lady Lna has a good turn of speed, but m the past has not been the best of staayers. She is possibly improving in stamina now.

Concliff, who looked none too sound and was heavily bandaged on both hind legs, won the Dunedin Cup convincingly. n Tomkinson asked the Australian pacer to go, Concliff dashed past the leading crowd and led the field, °" as though it were no effort. Con°cliff easily beat all the opposition and won with ease. The winner is a most attractive pacer, but he has hardly raced up to expectations since his arrival in the Dominion. When he went sore some time ago, it seemed as though his chance of winning a good race was remote, but his trainer, with great care, held luii; together to succeed.